As others have written, at most facilities turnout is a matter of logistics. There are many factors that come into play. Cost of land in that area, amount of land available, drainage of land, durability of grasses, weather/footing conditions, labor issues, dietary needs of horses, etc. For a training, barn, you really need horses in a stall, clean and ready to go during working hours if you ever want to get any work done. Retrieving and cleaning wet or super dirty horses so they can be ridden is a lot of extra work for grooms. Letting your paddocks get trashed and then rehabilitating them with lime, fertilizer and seed is also quite expensive and quite a bit of workâand you need to rest the paddock anyway. So there really can be some wisdom in not allowing your paddocks to get trashed.
Iâm a big fan of turnout, but a boarding/show barn is a business. Trashing the paddocks and having sopping wet muddy horses standing out in fields when the owners come to ride or the trainer needs to get on is simply not a winning business strategy. As Jsalem points out, there also is a lot of pressure for barns to be located where land costs are higher, which again limits turnout availability. Also, turnout is not always something customers are willing to pay forâfor a show horse customers are going to prioritize facilities and training services above turnout.
Even marketing plays a role in the turnout decisionâhigher end barns want their barn represented by grassy paddocks without muddy/dusty areas. The only way to have grassy paddocks without mud or dust is to limit turnout (or have a ridiculous number of paddocks).
Also from a marketing standpoint, customers respond poorly to turnout injuries. Whether it is a bite mark, a cut, a pulled shoe, or some other kind of injury, IME customers are more likely to blame the barn for injuries that occur during turnout. The barn was at fault for turning the horse out in poor footing, or something spooked the horse that shouldnât have, or the horse was upset and someone should have seen it and brought the horse in sooner, the horse shouldnât have been turned out with whatever other horse it was with, etc. Oftentimes, owners are a driving force to limit turnout as they feel that limiting turnout time can help control the likelihood of turnout injury. When an owner is spending thousands of dollars per month on training and showing, the last thing they want to hear is that their horse had a turnout injury that in their mind could have been avoided if the horseâs turnout had been more carefully limited. I donât agree with this, but itâs a pretty common mindset.
The good news is that many show barns have good strategies to keep their horses happy. The horses may have limited turnout, but they get a lot of daily attention in various forms. Exercise, grooming, bathing, walking/handgrazing, time on the theraplate, etc. Horses like routine, and many horses can adapt well to a life with less turnout given a good routine.
Personally I think this working student would be well advised to observe and learn. Running an equine facility is a VERY complex job and I think it is unlikely that a WS could walk in the door and do it better than the seasoned pro that hired her.
I do wonder if the choice came down to no horses in your life or providing the best options you can in your area what you would do.