# Horse board



## Payton Gal (Feb 2, 2021)

Hi there, I am new to this forum so bear with me.
I am looking at buying a lovely horse but the facility I train at has very small paddocks for the horses. However, there is a 30 acre pasture across from my house that also offers board but unfortunately with no riding arena (which is a must for me). Would it be too stressful for a horse to go between two places? It’s only about a ten minute drive but two very different environments. I was thinking I could do a week days at the stables and weekends in the big field type thing. I’m not sure if that is flawed thinking though...Any input would be appreciated!


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## gottatrot (Jan 9, 2011)

No, I think your horse would appreciate having large turnout on the weekends. Some stables will allow you to pay a fee to use the arena, and if you had the ability to trailer in to ride your horse while boarding him in the larger pasture, he would be even better off.


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## Payton Gal (Feb 2, 2021)

Thank you for input! That’s what I’m thinking.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

You may be expected to pay for 2 board bills, one for each facility....
Whether you are their or not full-time, a place is held for your animal...
Pay 2 board bills and neither place should have a great issue....

My only other thought is, yes...your horse will have some issues settling in to a herd if turnout in numbers is done as your animal will never stop having to fend for the pecking order.
Being you're from Canada I associate that with snow and frigid cold temperatures I would want my horse to have shelter of a place to get out of foul weather, so indeed a barn structure with a dedicated stall for protection..
You didn't mention any of that and although "pasture" sounds wonderful, only in saintly weather or there are pitfalls to that too.
As for trailering in to ride or trailering into pasture...that is stressful whether 10 minutes or not and if from the barn over to the pasture....yea, when grass comes in and your horse is not accustomed to being on it free-choice you run risks of sick to much to soon then gone off it only to return it a few days later....

To me, if you want pasture then board their and learn to ride on a grass environment with trailering to ride in a ring for the horses sake, _occasionally._
You also need to be careful of illnesses and having super UTD vaccinations as you will be stressing your horse with so much move here, move their....every-time you go you chance exposure to as you don't control who else has come into or gone from either of those environments either...
Some careful thinking on this as it _*is*_ more complicated for a large variety of reasons than you realize.
🐴...


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## IRideaHippogriff (Jul 19, 2016)

As someone who just moved her horse away from a huge, 3+ acre "ideal" turnout situation, I just want to say they are very commonly not as great as they seem to be. For many horses, they can work out and be great, but from what I've learned huge turnout and herds means daily stressors around resources; it's harder to keep an eye on the care your horse is getting; many horses are just as pleased with a smaller turnout situation or an in-out situation (stalled night, out day), provided they get plenty of time outdoors and exercise.

You would be adding on an additional stressor of your horse having to reacclimate to the herd in some capacity every weekend. I'm just not sure that seems worth it, to me.


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## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

Neither situation seems perfect, and I think I'd need to know more before making a decision. I feel a lot of turnout is always better for the horses' physical and mental health, but 30 acres is huge. What is the herd situation in this pasture? It may be a challenge to retrieve your horse for riding if there are multiple horses that you have to get through. Furthermore, the sheer size of the pasture will pose challenges. That said, it is a great situation for your horse in terms of their physical and mental health. What kinds of shelters are available? Where do they get access to water? Is there enough grass (I don't know where you live) or will they get hay? How frequently is this hay put out and is it put out in multiple areas or in one spot (which could cause aggression among horses).

The small paddock is very undesirable to me. I have had my daughter's horse in that type of situation, and took him out in less than a month because he was living in pastern-deep mud and manure. However, you didn't say whether you mean that there are multiple paddocks (individual paddocks?), how big they are, and how well-kept. In some cases, it can be a good setup, but exercise will have to be provided in other ways, and ideally, slow-feeder nets would be used to keep the horse from getting bored or, if your horse can have free-choice hay, there would be hay available at all times since clearly, there won't be grass in the paddock. 

I'm not sure I understand what you mean about doing both. Would your horse live at one stable during the week and go to pasture on weekends? I don't think that's a great idea for a number of reasons. First, horses thrive on routine. Change is generally not a good thing for them, and can upset their digestive system. Secondly, the horse will constantly be around a different herd (assuming there are other horses in the big pasture). That means more contagion risk, but also, it will be hard for your horse to find his place in the herd hierarchy if he is constantly being moved back and forth.


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## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

gottatrot said:


> No, I think your horse would appreciate having large turnout on the weekends. Some stables will allow you to pay a fee to use the arena, and if you had the ability to trailer in to ride your horse while boarding him in the larger pasture, he would be even better off.


FYI my barn has three arenas and has a policy of allowing people to come in and use them for a fee. However, due to Covid, they currently aren't allowing anyone else in. At some point this situation will end, but I just wanted to put that out there. I think all of the barns in my area have the same policy right now.


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## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

As for having a place to ride, sometimes you just have to make do. My daughter and I live in New Brunswick so we have snow and ice and cold for about 6-8 months of the year. We just ride in it anyway. Because our horses live outside, they are quite sure-footed. I spend some of my time grooming the snow to get the best footing I can, but most days it's fine. The only thing is that in the spring, when there is mud for about a month, we really can't do anything. This is frustrating for my daughter, who competes in shows, but I just trailer her and her horse to an indoor once a week when that happens. The horses still get tons of turnout because we have multiple pastures so I can rotate to the less muddy areas. Trailering to an arena once a week is not as traumatic as living in less than ideal conditions or being shuffled between two boarding situations.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Kate.... I think if you were able to give a size approximation of what "small" paddock is would be fairer to you for comments.
You refer to a pasture situation of 30 acres so in comparison "small" might be an acre or more which in honesty* is* more than adequate space for a horse to reside. 
In fact, an acre sized paddock is far larger than riding arenas commonly used by most.
My barn paddock area is 1 acre with 2 large horses in it...
I can tell you that my horses do self-exercise in that area playing tag and chase with each other often daily.
I also ride in a portion of that area as 140' wide x 200' long is rather a nice riding dimension, and I use a portion of it to do flat work if I not sneak out to the 6 acre pasture closed to grazing right now.
As long as your horse is fed appropriately, is happy and content and looks thriving although "pasture" is nice it also comes with some hidden dangers for some animals....
Before you jump thinking pasture is perfect and great _do your research_ and try to determine if your horse is at risk for health issues if he is placed on pasture 24/7 or if better he had a very managed diet instead...
Beware....
🐴....


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## PoptartShop (Jul 25, 2010)

I'd rather have more turnout than an arena. I don't have an arena at the private barn I'm at, but I make do with what I have. I just ride in the areas on the property & we also have some trails. We have a roundpen I can ride in, but I prefer riding in open areas.

Also, uneven footing can be good for them - it's not a bad thing to not have an arena. I'd say go with the barn that has more turnout/room.


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## AragoASB (Jul 12, 2020)

" although "pasture" is nice it also comes with some hidden dangers for some animals.... "

What kind of dangers?


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

AragoASB said:


> " although "pasture" is nice it also comes with some hidden dangers for some animals.... "
> 
> What kind of dangers?


Guess that was aimed at me since you quoted my comment...........

Have you never heard of metabolic issues? 
Laminitis? Founder?
Not every horse should be on pasture......
Not every horse can handle being on 24/7 pasture......
Not every horse can be popped on for 2 days of pasture then removed for 5, then return for 2 again as the poster makes mention of wanting to do...

_Those Arago, to me are hidden dangers..._ 😉
🐴...


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## IRideaHippogriff (Jul 19, 2016)

AragoASB said:


> " although "pasture" is nice it also comes with some hidden dangers for some animals.... "
> 
> What kind of dangers?


I'd just add human error as well. The ideal I really think is: well, managed pasture for the healthy, sound horse (that doesn't overeat). But from my experience, with all that space bad barn owners can get away with poorer management excuses: "Oh a couple trees fell in the storm, oh well, they can go around; plants with burrs getting stuck in manes/forelock/tails - silly horses for going through those plants; more ticks than you can count feeding on your horse - they're just bad this time of year..." etc. etc. So just have to be on the lookout for that.

Shame on me for not noticing the excuses sooner, but at least I've figured it out. Coralie has a fraction of the space now, but I am 100% sure it's better for both of us.


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## ClearDonkey (Nov 27, 2016)

Before, I'd always wanted as much space as possible for my horses to be turned out on - everyone wants to beautiful image of horses grazing on rolling hills, with as much space to run and socialize as possible. The reality is that many horses truly aren't suited to be on a bunch of acreage with as much grass as they can eat. @horselovinguy mentioned many of the reasons as to why, and they are all very valid.

I have two horses right now, neither of which will ever be able to live full-time on a pasture again. My Morgan mare is an extremely easy-keeper and being a Morgan she is prone to metabolic issues. My senior half-Arabian gelding has a dental disease which can make it very painful for him to tear the grass, so eating a soft hay is a lot easier and sustainable for him. Not to mention, both have the tendency to occasionally give me the middle finger and dash away to play "catch me if you can".

My horses are currently in a small dry lot situation, each paddock is 100'x150'. This is plenty of room for them to run around, socialize, and play in herds of 3. They all get high-quality hay, so they aren't missing out on the grazing/nutritional factor of grazing on a bunch of space. All of the horses can quickly be evaluated for injuries, and their space is kept safe because it's a manageable size for one family to maintain. Of course mud and manure management are important in smaller set-ups like this - and you are heading into the season of mud, which will allow you to evaluate if your current facility is appropriate.

In reality, 30 acres is a super huge space to keep clear of hazards, keep the fencing maintained, and even just keep an eye on for suspicious behavior (especially if it's just one single pasture!). When my horses were still on pasture, even on just a few acres, that's when we experienced awful mud and injuries too. It's hard to maintain acres and acres of property, and my mare found the one low branch that hadn't been trimmed and impaled herself on it.


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## AragoASB (Jul 12, 2020)

Horselovingguy, to me where I live a danger here is cougars. Thats why I stable my horses at night. One is a mini. A cougar was seen on a neighbor's driveway. SW Oregon is crawling with cougars. Fish and Wildlife has cougar density maps. There are estimated 6600 cougars in Oregon. Ever since they stopped allowing hunting with tracking dogs the cat population has exploded. Last year up by Portland a woman was killed and partially eaten by one on a hiking trail.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

I hadn't even thought of the "wildlife" aspect Arago, but indeed that too needs considered.

Here where I live we have panthers, bear, wild boar, many deadly snakes, coyote packs, and other animals, but the worst is humans who steal, slaughter our beloved pets for the illegal meat trade...
There is no way, no how my horse would be on 30 acres of pasture without my eyes seeing that creature easily...
All I know is the Canadian flag indicates where the post came from, but Canda is as large as the USA so no idea of what wild animals are present in the area that also need consideration of safety for the horse{s}...
🐴...


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## Payton Gal (Feb 2, 2021)

Thank you all for your input. A lot of excellent points made. To answer some questions you all have had, the 30 acres is divided into several fenced lots. Ranging from 2 acres to as large as 15. There are 10 horses boarded here. There is a large barn with shelter. There is fresh water, they are fed 2X times a day with the hay spread out in various sections and some horses are given grain/supplements depending on individual preferences. And yes, of course I am aware I would be paying two boarding bills if I wanted to do both. 

I will be going into showing so need to work closely with my trainer. With that in mind, I am opting to board at his equestrian facility with the outdoor and indoor rings. Not as much acreage as the facility close to my condo but I think it will be the best option for now.


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## Payton Gal (Feb 2, 2021)

Just to add to that, excellent points about grass quality, over eating, wildlife risks and risk of injury within such a large space. I think I would be too worried every day/night with all of the what if’s and no one on site 24/7.


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