Pasture

[teacupliz]

Hello-

Having one mini horse now for about a month he has ate what is left out of 4 small pastures. One is hooked to his stall in the barn but very wet and muddy. Pasture 2 is still with some greem but he has not shelter in it. Pasture 3, I would hate to see him wip out completely.. We are going threw some very wet wether. Is it better to Leave him in his stall, let him out to green pasture in the rain with no shelter? Or leave him with the small wet pasture hooked to his stall? Thanks for the ideas? We pick out his feet often at night so they can dry out.

Liz in NY

Teacup Farm

 

[Marnie]

I see your from NY. So I'd say winters about here, the ground will freeze anyway and you do feed hay, don't you? Theres not much in the grass this time of the yr. I'd leave him in the pasture where his stall is. On nice days yet, you could still put him out where he can pick at the grass, they like that but with winter coming, he needs his shelter. JMO.

 

[teacupliz]

I guess I should of added this is just for day time. We stall him in our goat barn every night. He has his own 8 by 8 stall. But in the day I was not sure if walking around in a muddy pasture would be that good for him. Or stuck in his stall... Or being stuck out in a green pasture with no place to hide from the rain is better. Yes, he has free choice hay but prefers browse.

Thanks Liz

 

[Frankie]

Can you make the one small pasture next to his stall a dry lot? Keep him there most of the time and let him run in and out of his stall area? Well, when it dries up. If he has free choice hay, I do not think he needs to spend that much time on the other pastures. It sounds like you may need to keep him off of them, let the pastures recover. With your type of weather, he isn't getting anything from them anyway. I am one who thinks dry lots are important.

He will be fine out in the mud, sounds like you keep his feet clean. If it's that wet, just watch for thrush, he'll be fine.

 

[Marty]

I can't stand the horses slopping around in a lot of mud with nothing to eat but sometimes that is a part of life we have to deal with in certain times of year. You just won't have a green pasture during winter time and to stall him all day long is not healthy either.

A shelter of course is the best thing for him to have access to 24-7. I think it's more important for a horse that is out in the elements to have a dry place to stand and eat and keep his legs and feet dried off as much as possible. I think I would leave him in the place where he does have access to his stall and also can walk around freely too, the place that you said is hooked to the stall. I'd put his hay in the stall so he can come in and eat to be out of the weather and then also be able to go out and walk around too.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

Liz forgive me I am still rolling around at the mental picture of a small paddock hanging off his stall door

"One is hooked to his stall in the barn but very wet and muddy"

It is probably too late to do anything this year but when it is dry you need to get some shingle or, Marty's favourite- Chat, down, and keep it dry. Once it has got wet it is hard to do anything. If you get a chance, if it dries out enough, get the stuff down ASAP.

 

[teacupliz]

I am sorry put what down. you lost me with the Chat and Shingle??

)

Liz

Liz forgive me I am still rolling around at the mental picture of a small paddock hanging off his stall door"One is hooked to his stall in the barn but very wet and muddy"

It is probably too late to do anything this year but when it is dry you need to get some shingle or, Marty's favourite- Chat, down, and keep it dry.  Once it has got wet it is hard to do anything.  If you get a chance, if it dries out enough, get the stuff down ASAP.

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[Black Magic]

We put up a few sheets of privacy fence and a carport thingy overhead. It seems to keep the wind off, and keep the boys dry. I also blanket them if the temps getting cold. I vote put up a roof for him and let him have the grass...

God Bless,

Lynn W

 

[nootka]

We live where it's very wet in winter, and while we are lucky this year to have the access of three pastures totalling two acres or so, that we rotate with, we have in the past had a very muddy "dry lot" that is about a third of an acre for them to "play in" while we rehabilitated our other ruined pastures (overgrazed).

They were not hurt in the least by the muddy pastures. We did try to pick up the worst of the poop, and we fed them in the drier, high ground up on the hill w/their hay.

We brought them in at night, or left them in on particulary awful days.

If the weather dried up enough that the ground was not too sloppy, we even let them out on the recovering pastures now and then for a break.

That said, I am home with my children all day and have the luxury of going out every couple of hours and changing paddocks/turning in/turning out so that noone was left standing in the rain too long if it was bad.

I think your situation is going to be determined by your own assessment of how muddy is muddy. If it's just hoof deep and he can get out of it, he'll be fine.

I think the turnout w/access to his stall is the best option if you can't be home to bring him in should the weather turn nasty.

Liz M.

in the great "Northwet" where it rains upwards of 90 inches per year most years....