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 Keep those crap slapping tails away!
Posts: 8871
     
Location: Around here somewhere... | I have very little experience keeping horses in pens/runs, my whole life ours have mostly been turned out on hundreds of acres. Here lately I've started keeping a couple penned up for my convenience (for working them without having to hunt all over for them every day). I clean the manure and pick their hooves every day, but I have several questions about things that have not yet become an issue... How do you keep your horse pens from becoming nasty mudholes when it rains? What is lime for? How do you prevent flies and stink? How do you dispose of the manure? (I've just been dumping it off in the woods, dumping in spots that could use some filling in due to erosion). |
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Keep those crap slapping tails away!
Posts: 8871
Location: Around here somewhere... | I find myself wondering how other people care for their horses in pens- do you sheet them to keep them from being dusty? Are there any health concerns I should be aware of? What is your daily routine? I feel like a kid learning this stuff lol
Edited by Blaundee 2015-02-19 8:50 PM
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 Owner of a ratting catting machine
Posts: 2258
| I can answer a few of your questions with things that have worked for me:
1. Fly Predators. You can get them from valleyvet.com. They are seriously amazing and will break the back of your fly population.
2. Feed alfalfa. This really helps to keep their digestive system happy and add calories without sending them through the roof like grain does. Renew Gold is an excellent complement, as well as just plain ol rice bran. Try to minimize your grain, because keeping horses penned leads to increased ulcer probability.
3. Put them on a great digestive supplement. SmartGI Ultra is the bomb. Seriously.
4. Give them as much coastal/grass hay as they can eat. I can't stand to see hay wasted, so nets work well, or feeding in troughs. Just make sure they have hay 24/7.
5. Keep them separated. They won't have as much room to escape each other and could get injured more easily. Plus, this makes feeding time more complicated.
6. Water out of muck buckets. This helps you monitor water intake.
7. Don't be afraid to doctor for ulcers at the drop of a hat. Also keep probiotic paste on hand.
8. Pea gravel is awesome. You can bring whole loads of it for your pens. It keeps the pens from getting dusty, getting muddy, and is wonderful for their feet. The more the merrier.
9. Lime is great to put in areas that get peed on a lot, it neutralizes the pH, and eliminates the stink. Lots of people use it for stalls, but I prefer Sweet PDZ, mostly because lime is pretty tough on me if I accidentally inhale it. If you keep one in a run or tight quarters, a lot of geldings will pick out a pee spot. A great way to deal with this is dig that spot up to a 3x2' hole, fill with pea gravel, then cover with shavings. He'll still use it, but it will keep it from getting so nasty!
These are several things that have really helped me with my horses.
Oh, and also:
10) Put lights up around your pens. It makes feeding so much nicer, and extends horse time. |
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Keep those crap slapping tails away!
Posts: 8871
Location: Around here somewhere... | THANK YOU!!! :) |
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Miss Not Exciting
Posts: 3279
Location: Ft Worth TX | De-Worm A LOT. |
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  Neat Freak
Posts: 11216
Location: Wonderful Wyoming | we use a tractor to clean the corrals, I pick my own pipe pens daily when I have horses in them. As for mud holes, not much to be done except get a shovel and create a ditch for it to drain. We use fly predators for the dogs around the house, but too much livestock coming and going in the corrals. I use the automatic sprayers in the barn and the horses know to come in out of the sun and the flies. I don't deworm anymore than neccessary. Not good to over do that. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 762
Location: NC | Where i live is very expensive to actually board where there is pasture, so everywhere you go has small pens.I agree with others above watch when it rains and make drainage ditches out of pens. We clean pens daily although some people dont. Dumping most people if they have room make a pile, although its illegal in some of the towns around here and those people have dumpsters that get dumped anywhere ranging from once a week to once a month depending on how big dumpster is. Chickens are good with bugs or fly predators or you learn to just buy fly spray and watch them fly thru it laughing at you ;) |
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 Veteran
Posts: 268
| I've kept my horses in runs for the past 10 years. They are individual runs connected to the barn. They are a decent size and they can go in the barn if they choose or stand outside. I clean stalls daily. I use fly predators and really like them! I use Sweet PDZ and pelleted bedding on wet spots. I feed hay 2x a day. My horses only get a handful of grain to mix supplements in so they don't tend to get hot, especially if ridden consistently. I turn them out a few times a week in the arena, but I'm getting a pasture fenced so my mare can be out during the day and in the run/stall at night. I like the individual pens- easy to monitor their intake and I feel like they are safe in there and stay out of trouble!
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Keeping horses in pens?