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Young horses outside 24/7 vs. stabled at night

Sport Horse Breeding
#21

I totally agree with what Buschkn just said. Mine are out, after, of course, dealing with the newborn for the amount of time needed to keep them in at night. 24/7.

When we need to “make” them up to be a show pony its just amazing. I say one week in and they are a show pony. To me its just their good brains and the fact that laying heavy hands on at this point just works so very well.

I always feel that the only time the ponies will be allowed to be out and run and play and leap and bound is at this time. To make them hot house flowers can be done…just not how I do it.

#22

Out 24/7. I never bring them in unless they are injured, but frankly, I can count on one hand the amount of times that’s happened. I bring mares in to foal, but turn the mare and foal out after about 48 hours if everyone’s healthy. Retired horses/broodmares live out just the same. Horses have access to shelter and free choice hay.

Heck, I rarely grain and no one wears a blanket. If the horse is too stupid to come in from the cold/rain (loafing sheds provided), then that’s their problem. I’m not going to babysit them.

Mine head to the trainer at 3. I’ve never had one experience trouble adjusting to a stall with limited turnout after 3 years of living in the wild.

#23

I much prefer out 24/7 at all times. How and ever this winter with mud since the end of September that has not dried up a little, it has been necessary to bring my 2yo in at night. The ground is like sandpaper. I have been here for 10 years now and have never seen it this bad. I used to have woodchip pens at another place and at least they could get out of the wet at night and still be out. This winter has just been dreadful. But yeah I think outside 24/7 is much better if it can be managed.

Terri

#24

All of ours are out 24/7 regardless of age or sex. We bring the mares in at night to foal once they develop milk (we test the milk for pH and Ca.) Mares and foals go out right away, within a few hours of birth. The ones that go to shows have no problems staying overnight. All are happy and healthy.

#25

Buschkin - I don’t stall my horses part of the day for me! Here in the northeast our winters can be horrible and in the summer the heat/flies are an issue. I’ve bred over 55 horses and contrary to your comment - they all adapted to being trailered, shows, etc. The OP asked for input - you certainly could have stated what your situation was without making negative comments about those of us who do differently. If you and others want to do 24/7 that’s certainly fine with me it’s just not my choice. And the first horses I’ve bred are 26 now and to date we have had no issues with bone density on any of the horses/ponies we’ve bred.

#26

My youngsters and broodmares are out 24/7, year round. They have free choice hay, run in sheds and auto waterers. I do blanket everyone when it’s cold because I live in a wind tunnel and 20 MPH winds are normal here. The wind pretty much negates their winter coats and I find I can feed them less grain if they are blanketed.
Mares with foals come in at night until the foal is about a month old, then they are out 24/7. I do bring mares/foals inside during the day when it’s really hot because my boss mare won’t let anyone else in the run in shed with her when she has a baby at her side.

#27

[QUOTE=Go Fish;6162128]
If the horse is too stupid to come in from the cold/rain (loafing sheds provided), then that’s their problem. I’m not going to babysit them.[/QUOTE]

It’s really not about “stupid”, it’s about where they feel safer. Some horses are just claustrophobic enough, or leery enough, that they won’t voluntarily go into a shelter without a really, really good cause.

I’d much rather blanket or bring in, than see a “stupid” horse out shivering for 2 days in a cold rain.

I’m not saying what you do is wrong - if your horses don’t get cold, then they’re just fine. But it’s just not about them being “stupid” :slight_smile:

#28

I am not a breeder, but I have raised many many babies. I keep them out 24/7. I bring them in when they are to eat their grain/hay. They stay in the stall and eat and nap, be messed with, then I put them back out. Bring them in again later in the day to rinse and repeat.

Time in stall is a few hours. I am not strict on times, so this helps them learn to be patient, and learn a routine, and to learn to be flexible.

Sometimes they are fed in the pasture, but there is never another horse which will challenge them with their feed. I have a small number of horses so I can control this. No feeding frenzy or fighting if grain is served. There is hay always or full pasture to eat.

#29

Mine come in every day (or night) depending on the season, until it’s nice enough for them not to. Mud here is a huge issue, as are storms (lightning) in the spring.
They love to come in, and they love to go out! :yes:

#30

I also agree with Buschkn for the most part and others of like mind. And unlike Lss-ssl I didn’t find anything negative in the posters comments. We bred, raise, wean, break, train, race, re-school TBS for a living. In other words this all we do not a hobby. The horse population on our farm is usually around 40-50+ of various ages. The only ones that are not out 24/7 except for extreme weather are the horses in training, or ones with “issues”.
Mares are brought in at night around 2 weeks before foaling so they settle into the routine.
After foaling and the weather is good the mare and foal (with foal halter) are turned out in a small paddock near our foaling stalls. Brought in at night for a couple of days then out 24/7. We use a lead on the foal pretty much with in a day or 2. And always from then on.
I feel it is very important for them to get used to a lead ASAP. And makes it much easier to catch them at later stages. But not always, kids will be kids. We start bringing our yearlings to the barn around July, unless they are going to an auction. They are brought in in groups, some for breakfast, some for lunch and the last group for dinner. They are groomed and “fooled” with, fed and then turned back out. It is a fairly long walk to the yearling paddocks so they get a lot of “lead schooling”. They are always rewarded for their efforts with feed. We break/start most of the yearlings here so in the fall they are “introduced” to others sights and sounds around the farm. We do use blankets on everything when necessary, very cold windy conditions, long cold rains, sleet, etc. We don’t blanket anymore then necessary it inhibits the growth of a good winter coat. Clipped horses the exception. Can’t stand to see horses blanketed on a sunny but typical winter day.
I can’t state for fact but it sure seems the breaking process is a lot easier with the horses that are use to blankets. They seem to can care less about have a saddle on, stirrups and feet hanging at their sides etc. I know it is a lot easier to break horse we have raised then the few we take in for others as 2 year olds or short 2 year olds.
In the end, to each their own on how they want to do things. But I have found that most things people do for their horses is more for them then the horse. If you have the labor and the $$$ to spend to stall every horse at night fine. IMPO it is not necessary. IMO all horses go through changes when the routine is changed most adapt pretty quickly.
Ise-ssl you state that you have never had any issues with bone density. Do you start/break your horses as 2 year olds, short or other wise? How do you know what the bone density is of your stock. Because it is not something that one can observe and make a statement of fact from just looking at the outside. The studies I have read are pretty conclusive especially the need to stress/load the bone at a young age. It has also been proven conclusively the ability for a horse to remodel and build greater bone density diminishes exponentially after 3.
JB I agree with your comment by in large but I have found lots of horses that are slow on the uptake and need to be shown how things can be better. Just like humans

#31

We never start ours as 2 yo’s. We start them at 3 and some of the bigger warmbloods are lightly started at 3 and then off again if they are still growing. Our mares and youngster get plenty of time out in big pastures. And Gumtress - right back at you - do you have the bone density checked on all of your horses. We have tracked the horses/ponies we sell and none have been retired due to performance injuries - so I’ll go out on a limb here and say they must have held up pretty well.
I feel if someone wants to keep their horses out all the time and they have the land to do it - IT’S THEIR CHOICE. I see no difference between horses huddled in a shed at night in the winter than being in large box stalls with bars between where they can socialize with neighbors. Same in the summer…do I want horses running their legs and weight off from flies or AGAIN in a run in shed standing around than in a stall with super ventilation and shade. Our horses do get free choice hay in the stalls.
It’s a choice a horse owner makes. Our foals are handled from day one. Haltered and lead starting day two.
And in response to your comment - this is not a hobby for me. I find that comment to be off base. While this is not my professional career - I am completely hands on with my breeding business. I’ve delivered every foal myself and handle those foals from day one and work with them every day. I make all the decisions on breeding, handle the breeding, the training here on the farm and oversee their training elsewhere. I own the corporation that owns my horses/ponies and my stallion Popeye - I don’t just manage them for someone else.

#32

Thanks for the responses. It is very nice to hear what everyone is doing!

#33

I’ve not breeding horses for nearly that length of time but I agree with you.

All mine are in at night in winter and durring the day in the summer.

In addition to escaping the worst of the weather they seem to enjoy not having to deal with herd pressure. The bossy ones don’t have to be bossy and the timid ones don’t have to worry about being chased away from their hay

#34

Our broodmares and youngsters are kept out 24/7 (weather permitting). That being said, they do come in to the barn to eat breakfast and dinner (to ensure that everyone gets their proper rations) and are then let back outside to eat their hay.

With regards to our performance horses, they are stabled at night (eat breakfast and dinner inside) and turned out for as long as possible during the day.

Thus far, we have found this to be the best situation for our horses.

Unfortunately over the years we have seen several youngsters soured from being stabled and kept out of herd situations early on in their lives.

We have found that putting young horses in a herd situation teaches them manners, keeps them on their toes and is the best way to deal with the tendency to be overly pushy, mouthy or invasive of personal space.

#35

Obviously I can’t speak for anyone else but when mine are out they are part of a herd.

#36

Another “out 24-7”. Ours all have run in shelters, so they can get out of the weather (sun or rain) if they want. We don’t start them until they are 3, but they are handled regularly, brought in from the pasture, tied, groomed, bathed (in the Summer), clipped, etc. Even my stallions are outside most of the time. None of them have problems when stabled for a show or clinic - I think most horses adjust to that pretty easily. As long as they aren’t isolated - if they can see other horses in other stalls, they seem to do fine with it.

Our mares start coming in at night about a month before they are due. Once they foal, they spend the first day or two in a stall with the foal, then they go out for part of the day in small pastures. Usually by two weeks old, they are out 24/7 in large pasture.

#37

Mares & foals are brought in every night until weaning, allowing mares to be fed twice daily and general health, limbs etc to be checked, this also allows the foals to be well handled and halter friendly by the time they are weaned. If the weather allows and we have an exceptionally dry summer and very good quality grass, after the first three months of lactation the mares & foals may spend several weeks out 24/7 but only had one year like this in three.

Mares rejoin the herd at weaning and weanlings are stabled together with daily turnout. When fully weaned they either leave for their new homes as well handled weanlings or rejoin the herd of all ages, 24/7 with access to large barn well bedded down throughout the winter months.

All of our stock regardless of age are rugged in winter, our climate is far too wet and horses suffer rain scald easily regardless of how thick and fluffy they are if left unrugged. In summer 2011 we had 17 days of dry, just to give you an idea of how wet it really is here so you can imagine what winter is like :frowning:

Youngstock that are shown during the summer are turned out at night into the mare & foals day pasture and stabled during the day which allows for inhand work and prepping for shows ect.

Pregnant mares are then seperated from the herd in the last three months of gestation with daily turnout and stabled at night, again allowing them to be fed the optimal amounts of stud balancer twice daily as a preventive measure against OCD

#38

Most of the time my yearlings, two year olds and 3 year olds live out 24/7. Group feeding works well provided the feeders are spread far enough apart and that the groups are well matched.

I bring them in occasionally just to get used to being stalled and do a bit of extra handling. I have no trouble with them tolerating being stabled when they are in training and all learn really fast and are easy to start. I think it’s the quality of handling, not the quantity that makes the difference.

#39

Ise-ssl, nothing was meant to be personal nor sarcastic in my comments and certainly was not a direct response to your post. Sorry if it came off that way. As with all my posts I use “IMO” based on my experience with the breed I work with. I also feel it is important to “qualify” one’s experience when giving advise. Maybe others don’t agree but I tend to give more credibility to advise from professionals regardless of the profession. There was not disrespect intended for the many that own or work with horses as a hobby. But I do know they have some “luxuries” that most professionals have to do differently. And that is not to say that horses bred and raised by most professional are “short changed”. I may not always agree with their approach but I never discount it. I also try not to make statements that come off as fact with out being able to back it up with the science, solid research and credible statistics.
You made a statement as such and my questioning of it was not meant to be sarcastic. It is counter to the solid science, research and discussions I have had with some of the most knowledgeable on the subject. Your comment sounded like a statement of fact based on personal observation. No disrespect but that sounds like an opinion not fact.
No, I do not have bone density checked I believe it is still very expensive to have done. But considering a lot of time and money has been spent on very sound research I don’t see the need to. I and a lot of others trust it. Again as I stated in my post we only work with Thoroughbreds. The majority of which start off racing. I think most would agree that race horse’s front legs are put under greater stress then the average sport or pleasure horse of any breed. So why would I question the research.
I re-read my post and I don’t see where I said anybodies comments, approach, methods were wrong. All I stated in my post was how we do it. And what IMO I have found to be true.

#40

[QUOTE=ise@ssl;6161153]
All of our horses and ponies regardless of age are in stalls at night in the winter and during the day in the summer. We prefer this set up. They all get used to being stalled as part of their life. It also works because we don’t like to blanket young horses and deal with fly masks etc. It also allows us to handle all them daily and they get used to barn activities.[/QUOTE]

Ditto, though they are outside more hours than they are in (i.e., usually in about 6 hours out of 24). This program also allows us to take a closer look at each horse each day, and to instill good manners on the youngsters (which my clients consistently thank me for when they get their babies home).

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