I was leaving my horses out 24/7. I cowboy can over and said i should stall them at night to keep them from eatting the grass to short. what he said made sense. I am keeping them on a 5 acres pasture and really have limited space for what I have with the cows. I am trying to do intensive grazing. So i went to the day stalls and night pasture. Comments?
barn at night?
- Thread starter jvicars
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ETF
Well-known member
I hate stalling horses. They were meant to be outside and moving, plus that means you need to muck stalls on a regular basis. Instead of stalling them for half a day, have you considered dividing your pasture in half and rotating between the two pastures? Either way you're going to have to bring in hay if you have too many horses for the pasture you have available.
i have a padock up from with goats. i am going to use it when my newest mare gets accepted by the herd. right now they chase her around and she is spooked. I agree stalls seem like a pain overall. Just curious what folks on the board are doing. Thanks.
Jim62
Well-known member
We keep ours in a small paddock during the day, and turn them out at night. There is some grass in the paddock, but not like out in the pasture. They were getting fat. We were told that they pig out worse during the day because the sun makes the grass sweeter. Haven't tried it myself.
jvicars":xkstguys said:
It would appear that you like extra, unnecessary work - i.e. cleaning stalls and rebedding them. :lol: :lol: To each their own! I don't like cleaning stalls so, as far as I'm concerned, it is a very simple matter of evaluating the horses contribution, any special qualities that horse may have (for example, we have a horse whose disposition, and temperament averted a disastrous wreck one day. She is not needed, and she is costing money via hay but, because of her actions on that particular day, she will have a home here until she dies - or until we can find someone whom we trust to properly take care of her) and taking the appropriate action. Either confine them to a corral and feed hay, or sell them - your choice. Something else to think about is this - generally speaking, horses don't make money, whereas cattle do. Harsh? Probably. On a sidenote, I'm not sure if you understand the difference or not, but I would also be careful about 'cowboys' advice. There are cattlemen/women, there are horsemen/women, and then there are cowboys - and cowboys usually don't have a clue about much of anything, except how to talk big and sound important. ;-) Maybe that is not a problem in other parts of the country, but you asked for comments. Here is mine.
i agree with you regarding horse and their value to a small farm. mine are (planned) used on cattle. 1 for cattle and one for the kids who want to learn to work cattle. i really dont want them eatting down a pasture that is really for rotating cows so your right. They are needed to push cattle when my dogs help work them. right now its a matter of the best mangement of my small place. i think i will go to the paddock and let them out at night to limit their ability to eat down grass. I have 3 horses right now. 2 are staying the best cow horse wins. thanks.
branDcalf
Well-known member
msscamp -- Once again you are bashing cowboys. It is obvious you have no experience with these men and women, for whom the welfare of the animals in their care is their professional responsibility. One they take seriously.
As per my PM, I suspect you are misplacing the title "cowboy" on just anyone wearing a hat.
branDcalf":dmefy8cq said:
Apparently reading comprehension is not your strong suit. Isn't that where it belongs? Real cattlemen/women (and horsemen/women) don't need the title of "cowboy" - or the hat, although they may choose to wear it for their own reasons - that is something that is reserved for young upstarts who don't have a clue about what the title entails. They know what they are doing - and have the experience, knowledge, and reasons why to back up their advice.
I normally would not post a reply but I dislike when these threads become bashing or just negative. I assume everyone here is trying to learning something and have geniune question. There is really no reason to get into someone or make general statements about groups in general. There is enough of that behavior in the world and lets give it a break here. Thanks.
ArrowHBrand
Well-known member
I agree!jvicars":3vad484b said:
Now as to your question, our horses are out in pasture all summer, but it's big enough to handle them. As for your situation, do you have a dry lot or paddock you can place them and then let them out to graze a certain number of hours a day? Cleaning stalls plain sucks. Horses are tough and can with stand the elements. Ours are outside all winter too except when it gets really bad such as blizzards or ice storms. Take all advice with a grain of salt and evaluate it to fit your situation. Good luck!
chippie
Well-known member
How many head do you have on the 5 acres?
Keeping the horses in either during the night or during the day won't hurt them. It will add extra work for you.
But if you have a garden, you can make a compost pile with the stall cleanings.
Sometimes, it is good for a horse to learn to be stalled. There are times when it is necessary (ie. being kept stalled due to an injury, or other necessity.)
Also if you know you are going to be working cattle early the next day, it is nice to have your horse in the stall and ready to go to work. It's a pain when your normally in your pocket horse decides that it doesn't want to get caught.
The "cowboy's" advice may really be suitable for your situation.
Keeping the horses in either during the night or during the day won't hurt them. It will add extra work for you.
But if you have a garden, you can make a compost pile with the stall cleanings.
Sometimes, it is good for a horse to learn to be stalled. There are times when it is necessary (ie. being kept stalled due to an injury, or other necessity.)
Also if you know you are going to be working cattle early the next day, it is nice to have your horse in the stall and ready to go to work. It's a pain when your normally in your pocket horse decides that it doesn't want to get caught.
The "cowboy's" advice may really be suitable for your situation.
I think the issue is pasture not the horses. When I have plenty of grass and horses arn't working, they are out 24/7.
From what I understand grass grows 24/7 also. so when isn't an issue. Being in a drought, grass is short. I put my horses in the morning and hay them, then turn them out at night, but day or night doesn't matter.
There are several studies and differing results on this exact subject. Try, watch, and do what seems to work for you in your area. Let us know whats working.
From what I understand grass grows 24/7 also. so when isn't an issue. Being in a drought, grass is short. I put my horses in the morning and hay them, then turn them out at night, but day or night doesn't matter.
There are several studies and differing results on this exact subject. Try, watch, and do what seems to work for you in your area. Let us know whats working.
Just_a_girl
Well-known member
jvicars wrote:
I normally would not post a reply but I dislike when these threads become bashing or just negative. I assume everyone here is trying to learning something and have geniune question. There is really no reason to get into someone or make general statements about groups in general. There is enough of that behavior in the world and lets give it a break here. Thanks.
ArrowHBrand wrote: I agree!
Same here!
Make sure they always have plenty of fresh water.
Won't hurt to try, you can test to see whether stalling your horses works for you, and gives your pasture a little relief. They are your horses, if you're happy with stalling them for awhile, then so be it.
With the drought that we have had, I try to give the pasture as much relief as possible. I stall my horse at night, I do not stall during the day because I may not be around if something should happen while they are stalled.......I also rotate pastures.
Good luck with what you decide to do.
I normally would not post a reply but I dislike when these threads become bashing or just negative. I assume everyone here is trying to learning something and have geniune question. There is really no reason to get into someone or make general statements about groups in general. There is enough of that behavior in the world and lets give it a break here. Thanks.
ArrowHBrand wrote: I agree!
Same here!
Make sure they always have plenty of fresh water.
Won't hurt to try, you can test to see whether stalling your horses works for you, and gives your pasture a little relief. They are your horses, if you're happy with stalling them for awhile, then so be it.
With the drought that we have had, I try to give the pasture as much relief as possible. I stall my horse at night, I do not stall during the day because I may not be around if something should happen while they are stalled.......I also rotate pastures.
Good luck with what you decide to do.
jvicars, cut the 5 acres in half and rotate every 3-4 days. Also as you are in Fla, I would get about 4 bags of rye grass seed and over seed the whole thing. With rotation the horses will still have something green to munch on during the winter. The seed will run about $25/50 pound bag. Try to get it down just before a rain if possible.
Round bales of coastal free range will also help keep the pastures from getting over grazed. If you have the time you could just let them free range on the hay while the rye gets going.
Round bales of coastal free range will also help keep the pastures from getting over grazed. If you have the time you could just let them free range on the hay while the rye gets going.
