# Dry Lot and arena



## Mika (Aug 28, 2019)

Hello! 
Hopefully this is an appropriate place for this question. We just bought our 5 acre property and I want to do next year right to manage my pasture grass optimally. We have 3 horses and probably just over 4ish acres of pasture. The pasture is already gated in the right spots so I can rotate the horses to allow sections to rest and grass to grow. But I know I'll need to dry lot a part in the spring to allow the grass to grow at all. 

I also run equine assisted learning programs. Everything is on the ground, the horses are led through obstacles by teams of 2-4 people. 

There isn't a great place for an arena. There is one large grassy spot that's not fenced - but its a very convenient turn around spot for vehicles that drive down to the barn. I've tried to use thats spot for running my programs but the horses are so tempted to eat the grass there (even if I mow) that its hard to keep everyone focused on what we're trying to accomplish for the day. 

So here's my question. At least temporarily - could I use the dry lot/part of their pasture as the work arena? Or would that be a bad idea? I'm probably just overthinking this, haha. Pros and cons anyone?


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

No reason not to at all if you have another location available to hold the horses you are not using.


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## Cynical25 (Mar 7, 2013)

Go for it!

I don't have an arena and do all my ground-work/lunging/riding in my pasture and dry lot. Other than the extra foot traffic eventually compacting the ground (which happens with 1000 lb animals grazing the area anyway,) there isn't an issue. I do frequently move poles/obstacles to prevent ruts or trails.


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