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Discussion on Pasture Schedule While on Vacation
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Member:
ajudson1
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Posted on Monday, Jun 9, 2008 - 11:02 am:
We will be going on vacation for 2 weeks starting next weekend. During that time, our son will be home to care for the critters. He leaves for work at about 6:20 a.m., and can be home by 5 or so most days. He's not knowledgeable about horses so I try to keep things simple for him and cross my fingers things go o.k.
My original plan was he could let the horses on pasture every evening, say around 8, and then bring them off it in the morning. I figured it's cooler during the night for grazing and during the day they prefer to stand in the open stalls anyhow.
BUT, it's been raining lots and the pastures are really lush, and I worry about them grazing on the lush wet grass during the night.
So the trade off is they graze during the day, the grass might be drier, should be dry eventually, but they graze longer.
No founder or colics ever, want to keep it that way. All 4 horses have put on weight since getting on pasture and I don't like how heavy they look right now, or the "grass bloat" I see in the bellies.
Hay from last year is dusty, dusty/moldy, and I don't trust son to know the difference between good hay, not so good hay, and down right horrible hay.
Anyone, what do you think is the lesser of the 2 evils here? If the grass was less, horses leaner, I'd say let them at the grass 24/7, but man, I hate to do that.
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Member:
dove2
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Posted on Monday, Jun 9, 2008 - 4:30 pm:
How about putting a muzzle on your horses for the night grazing?
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Member:
jowidner
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Posted on Monday, Jun 9, 2008 - 4:46 pm:
Could you use electric tape to make your pasture smaller, but still large enough to be a safe size for four?
For the hay, go ahead and sort out the "good hay" for use while you are gone?
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New Member:
jessam
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Posted on Tuesday, Jun 10, 2008 - 5:08 am:
Hi Angie, Im fairly new to this site, but noticed you are just as concerned as I am when it comes to too much or not enough pasture. I did what Jo Ann suggested. Made a temporary electric tape pen large enough for 4 horses not to get into trouble, and keep them in it several hrs only letting them graze up to 3hrs a day. Just be sure there is a large tub of clean water in there. Or they will just knock buckets over. I bought the muzzels but, I wont leave them on them unattended. They do come off when they roll, and also can come off one ear and then the horse cant drink or anything while its just hanging there. They arent safe enough for me to allow them on when Im not watching them. Also, when its hot and the flys are bad, they get rubbed with sweat and fly bites. Separate the hay too just like JoAnn said. Hope your vacation goes well, and try not to worry. Thats the problem I always have!
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Member:
scooter
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Posted on Tuesday, Jun 10, 2008 - 7:58 am:
Angie, I have been letting mine out when I leave for work during the day and lock up when I come home. I prefer the day turnout, because it is easier, just open gate in the morning. They don't eat as much during the day because of the bugs and heat...which is good . Also if a severe storm blows up in the night I don't have to worry (as much).
They haven't gained much weight with this routine, at night when it's cooler they never stop eating.
Have a good vacation!
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Member:
ajudson1
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Posted on Tuesday, Jun 10, 2008 - 8:10 am:
Thanks for your ideas everyone. Don't want the grazing muzzles, another expense and worry. Have pastures in various sizes already. Sorting the hay, that I should do. I was thinking hord the hay, keep every last flake I can just in case. But wait a minute, it's not the best hay now and it will be worse next winter.
I talked to our son yesterday and I know he's concerned about getting out of the house on time every morning. So I am thinking sorting through the hay, and telling him to let the horses graze during the day may be the solution. There is one small pasture ate way down, and if I mow the weeds again, it won't have much grazing. He can put them their during the main part of the day, with hay as an option. Give them a few hours during late day/early evening of the big pastures.
It's amazing how much thought we put into our horses! Being home all day, I can move them on/off pastures any time I see the need to. And after 3 summers of DrOught, this is new to me; worrying about too much grass!
Now to show son fly spray, fly masks, and the supplement they must get every day.
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Member:
lindas
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Posted on Tuesday, Jun 10, 2008 - 11:19 pm:
I don't know where you live, but here in the Southeast US I put my horses out at night...all night, during the summer and all day in the fall and winter. That way my bald face paints don't sunburn. Just about everybody I know does the same thing. The ones who don't bring their horses in at night just leave them out all the time. No one has complained about any problems. The only time we worry about the grass is in the spring for a couple of months, when we have to deal with the high carbohydrates in the grass. Since my teenagers sleep late on summer mornings, the horses actually don't get in until about 9 am, so they have more like 14 hours on the grass every day. I do not use any grazing muzzles. Last summer we went on vacation and I left them out 24/7 for a week in late July with fly masks to protect their faces. One of my technicians came by once a day to feed, water, administer fly spray and check on everybody. The grass is usually pretty safe in the late summer, especially with cool season grasses, and we did not have any problems. We are planning to do the same thing this year. Of course this depends on the individual horse. I'm not an equine medicine expert, so you might want to check with Dr. O for an expert opinion.
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Member:
lindas
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Posted on Tuesday, Jun 10, 2008 - 11:27 pm:
Then again, I just realized you are leaving next weekend...duh, time for me to give it up and go to bed! It's still really lush spring in June in some areas, although the danger period has pretty much passed for our area. Might be a good idea to just keep them in the smaller overgrazed area, sort your hay and store enough good stuff for him to feed, have him feed them mostly hay and teach him exactly how much grain based feed (if any) to give them so he does not over do it. Then you can gradually reintroduce them to your greener pastures when you return.
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 11, 2008 - 7:27 am:
Angie we never recommend feeding dusty/moldy hay but the suggestion your horses are over conditioned and the lush pasture suggests time in a paddock with some stemmy hay (adjusted to slowly) would do them some good.
DrO
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Member:
ajudson1
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 11, 2008 - 10:36 am:
Of course I don't want to feed poor hay. But if that's all I have I have to make do of course. I will sort the hay, the obvious moldy ones go and I will give my son explicit instructions for shaking out the rest the while the horses are not near by. I checked last night, it appears I have about 60 bales left and the ones I checked briefly didn't appear as bad as some I ran into over the winter.
Linda,
LOL! I normally try to do any posting on here early in the morning, and sometimes I wonder what the heck did I really say there? OOPS, not awake yet! It's worse if it's before bed.
I am going to have my son give the horses hay for the day time. I'll have him put it in the grazed down pasture so it's there if they want it and if it is out all night, it will help with the dust. Especially since it seems we are living a rain forest! They can be away from all grass and hay during the over night hours, access the short grass/hay while he is at work, then graze the longer grass in the evening for about 4-5 hours. I do have a dirt paddock but it's so muddy right now I hate to leave them in there too much either. Let's see, hoof troubles, from being too wet, colic or founder or obesity from too much grass, coughing or heaves from dusty hay.
Which, btw, is mostly alfalfa, not very stemmy as it's from new fields last summer.
Oh crap, why don't I just stay home?!
Thanks for your suggestions everyone.
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Member:
erika
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 11, 2008 - 3:58 pm:
Noooo! Don't stay home!! Put 'em in the car with you if you have to!
I'm looking forward to seeing you in Kansas!
Erika
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Member:
lindas
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 11, 2008 - 6:00 pm:
With all the preparations you have made I'm sure everything will be just fine. Go on and have fun. Leave the vet's number in case of any problems. I wish everybody would make such careful plans for their animals when they are going to be gone.
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Member:
ajudson1
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 11, 2008 - 7:39 pm:
I'd love to put 'em the car! Heck, the way my spring of NON riding is going, maybe I'll get to ride in KS? Bring Cody for me to ride, Tango for Denny to train, yup, sounds good!
Now, if Willow stops acting like her hind quarter is hurting, (It was, but seems better) I get the final pasture prep done, food made for number one son who is staying home, laundry allll done, ya right... Oh, sigh, it never ends, I DO need this VACATION!!
Linda,
Don't worry, I leave all kinds of numbers for any one horse sitting to call if they have questions and a good hand full of horse folks who will stop in if non horse knowledgeable son has concerns. The vet is probably the last person he'd ever have to call. I suppose I could show him how to ask on HA if he has any questions?  Of course he'd start talking motors, and Ford trucks and forget all about horses!
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Member:
zarr
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 11, 2008 - 10:01 pm:
One suggestion do more than one practice run with son! Watch from the house and let him do the chores on his own. Strange things pop up at these test runs and you'll be there to help! Yes been there done that! Good Luck and have fun in Kansas! Cindy
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Member:
ajudson1
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Posted on Thursday, Jun 12, 2008 - 8:42 am:
Cindy,
Boy did you get that right. "More than one practice run." Last night I asked him to get the horses off the east pasture. This means getting them back to the dry(HA, mud) lot by the barn. A gate to go through, the round pen to go through, another gate to go through then all kinds of gates need to be shut. Horse Guard fence gates.
I knew the horses would ignore him, so eventually he got some pellets and they came in for that. He said he dumped the pellets on the floor of the 2 stalls! Now what do you think happens when you dump pellets in 2 stalls with 4 horses? Grrrr.
So, of course I had to go out and double check everything. Fencer wasn't on. One stall not latched at all. 2nd stall the latch was slid through the other part, but the latch wasn't flipped down.
So, before leaving, I will take all tack, tools and anything else that a horse can destroy or get hurt on, put that stuff in the tack room. And put some kind of barrier up so the horses cannot get in the main part of the barn. Too many of my horses know how to slide doors open, and I've had them loose in the barn myself when I turned my back for a few moments and stalls were not latched because "I was right there."
Son is a wonderful young man, (almost 20) but, I tell ya, I'd like to kick his butt when it comes to this! He has as much horse sense as I have truck sense, lol!
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Member:
zarr
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Posted on Thursday, Jun 12, 2008 - 11:19 am:
Angie, laughing and in tears Yup thats it! Make him do it again Trust me! Mine was 17 the first time and my Avon lady called me at the beach and asked did I know there was a huge party at my place?
They try hard but just don't see things as we wish they did! Mine is now 36 and I still pray!! Lord let him get it right! Cindy
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