How much land do I really need?

[izmepeggy]

I have been boarding my horses since losing my place do to a divorce 12 years ago..Now that I have only my 2 Minis that are 33", how much land do I REALLY need ? I have been looking at houses in my area for sale and wondered if I really need acreage or just a big yard.Thank you for any input.

 

[chandab]

First you'll need to know what your area requires you to have to even have livestock or exotics (some areas consider minis to be exotics, others livestock) in your yard or on your property. It might be 1 acre per animal or it could be 5 acres per animal, you'll have to check with your local zoning laws (it could be a smaller area per animal, you'll have to check).

the less land you have, the more hay you'll need to feed, as it doesn't take long for a couple horses to graze a small area completely bare. You'll have to consider having a drylot/sacrifice area that you know won't have any grass, so that the rest of the area can recover from grazing and hopefully regrow.

For exercise and such, my girls seem to be quite comfortable in their 50x100' lot, but there is no grass in there, its been gone for years. I do have access to more land, so I just move portable panels around to graze my mares; sometimes its convenient and I just have to open a gate for them to graze and other times, I have to halter and lead everyone out to their grazing area.

I'm sure others will chime in with what works for them

 

[Jenny]

I only have one gelding, but our whole lot is about 3/4 of an acre. His paddock (gravel) is about 40x60 and he has lots of room to run around a bit. His pasture (very short grass) is about 60x60, this is just for him to nibble on a few hours a day, he gets soaked hay cubes everyday. I live in a very rural area, not residential, so that makes a difference in how close a horse can be to other houses.

 

[izmepeggy]

Where I board now I can only turn them out while I am there.They have stalls,which I will build where I move.I feed year around anyway so I don't expect them to be out grazing 24/7..And the area I live in is what I would call semi rural..Some places have 1/2 acre where the next house may have 2 or 10 acres.No subdivisions ..Where I live is horse country for sure and we cart and ride in town.So would I just need 1/2 acre or more?

 

[Marty]

I wouldn't go with less than two acres and that would be tight. . Keep in mind that is minus the space for your house and barn, storage area, so it will end up less than that for the horses so before you know it, that 2 acres is going to decrease pretty fast. . You'll need some room to make a dry lot and a couple of extra fields when one is down for maintence, mowing and pooper scooping etc. and when one field needs time to rest. Keep in mind if you don't rotate, you will have a lot more flies and manure to deal with and you'll have parasites to deal with, more de-worming...etc. . You'll still have to feed hay year round anyhow so the bigger the better.

 

[izmepeggy]

I grew up with a cob on a 1/4 acre lot and had a shed with dutch doors where she was stalled.It was never ate down and never a mud hole..My Dad had the yard split into 2 areas.

 

[chandab]

If you can swing it, in the long run you'll probably be happier with a little more elbow room, so I don't think I would look at too much under 2 acres; unless you happen to find something already set-up with barn and fencing on a smaller piece. [Two acres would also give you a little more room, in case in the future, the neighbor decides to sub-divide and you end up with more closer neighbors than you start with.]

 

[Minimor]

For two under 34" minis I would have no problem with a 1-2 acre lot. I wouldn't care to go smaller than 1 acre even though a 1/2 acre pasture may provide plenty of room for two horses.

Even if you are looking at a house in "horse country" do be sure to inquire at the town/county office to find out for sure if there is a minimum size requirement to keep horses. In many places there IS a minimum requirement per horse for new property owners, while long time residents may be exempt from that bylaw because they are grandfathered in. That is the case here--we moved here before tere was any limitation, now I think purchasers are allowed only two animals per 5 acre lot. It was 4 horses per 5 acres and then reduced further to 2 or 3.

 

[izmepeggy]

Good advice everyone and I will take everything into consideration.I do want at least an acre.But also it has to be something I can take care of myself.

 

[izmepeggy]

For two under 34" minis I would have no problem with a 1-2 acre lot. I wouldn't care to go smaller than 1 acre even though a 1/2 acre pasture may provide plenty of room for two horses.

Even if you are looking at a house in "horse country" do be sure to inquire at the town/county office to find out for sure if there is a minimum size requirement to keep horses. In many places there IS a minimum requirement per horse for new property owners, while long time residents may be exempt from that bylaw because they are grandfathered in. That is the case here--we moved here before tere was any limitation, now I think purchasers are allowed only two animals per 5 acre lot. It was 4 horses per 5 acres and then reduced further to 2 or 3.

I weaned my Appaloosa colt at my parents house in a subdivision of nice homes.My Mother was depressed and we were trying to get her out of the house..The neighbors had a fit and called zoning,which came out and told us it was NOT against the law to have a horse in the backyard.But we did have to move the cars off our grass and put them in the driveway..lol..

 

[wingnut]

Our house property is 2 acres. The barn area, dry lot and pasture take up 1.5 acres. The pasture is easily 2x more than we really need, especially when at least one horse can't be on it much of the year (EMS diagnosed). My husband has made some rumblings about redoing the fencing to cut the pasture in 1/2 but I've told him I don't want that.

We have 4 mares ranging from 32-34 inches. We have a 5th horse coming next month. Still plenty of room and pasture for all 5.

 

[izmepeggy]

The property I'm looking at now has 1/2 acre.I could build 2 large stalls off the side of the garage (garage is 24' long) On one side of the property is a small church,On the other is a house with 2 acres.But in the back there are a patch of woods that I may be able to purchase later and clear..The land lays well and I would fence off the front yard and the side also.Where I have them now ( I board) they are only able to get out about 2 hours a day and the area is maybe 1/4 of an acre as it is..I only have 2 Minis.

 

[Margo_C-T]

"They"aren't making any more land, as they say...I'd definitely go with more over less!! More of a 'buffer' against others building too close, more moving-around room for your horses...all kinds of benefits! A couple of acres should be a piece of cake to care for, esp. if the horses can graze it to keep grass growth under control--I am caretaker for 5 times that amount of land; have three minis and a 'large pony sized' mule, who are drylotted most of the time, because this is the desert SW, and most times, not enough rain to grow enough native grass for grazing...JMHO, based on lotsa years of experience!

Congrats on soon having your own place to keep your horses!!

 

[Minimor]

The place you are looking at may work very well, but do check the local regulations--what one town allows is different from another, and a town that allowed something ten years ago may very well have changed its bylaws and will no longer allow the same things now.

Having once had horses on the edge if town (inside town limits) I know what a huge pain it is. Even if no one complains about your horses, a complaint about someone else's can prompt the town council to hassle everyone that has horses within town limits. Been there done that and for that reason would never want to have to keep horses in town again.

 

[2minis4us]

I have 2 minis on about 1/2 acre. That does not include the property our house is on. They have a nice shed with a dry lot attached and I let them out to graze a couple hours a day. They have more than enough room to run aorund and play and I have so much grass I have to mow it to keep it down. The trick is to keep the area clean !

 

[Sugar Baby]

My whole property is 2.3 acres, my 3 minis whole turnout, barn, and 60x100 arena only occupy 1/4 of that, so a little over 1/2 acre. Even with 24 hour turnout there is a very low grass cover on most of the turnout and is mud free in the rainy pacific northwest. BUT my land drains like a colander so I'm very lucky that way. If it didn't drain so well I'm sure I'd need some more room for rotation. We made some nice driving "trails" on some of the surplus area which I like, but the surplus area does require mowing and weed whacking. If I were alone I could not take care of everything, not to my standards anyway.

I also reserve some surplus area for muck pile and stockpile supplies not in use (fencing, gates, T posts, lumber, etc). We have a tractor and other things that take up storage room. So with 2.3 acres I have way more room than I need 3 minis, but it depends on your needs.

Also wanted to add that I have about 1/2 acre of landscaped yard, unless you like yardwork you can can keep the yard portion tiny. I am getting to the point that I wish I had a tiny yard!

 

[romewhip]

This is a totally timely topic for me- I'm moving in a couple of weeks and will have an acre of land. I am thinking of using a little more than a third of it for a pony paddock, and bringing Jake home. It'd be so nice not to board him. The house sits in the middle of the lot, so I can make a little work area on the other side, and still have a nice long strip to fence for my dogs to play in.

I will however let him stay boarded for the winter, which lots of folks actually do here in the miserable cold and rain. Most barns around here are empty in the summer and full in the winter.

 

[2minis4us]

Luckly we do not have a drainage problem and that helps with having the 1/2 acre. No standing water, ever. I am in the Pacific Northwest also.

 

[susanne]

When we first had our horses, we lived in a very urban part of Portland, Oregon. Fortunately, Portland is more enlightened than many smaller cities and towns and has no problem with livestock, as long as they are 50 feet from any house. We had 1/2 acre total, and the horses had a corral that was about 75 x 75, with supervised turnout on the entire back yard, so about 1/4 acre in total. With two horses, their corral was quickly nibbled down to the nubbins, but they were able to graze on the lawn.

What made this work was we regularly (every other day or so) walked them through our nearby city park, which comprised an entire dormant volcano. The size of their corral did allow them to run and play, so they never lacked for exercise or entertainment.

Full sized horses in L.A. live in smaller enclosures than what we had and are perfectly healthy. The key is making certain they are well-exercised, have appropriate shelter, and are never bored. It would be great if you had a friend's farm where they could occasionally go to run free.

 

[targetsmom]

It really doesn't matter what anyone on here says, what matters is the zoning in YOUR town, which may not be the same in all areas. Your best bet might be to find land on a dirt road, or something that OTHER people think is undesirable, but will be just perfect for you. My very first house, that I purchased as a single woman in 1971 had 2.3 acres and a small cape on a dead end dirt road. (It cost less than most cars today). It was perfect for my needs because it was inexpensive, had a small shed I used for housing the horses, there were no near neighbors to complain, and I could trail ride to my hearts content. I also made sure that I had a piece of paper from the town saying that I could keep horses there. I know people who raise minis on 1/4 acre so it can be done IF IT IS ALLOWED BY ZONING.