# Number of Animals for 3 Acre Pasture



## grayshell38 (Mar 9, 2009)

On a good year, two horses will do well on a 3 acre pasture here. They won't eat it down completely, but it isn't tall either. I had three horses on three acres before and it was not pretty. It was pretty constantly grazed down. I would definitely not suggest that many animals on it if they are not at least being put in a dry lot area at night/a few days a week.


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## Koolio (Apr 7, 2010)

As far as physical space goes, the 3 acres should be fine. If you hope to feed all your animals on this space, it depends on much more than just the size of the pasture. Soil quality, native plants, weeds, drainage, erosion, weather and how you manage the land will all impact how many animals a pasture will support. Three acres with the number of animals you have described will need to be managed carefully, but it is doable.


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## RiverBelle (Dec 11, 2012)

I have horses and pygmy goats that run together. I don't know if you go out and clean up the horse poop every week or not, but we don't. So, there are clumps and bunches of tall grass/weeds that the horses don't eat. So, the pygmy goats go in and clean that up. So with the horses eating the grass and the goats eating the weeds/tall yucky stuff, the pasture will be even and you wont have to mow it down.

I know that doesn't answer your question really, but I think if you have the horses and the goats together, your pasture will be in decent shape


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

BadWolf said:


> Would that arrangement last for about 6 months or would it ruin the grass?
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


If they have hay available to supplement the grass, they won't ruin it. On smaller places, the grass actually suffers more from the foot traffic than grazing.


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## maura (Nov 21, 2009)

It all depends in how you manage it. If you pick up manure regularly in combination with dragging or harrowing, and mow aggressively during the growing season, yes, it's doable. You would be better off cross fencing the area so you could rotate and rest the grazing. You'd be better off still if you had a small area where you could lock all the animals off the grazing when it was especially wet, or if they were in a stall or shed for part of the day.

This question gets asked often, and in a lot of different ways, but the answer is always "It depends." Depends on the initial condition of the pasture, how you manage and maintain it and a host of other factors. My general rule of thumb is the smaller the area, the more labor intensive and more expensive it is.

I'm not sure I would want to do what you're proposing, I think given the cost of supplementing hay and grain, you'd end up losing money on the calf, as you'll be paying for every pound you put on him. Raising a calf makes sense if you can put the weight on cheaply. And your scheme is a little labor intensive for my taste, you're going to spend a lot of time picking manure, dragging and feeding. Just my opinion, your mileage may vary.


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## BadWolf (Oct 12, 2012)

We have the option fencing in another acre with a few strands of electric.... It wouldn't work for the goats, but if we moved them between the horse pasture & the dog run to keep that grass down and give the new acre to the calf.... That might do it. 

Will electric only keep a calf in?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## 96FruitLoop (Feb 27, 2013)

If you want to use electric tape or wire for the calf, you'll at least want to put in solid wooden fence posts for it, and use 4 strands.


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## kassierae (Jan 1, 2010)

We have 15 horses on 2.25 acres split into two pastures and one small pen. There is no grass, hasn't been in 16 years, but they get hay. Granted, nine of them are minis, and it is tight, but doable. We keep manure picked up as best we can in the smaller areas and twice a year the farm down the road comes and takes the manure pile away. We are trying to cut down on bigger horses, though. Two are for sale, one may be euthed in the fall and my gelding is going to the trainer in July.


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## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

What are your local zoning laws concerning acreage requirements for livestock? Until you determine that, all the talk about what kind of fencing and how to manage manure is useless.

Where I live, the requirements are 3 acres for the first animal and 1/2 acre thereafter for each additional animal. Which means on my 5 acre place I can have 5 livestock animals.


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## Delfina (Feb 12, 2010)

If the calf is being pastured alone..... NOTHING will keep him in. Cows abhor being alone. With buddies and plenty to eat, cows will stay in some really, really crappy fencing though! 

My kids forgot to shut the gate to the cow pasture the other day, the bull and steer never noticed and they walked past it to the auto-waterer at least 3x!


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## BigGirlsRideWarmbloods (Mar 28, 2010)

In addition to zoning laws check with your local Conservation District. I know in King County, (The county Seattle is in), you can get waivers to allow more animals than zoning regulations allow, if you implement some basic environmental best practices (Which they will some times give you money to do!!). I live on 2.5 acres and by having the county come out evaluate my property and give me some pointers, I can now have twice as many animals, plus I got $1500 last year to rehab my pasture and turn outs. This year they're paying half of the cost to cement my manure area!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## tim62988 (Aug 30, 2012)

96FruitLoop said:


> If you want to use electric tape or wire for the calf, you'll at least want to put in solid wooden fence posts for it, and use 4 strands.


 
going to have to disagree with this one

my opinion the goats would be harder to keep in, just like a horse, once a calf learns electric as long as there is food and the fence is good they will stay in


our main fence around the calves is 3 strands when first let into a 3acre piece, but once they have gotten used to it they go into a single strand electric fence with metal posts, and then we do a poly wire with fiberglass posts to section off for rotational grazing the calves 


the biggest thing: build a good fence, buy a good fencer, and keep the brush off of it


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## BadWolf (Oct 12, 2012)

Thanks everyone for your help.

Between your input and talking to my Popa (grandpa), we have a solution:

- Pygmy goats in the fenced yard around the house, may expand if we get good tax money back
- Calf is in the shed for now, cozy warm
- By the time the calf is ready to be turned out, we'll have another acre(ish) fenced in with wood cut from Popa's farm (aka free posts)
- Later in the summer, if we need to split the pasture from 4 acres down to 2 & 2 to rotate them through it, we will have the money for more fencing, a gate, and another water trough

Ta Da!

Thanks


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## GarretKaylaShi (Jan 7, 2013)

It's an ok size! I don't know if the grass will hold up for all of them, but if you don't let it get to high, if will have more nutritional value in it. You may have to feed hay, but I think you should be ok.


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