# How Many Horses Can You Have On 10 Acres?



## ForeverSunRider (Jun 27, 2013)

How many do you think?

There's a horse farm a couple miles from my house and every time I drive by I'm just amazed at how many animals they have on their property.

I believe their property is 10 acres. 

I always understood you needed 1 acre for your first horse and .5 acre for each additional horse. That's like a max of 20 horses. 

These people have close to 60 horses on their property and I'm just curious if that's enough space for the animals. 

I never see people there. There are lights on at the house and trucks in the driveway when I drive by but I've never actually seen a person riding or tending to the horses or walking to or from the cars.

The horses appear to be in average condition. None are in stellar shape, but none are starving or anything and there's always a large round bale in both of their pastures. They appear to look like untouched, fed horses. None have bad hooves and none appear ill. 

That being said, the maximum pasture space they have has to be like 3-4 acres. The rest of their property is a hay field. 

The animals just look packed into the pasture is all. 

Just curious if it's okay to keep them so close together or what. 

We have 6 acres and 2 horses so seeing 60 on 4 acres seems a little extreme, you know?

But maybe I'm just reading too much into it.

Another thing that concerns me though is the fact that they have very rundown looking barb wire fencing. On the way home from church one day my dad slammed on the breaks and my mom ran out to help a horse that had its hind leg caught in the fence and was stuck rolling on its back. 

The fence and the space makes me wonder. Is it okay to use barb wire fencing for horses? And is it okay to have 60 horses on 4 acres?


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

It depends on the laws where you live. I have 10 acres and have no limit to how many I can have. I wouldn't have 60, did 40 once for a little over a year won't do it again. If you manage them properly you can minimize the impact on the land, basically you'd keep them all in corrals or mare motel stalls, and they would not be permitted to roam freely. You'd have limited turn out and you'd have to be scrupulous about picking up after them. So, it could be done. I wouldn't want that amount of work. I'm down to 10 horses now and trying to sell a couple more. I'd love to get down to 4-6 horses, that's no work at all by comparison. 

Barb wire is not good horse fencing material. Sometimes you have to live with what is there though, while you try to save up the money to replace it with better.


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## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

The honest-to-goodness correct amount is five acres per piece of large grazing livestock (cow, horses) on good grazing land.

It's been that way since I was a kid and is still that way because I called my Ag guy and asked him This question has come up so many times on various forums, I thought maybe the absolute correct thinking had changed but it hasn't. There is a limit, however, as there is with anything in this life.

What you describe sounds like a big health and safety issue for those horses and possibly yours, if they pick up any air-borne diseases.

How are those horses staying in good health and what do they have for a water source?

Are they separated in pens big enough for them to get some sort of movement/exercise?

I was raised in a whole different environment than many horse owners. I am sorry but I just cannot wrap my head around permanently keeping a large number of horses on a small amount of land. It drove me bonkers to keep my three on 3/4 acre those five horrid years I lived in So Cal. I managed with the help of a great neighbor who showed me how to manage horses on a sand lot. I couldn't wait to get out of there and get my horses back on real acreage where they could run, flat out, to their hearts content if they wanted to. 

You'd be lucky to get any sort of help from animal control, if the horses aren't starving, have hay and have water --- it seems even if the water is green with frogs in it, that counts as something to drink.


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## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

They may well be in violation of land use ordinance, but there's nothing AC can do if they have food and water. They might cite them for unsafe fencing, but AC won't have any idea about the legal amount of animals on any given piece of land. 

If you're curious, contact your zoning board. I know for me, I'm legally allowed to have 3 large livestock animals per acre, but I'd never have that many. I have 3 horses on 5 acres and that's enough.


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## SlideStop (Dec 28, 2011)

Are you sure it's 60? 

If the horses are in good condition, with food and water, I'd say to each their own. It might not be what you want for your horses, but of it works for them...whatever... So long as the horses are cared for.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

I have 3 horses on 4 acres and I pasture them about 1/2 of the year. During the 2012 drought I had to supplement with hay in August and September, so I have rethought the 1 horse/1 acre. It mostly has to do with grazing.
My Ag-2 zoning does not restrict the # of horses, just warns against nuisance odors. 3 horses don't stink up the property. When I moved here I bought 5 horses and I fed hay. They reseeded the 3 acre North Pasture, which had been in corn when we purchased, in October, 1999. I was feeding mostly grass hay.
I wouldn't keep more than 7 horses on 10 acres. I have no problem with people who have that many horses on less acreage, but they will need to dry lot part of it, feed hay 365 days/year, or else there will be NO pasture growing.


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## Palomine (Oct 30, 2010)

Are they selling them for meat? 

That would be only reason there would be that many on so little land to me.

See if you can find aerial shot of land to see what is going on.


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## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

I'm with Slidestop to be honest. Given that the horses are in fair shake with good feet, hay to eat, and water to drink, I wouldn't stick my nose in thgeit business. Is the number ideal? Not at all. Is it REALLY detrimental to them? No, unless the place is stacked in poop or something. It is better than all of the space they could ask for and no hay or good water. Remember that many horses live in stalls 23 hours of the day all year round, with 12 x 12 enclosures as their space, and they aren't considered neglected. Ideal? Again, cabsolutely not, horses were made to move constantly. But not deadly.

The barbed wire, I'd be more concerned about give. The size of the pen, but there isn't as lot you can do about it.

The farm I worked for had 15 minis on a 3\4 acre dry lot for a time. It was a lot of upkeep but they weren't any worse for it.


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## verona1016 (Jul 3, 2011)

walkinthewalk said:


> The honest-to-goodness correct amount is five acres per piece of large grazing livestock (cow, horses) on good grazing land.


This depends highly on the region and whether or not the horses are out 24/7 or stalled/drylotted part-time, and whether or not they're getting supplemental hay. In my area, the recommendation is 2 acres per horse if your intent is for them to live primarily off pasture.

If the primary forage source for the horses is hay, you can fit many, many more per acre unless there's a legal limit (limits per acre seem to be more common in the eastern US from what I can tell). Upkeep becomes more intensive as you have to manage large amounts of manure, keep clean hay/water available, etc but it can be done. As long as the horses seem to be in good health and the property is kept in good condition (manure picked up, etc.) then there isn't much you could or should do about it.


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## jackboy (Jul 8, 2012)

As far as barb wire goes that's all I've ever known and every other horseman I know in a 3 county area. It works good they respect it and a big plus for me it's cheap!


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## countrylove (Oct 18, 2012)

Legally it depends on the city or county zoning and ordinance laws. I'm in city limits. In my zone I can have 1 horse per 20,000 sq ft. I keep my mare on 2 acres in the middle of town. Is it convenient? Depends. I'm not the only one with horses in town here either so its a fairly common practice here. Does it require maintenance, heck yes but so does mass acreage. It has its pros and con's no matter how you keep them. Some horses are kept in a 12' x 12' stall 23 hours a day. At the rescue I volunteered at we had 33 horses on 3 acres with ASPCAs approval but it was a temporary solution. Its a personal preference or even horse preference as long as they are cared for.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Saskia (Aug 26, 2009)

I've always thought the acre per horse thing is mainly for horses that they want to survive purely on grass. Lots of places have yards that are smaller than 1/8 acre that horses live in 24/7. Some horses are stabled 24/7. I mean you'd have to feed a lot and I'm not sure how great it is for horses... but it's reasonably common. It might look strange with them all together, and I can't imagine it's the best way to avoid injuries and what not, but it would probably work.


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## boots (Jan 16, 2012)

I know of areas where it literally takes more than one hundred acres to sustain a horse or cow on grass. And they haul water to the animals.

Then, I've seen photos from people in southern CA where they have dozens and dozens of horses in livestock panel pens on very few acres and those horses live that way for years.

If the horses you mention are in good flesh, I would not complain.


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## Island Horselover (Apr 4, 2012)

around here you see it all the time. Stables have maybe 50 acres in total but most of it is in Hay fields. There is maybe 2 acres used for the horses, they have run out stalls with a 12x12 run and that is it. 

I would never keep my horses that way personally as I am a big believer in letting them run around to get rid of some energy and keep my 4 horses on over 5 acres but lots of stables around here have very little room. They keep up to 30 horses in stalls and run outs of small sizes day in day out and then they are surprised that the horses are acting up when taking out for a show or a lesson... 

And people actually pay like $500 a month to keep their horses their.... hmmmmm I wouldnt.... 

But back to your observation, it seems not big enough of an area for 60 horses if you ask me...


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## Cat (Jul 26, 2008)

Its not how I would keep my horses. I've felt I've pushed the limits of my own land a time or two, but nothing near 60 or even 20 head per 10 acres. However, I like my horses to be able to graze during the summer and primarily get their food from the grass. Around here that is at least 1 acre per horse if you are going to graze summer and feed winter. 

In this case it sounds like the primary source of food is hay. Not ideal to have that many horses on the land, but as long as there is hay, water, hooves are taken care of, and no overly thin horses, and no local laws limiting the number of animals per acre, then they will be able to do what they want. Though I imagine it is extremely expensive to keep them like that. Makes me wonder if this is some sort of business?

As to barbed wire - I despise it for horse fencing, but again - usually nothing legally preventing it.


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

Where I live, zoning allows 1 horse per 10,000 sq ft. Everyone is dry lot because a horse in the desert would need square miles per horse. Lots of horses spend their lives in local stables, where their pens are required to be 20x20, although I think some places have been grandfathered in at less room. Here is a local stable from the air:


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## ZombieHorseChick (Jun 5, 2014)

I live on 40 acres, 20 of so is pasture,split into two 5 acre lots and one that's 10, 5 barn/house, and 15 woods( working on changing half the woods to hay field this fall) I myself have had 12 horses on rotation of the fields, usually I have two fields conjoined( to let one field recuperate) my horses having 24/7 pasture, IMO after having them for that long the fields get over grazed easily. Just my opinion, I wouldn't put That many horses on that little of pasture ( taking into account that they might be stalled, it's all conditional really, I'm in no position to judge ) I'm down to a pony and three horses, and still have 20 acre of pasture, I have more grass then my horses can maintain now. Lol


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## Skipsfirstspike (Mar 22, 2010)

Like Saskia said, the recommendations you are thinking of are most likely based on horses living off of pasture without supplemental hay.
Around here, there are many schooling/boarding barns on approximately 10 acres that have 30+ horses, but of course they buy and feed hay.
All depends on your zoning laws, and if somebody bothers to complain. If the horses are well fed and healthy, and there is not an excess of manure laying around, to each their own.


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## ForeverSunRider (Jun 27, 2013)

There's only a small barn on the property and it's not connected to any of the pastures. The horses are kept on pasture 100% of the time. 

But to each his own, I suppose.


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