Keeping Horses (horse care)

[~*Mango*~]

Hi im ~*Mango*~

I love horses and am loaning one at the moment. I can walk trot and canter. I hope to start jumping very soon as i have spoken to my instructor about it. I spend many hours a week with horses and know LOADS of things about them and how to care for them and the symptoms of some illnesses. I would LOVE to own one of my own oneday but as we have a ristriction of money and space (not time or commitment - lol!) but i just want to know the answers to the following so that i know what the chances of actually owning my own horse is. Here are the tings i really want/need to know the answers to:

1) What do they mean by 'can be kept in/out' do they mean that the horse can b stabled and never see grass, or it can be in a stable sometimes and in a field sometimes.

2) If a horse is kept 'in' can its be kept in a sort of courtyard place where there is plenty of hay and water and a sheltered bit? because i think this is the only way i will be able to keep a horse of my own because i saw 3 really really nice ones in this fenced courtyard of about 20metres by 10metres and wondered if that would be too small (just for one horse).

3) Do horses HAVE to have grass in their diet or can they just eat hay and feed from the shop and water?

4) If you did keep a horse in the stable all the time would it be ok to let it out to graze once a day or would that be nescesary?

5) Do you think it would be ok if my routine went like this (this is for one horse to be kept in a smallish fenced courtyard - if you can do that!)
6am - get up
6.30am - feed horse
6.45am - muck out stable area (including daytime space - the fenced courtyard)
7.15am - groom the horse, check for injuries, broken fence pannels, leave hay available, fill up water etc.
7.45am (ish - probs later) - go bak inside, get ready for skl.
8.15am - go to skl.

AT SKL

4pm - check on horse, maybe give it food and refill water.
4.15pm - check horse for injuries.
4.30pm - go back inside do chores, homework/corsework, eat dinner.
5.15pm - tack up and ride or (can u tell me if you have to do both or if you can do either) take out for LONG graze on long grass.

I would really LOVE to own a horse and think that this is the only way possible with money and space as restrictions as my dad really likes horses which is a really good thing cos it boosts the chances of me having my own. Please could you let me know if there is anything i have missed and if all of the above are correct/possible.

If you are going to reply can you PLEASE answer all of the things above? thanx very much!

Maisy
(~*Mango*~)

[lynz+ollie]

1 -- can be kept in/out usually means that the horse can live in the stable (but can be turned out during the day) or be turned out 24 /7
2 -- if the horse needs to live in it usually means it needs what a stble will give (shelter, quiet place to sleep, feed availible ect) most horse wouldn't want to live on there own though. but what you said should be big enough for 1 horse as long as the shelterd bit is big enough. aswell you might want to bit that you could put some straw down as a bed. but most horses need company!!!
3 -- a horse probably could live without grass if his diet was specially made, but most horse need the grass as it has vitamins and minerals ect. the saying is that 1 horse need 1 and a hlf acrs and then every other horse need one more on top of that.
4 -- it would deffinatly be ok to let the horse out to grase a lot of horses go a bit nutty if they are in the stable all the time, it would be nice to let them strentch their legs and get there energy down before you ride
5, your rotine sounds fine. you could ride and take out to graze.

it all sounds possible, but it really depends on the horse you get, you will need to get a very laid back horse if they are not getting much turnoutand you might need to get them a little friend, you can get a shetland / donkey / retired horse cheaply or on loan.
as long as the coutyard is safe this should be ok, but you need to really think about this, do you own / rent your own grazing as your horse will be a lot happier with grazing :(

remember most horses need turnout and company. the courtyard bit would be fine for winter and nights or when ever but you might want to think about getting grazing

[notpoodle]

hm would the horse be on its own in this courtyard? they need company :) personally, i would leave the horse out in the field, at least during the day, they're much happier and nice to be around when they get to hang around the field doing the grazing thing with their mates :)

julia
x

[Wally]

Any horse can be kept out, they NEED to be out at grass, and NEED to be with another horse, it's what keeps them sane and easy to ride. IT's not just the feeding of grass out in the field it's the whole mental stability this brings to a horse. It is as close to his natural environment as ,an can come and still ask him to be domesticated.

You cannot keep a horse stabled all the time, he will become ill, They have to be turned out for a few hours a day. If you do this you can be sure you'll have a fitter, healthier horse. Stabled horses attract HUGE vet bills. IN the wild they move over B+VAST areas. Even in Shetland a tiny 34 inch pony can move 15 miles in a night grazing. They are built to be out and moving constantly.

It is possible to keep them in a grassless paddock, with a friend to keep them sane, they need hay and water all the time, unless they are too fat. What they need is space and freedom to roll and eat from the floor, not in a net or rack, their jaw is designed to eat from ground level.

20m X 10M is the minimum yard space I'd want for a horse, provided he was ridden daily and had comapany in the shape of a donk or mini pony. It's the walking round they need, not the grazing necessarily but the free space to walk about.

[courtingbella!!]

hi i was just wondering what exactly to feed my horse i am agisting him at the moment in south australia and am missing him alot mum has said that we will get him over here ( tasmania) in february 2005 as we will have the stable up and it will be warmer for him but i have never had to feed him as we havent had him at our house , you see the deal is that we just moved over here and have the paddock up and am just wondering what to feed him when he does get over here and also with our stable is it ok to have a concrete flooring then a thick layer of sawdust ! thanks