# What do I need to do to pasture to make it home for horses?



## ma23peas (Apr 13, 2007)

We're very new to horses...as a child I took riding days out at a local farm and that's about it. My daughters (8 & 9) have been taking lessons for 7 months and it's got me hooked. These aren't typical lessons, they last 2-2.5 hours and they are exposed to a lot of horsemanship and care. We went to a Parelli tour and liked that style of training...working on the first level with the girls.
We're now trying to sell our subdivision home to get some land, found a perfect home with 5 acres. It used to be pasture land by the looks of it, not a tree on the entire 5 acres. We would like to have 2-3 horses in about 3 years (want plenty of time to be around horses before committing) and have time to build a barn/stall structure as well as put up fencing. Before I commit, I'd like to know the prep work and potential costs involved.
1. Over a 3 year period can I build a good pasture for horses (we live in North Alabama)...the horses we're looking at would probably be walking horses (but not used for show, our instructor raises them and she has the best mannered horses I've ever seen..works with them from birth on) 
2. Any recommendations for stall structures? fences?
3. Do I need to plant trees for shade for the horses? It gets hot here in the summer. What trees would be good rubbing posts for them?

We homeschool our children, so we're looking at this as an arm of their education and a lifelong commitment...we don't go into this lightly and want to be as responsible as we can.

Thanks for any tips/pointers/suggestions you have.

Tara


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## mxgasa (Mar 29, 2007)

I would suggest you start reading, if you haven't already.

There are several books about horses and horsekeeping that would be helpful. One of the many books I have been reading is titled "Horsekeeping on a Small Acreage" by Cherry Hill. You can get it from Amazon.com or just about any book store. I actually got mine from a Tractor Supply store :wink: 

Another good book is: "Stablekeeping: A Visual Guide to Safe and Healthy Horsekeeping (Horsekeeping Skills.) by Cherry Hill

My husband is reading "Horses for Dummy's" by Audrey Paiva and it is full of good stuff too!

All in all I think I purchased 9 books on horses and mules! I like to learn all I can about a subject. :lol:


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## ma23peas (Apr 13, 2007)

Great! Thanks for the book suggestions, that is a great help! I think I read over 50 books on homeschooling before I finally took that plunge...helped me immensely..I rely on referrals for books rather than hitting everything out there...yours will help greatly!
Thanks!
Tara


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