Yearling-sheep-fencing-advice please.

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FairyLights

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Hello, I'm a new poster and have registered because I could do with some help and advice.
Many years ago I sucessfully kept my anglo-arab x welsh mare on a sheep farm,alone apart from a few hundred sheep. By alone I mean no other horse companions. She lived apparently contentedly this way for most of her life. I havent owned a horse of my own for some time,but have quite a lot of experience with youngstock and older horses. I am now in a position to have my own horse again.
I live on a small holding and we have a few sheep. I have been offered a yearling which I like very much indeed and would like to have. My concern is our fencing and lack of horse companionship.
Boundry Fencing, its mature hedges with sheep netting . We need to keep this to stop our sheep squeezing through any gaps and also to stop neighbours sheep gaining entry. Its in good condition,quite new,tight and well fenced. We intend running a length of electric tape along the top of the posts to stop the yearling rubbing,leaning over and so on.
Our other fencing is just plain sheep netting ( the square stuff,also called pig netting). We have a 3 acre paddock a 2 acre paddock and another about 1 acre. the netting here will have wooden rails fixed,so in effect its post and rail with sheep netting. we can also run electric tape along the top and sides to stop both the yearling and sheep rubbing on it. [they have other areas to rub on,the building side for example.]
I would like to remove all the sheep netting but it just isnt possible ,we'll have our own and the neighbours sheep everywhere.
What do you think? Should the yearling be alright? The paddock corners will be railed off ,so they are rounded.
Secondly,companionship. I am not in a position,time wise ,or space wise,to have 2 horses. Also theres the question of leaving one alone when my yearling goes to shows or goes "walkies". Do you think he will bond with the sheep like my old mare did? Will he be alright? or is it cruel to denigh him horse company. Most of the farmers round me keep a hunter in their sheep fields all summer and they all appear to be ok.
Your thoughts please and thankyou for reading such a long post.
 
My concern with sheep netting is that its very easy for a youngster to put a foot through it which can result in a very nasty injury.

I would want to run an electric fence about 1m in from the fence to stop this happening.

I personally would not want to keep a youngster with other equine company, preferably one his own age and an older one to show them how to behave.
 
eggs said:
I would want to run an electric fence about 1m in from the fence to stop this happening.

I agree with this.



I personally would not want to keep a youngster with other equine company, preferably one his own age and an older one to show them how to behave.

I also agree with this very strongly! An older horse to keep the youngster in line (not bully) and to teach them horse 'manners' is very important to their development.
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Would you be able to have two horses?
 
I would be happy to keep horse on its own with only sheep for company.......we have very successfully over the years.

I can see what you mean about fencing being a worry.....I wouldn't be so concerned about proper well sprung sheep fencing,but my concern would be the pig fencing (large square one).

Mind you,your not putting in little paddocks,you're putting in decent acreage,so I would probably go for it.

I wish you luck and let us know how you get on.
 
All our field are sheep fencing topped with barbwire. Not ideal but it's rented land and with 20+ horses over 15 years there's never been a problem.

As for keeping a youngster (or any horse) on their own - never ever even consider it - I personally think its a horribly cruel thing to do to a herd animal. Every horse I've met that has lived on it's own seems depressed. And produces all sorts of subtle behavioral problems and inability to socialise properly later on.
 
Kallibear said:
All our field are sheep fencing topped with barbwire. Not ideal but it's rented land and with 20+ horses over 15 years there's never been a problem.

As for keeping a youngster (or any horse) on their own - never ever even consider it - I personally think its a horribly cruel thing to do to a herd animal. Every horse I've met that has lived on it's own seems depressed. And produces all sorts of subtle behavioral problems and inability to socialise properly later on.
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I have had more problems keeping some of mine in a herd lately!! :)
 
Kallibear said:
As for keeping a youngster (or any horse) on their own - never ever even consider it - I personally think its a horribly cruel thing to do to a herd animal. Every horse I've met that has lived on it's own seems depressed. And produces all sorts of subtle behavioral problems and inability to socialise properly later on.
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Hello Kallibear, I wouldnt keep a horse,young or old on its own either. The yearling will have sheep for company. I know older horses sucessfully live with sheep,several around me on other farms and I have kept a mare that way in the past,on a sheep farm.
 
Sheep don't count as company. They don't groom each other. They don't play with each other. They don't stand nose to tail, dozing, in the sun. They don't even graze the same type of grass! Sheep will be a type of subsitute but no more than a teddy bear for a lonely child.
 
Useful replies here with food for thought. I have considered getting a companion equine. My reservations are the companion would have to be left alone when the yearling goes for walks or goes to shows. I know 2 horses kept together get terribly stressed if one is removed. The other reason is so the yearling wont be cornered and kicked,chased and so on into or through the fencing. Sheep tend to graze calmy together and should have a stedding influence.
I do take on board what everyone is saying though,in an ideal world I've have a mini-herd but that just isnt going to happen.
Another thought was to get a companion another youngster,then when both are,say,four years old sell it,put my horse in livery for a while then return him to my place to live with the sheep ,like all the neighbouring farmers do.
I'm not criticizing anyone BTW, I'm just looking for ideas,thoughts and input,and can hopefully come up with a doable solution which will work for me,so that I can become a horse owner again.
 
I'm sure it will be fine! i brought a 18 month old gypsy cob last summer, who lives with my flock of sheep, and they are his only companions, he is very attached to them, and when they went into labour, he stood watching them all night. After that they've been in seperate paddocks- due to the young lambs, and he hasnt been at all distressed.

Not too sure about the fencing though, it would be a good idea to run some electric fencing in from the sheep netting, just to save accidents!
good luck. x
 
yep she was our first homebred.....now 22 and lives at my mums as a pet on her own (with sheep).

She has been on/off on her own since a 3 year old......no problem.
 
This is most encouraging! and Thankyou for your reply. I really do not want two or more horses,even temporararily, various reason for this. here is no decision set in stone yet and I am very interested to hear of others successes with youngstock living with non-equine company. I know of a weanling which lived with cows until he was 4. He thought he was a cow I expect.
I intend grooming my yearling daily,so he will be scratched in that respect,and I myself was an only child, I think teddies are good companions. Maybe the yearling will bond well with me as well as the sheep. I'm only thinking out loud here. The obvious is another horse,but that can lead to more problems than it solves,needing twice the time as well as money , and I wouldnt want either distressed by taking one from the other.
The fencing is a different issue. Electric tape seems to offer a solution. I will make further enquiries about how local people's horses, get on with it .
Thanks to all who have taken the time to read and reply.
 
My youngster is very close to me, therefore i find it very easy to teach him new things! I find him living with the sheep is a better option because they are cheaper than another horse, and he also does not run the risk of getting kicked/bullied etc. ! Plus he loves all the attention he gets, as i can spend alot more time with him, than if i had two!
 
charlieandblue said:
My youngster is very close to me, therefore i find it very easy to teach him new things! I find him living with the sheep is a better option because they are cheaper than another horse, and he also does not run the risk of getting kicked/bullied etc. ! Plus he loves all the attention he gets, as i can spend alot more time with him, than if i had two!
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Thats EXACTLY what I was thinking. I'm so very very pleased to hear of a succesful story. I'm feeling more positive about the possibility of taking on a youngster now. Sometimes the more you know the worse it gets,so much to weigh up and consider.
 
I would be very, VERY careful keeping a yearling on its own. Not because it'll be lonely but because it needs to be taught manners and sheep can't teach it this.

I know you think you'll be able to teach it manners yourself, but I have the bruise to prove that you CAN'T, after being trampled by my yearling and ending up in hospital. She nearly cracked my skull open.

A week later, she's in with my older mare, who has already taught her manners and she is MUCH better behaved. Like, much, MUCH better.

I'm just not sure you could do it without a horse to teach him manners. Sorry. If you have the grazing, could you get a companion? WHW were amazing (in fact, thats where my youngster comes from!!)
 
Hi, you mentioned that you may be putting your youngster on livery when he is around 4 years of age. Would it be possible to put the youngster in livery now until he has grown up some more, you could find a livery yard that also has youngsters for him to be kept with. You could then bring him to live with you when he is a bit older/ has learnt some manners/ been able to play with youngsters/ may be a bit more sensible with fencing and may settle more readily with sheep. Just an idea- hope everything works out for you :)
 
I brought my youngster from a dealer, and he hadnt really been handled, but was bullied when he was in a field with a stallion and mare, so pretty much everything he knows now, ive taught him myself! and he is my first horse :o probably not the best choice- i know. ive suffered a few injuries from my horse, but none due to his manners! :) This could be due to his laid back attitude, and i know all horses arent the same.

I have the same problem, due to cost, school, space, time etc. i just cant have another horse, but the 11 months hes lived with the sheep, hes been perfect. :)

horsesforever1, feel free to PM me if you like :D
 
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bryngelenponies said:
Hi, you mentioned that you may be putting your youngster on livery when he is around 4 years of age. Would it be possible to put the youngster in livery now until he has grown up some more, you could find a livery yard that also has youngsters for him to be kept with. You could then bring him to live with you when he is a bit older/ has learnt some manners/ been able to play with youngsters/ may be a bit more sensible with fencing and may settle more readily with sheep. Just an idea- hope everything works out for you :)
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Yes good point,this was our first prefered method of horse keeping but we just cannot find a livery yard near enough to us with decent fencing,not overstocked,winter turnout whatever,you name it at least 1 of the yards visited has an issue of somekind,for example lovely safe yard but 1 hour turn out a day in winter into the sand school,another with year long grass turn out but terribly overstocked with DIY ,lots of horses coming and going,a recipe for accidents.
In the end we decided at home was preferable to it all.
 
a yearling needs other horses. whether older horses are truly content with non-horse companions is debatable but a youngster needs other horses.

It is possible to find companions that are ok on their own. I have a loan pony who's main job in life has to be a field mate and a travelling companion. He's quite happy left out for a couple of days when we go to shows/clinics. of course, even little horses have needs and add to costs but I really wouldnt consider keeping a horse by itself.
 
Even if you are not concerned about him being lonely (and I would be), what do you imagine will happen when you try to introduce a four year old who has lived alone for three years onto a livery yard? He needs to learn to interact with other horses in an acceptable way, and neither you or the sheep can teach him this.

I'd have reservations about keeping an older horse alone, though I know some accept sheep as companions. But young horses need to play, and learn social skills, with other horses.

Thus us overdramatic but it makes the point: ever heard the myths of children raised by wolves?
 
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