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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 679
  
Location: KS | For all of you that have experience with Hurricane's or Tropical Storms, what do you do to protect your horse's? |
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Location: Not Where I Want to Be | ACowgirlsLastRun - 2016-10-09 9:44 PM For all of you that have experience with Hurricane's or Tropical Storms, what do you do to protect your horse's?
water wings |
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  Ms. Marine
Posts: 4642
Location: Texas | Have dealt with a few tropical storms. Just left the horses in the pasture and kept a close eye on them. Didn't want to put them up in the barn in case of structural damage during the storm. They've always done just fine for themselves that way. |
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 Horsey Gene Carrier
Posts: 1888
Location: LaBelle, Florida | Make sure they are marked in case of a fence down. Turn them out if you don't have a hurricane proof barn, although I still think turning out is best.
They have a natural sense of where the best place to be is. Granted flying debris is always an issue.
If you don't have pasture to turn out, then haul away from the storm. |
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Addicted to Baseball
Location: Where the stars at night are big and bright, TX | Used to live right on the LA coast and we'd make time to move ours inland to get them out of the flooding. Rain and wind not much you can do about but we'd be signficantly under water where we lived so got them to where that wasn't going to be a problem. Just prayed a tree wouldn't come down where they would be but other than that the flooding was our biggest concern. |
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 Expert
Posts: 2097
Location: Deep South | I live approx 20 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico. We really don't bat an eye at a tropical storm. Unless you live in an easily flooded area, our day goes on as normal. The horses receive no additional treatment than they would for any other thunderstorm.
If a serious hurricane is on the way, we have an evacuation plan, then stay and watch it for as long as we can. They can change directions and strength so quickly. I'm 25, and where I live we've had several scares, but only actually had to leave for Hurricane Ivan, 12? years ago.
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 Poor Cracker Girl
Posts: 12150
Location: Feeding mosquitos, FL | Fill up every water bucket and tank I can lay my hands on (cause when the power goes out, so does the well) and turn 'em out. They always have the option to go in the barn and get out of the rain but 99% of the time, they don't. They stand with their butts to the wind and eat grass.
For the big storms, the major changes in barometric pressure tend to freak them out and put them on high alert. If they hear anything creaking or clinking or otherwise threatening them, they run away from it. I'd rather them have the option to run away from the barn caving in on them. |
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 Too Skinny
Posts: 8009
Location: LA Lower Alabama | Big open pasture. Keep my trees trimmed/ limbs/ items picked up or tied down. Label all animals in case of fence issue. And let it ride out. I dont fear the hurricanes like I do the Tornados they could produce. Evacuate for anything larger than a level 2. And keep plenty of Beer cold
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Miracle in the Making
Posts: 4013
| TrackinBubba - 2016-10-10 11:24 AM Fill up every water bucket and tank I can lay my hands on (cause when the power goes out, so does the well) and turn 'em out. They always have the option to go in the barn and get out of the rain but 99% of the time, they don't. They stand with their butts to the wind and eat grass.
For the big storms, the major changes in barometric pressure tend to freak them out and put them on high alert. If they hear anything creaking or clinking or otherwise threatening them, they run away from it. I'd rather them have the option to run away from the barn caving in on them.
dumb question were were on wells tooo but we had all the well where we could plug in the extention cord to generator to run water
i have heard from quite a few people om wells that had not i was surprised also we kept a small generator around always in addition to living quarters |
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 Expert
Posts: 1718
Location: Southeast Louisiana | Pretty much what everyone else said. I leave my halters on and they all have a tag with our address and cell number. I know some people don't like to take a chance with leaving on a halter, but I haven't seen one have a problem with that yet. The ones I have seen drowned weren't wearing halters anyway. They get hung up in massive water and debris and overcome that way. (Or in stalls or, more with small animals they were tied up or caged.) Halter or not, wouldn't make a difference from personal observation. What I have seen is people trying to catch horses with no way to hold on to them or tie them up and no contact info. They either turn them loose again or don't even try to catch them. I've seen a few hit by people driving around in the dark after the storm passes. So, I opt for keeping the halters on with ID.
Always evacuate, if you can. When I retire, I'm going to just take everyone on vacation in Tennessee whenever the hurricanes come! |
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Poor Cracker Girl
Posts: 12150
Location: Feeding mosquitos, FL | vjls - 2016-10-10 12:15 PM TrackinBubba - 2016-10-10 11:24 AM Fill up every water bucket and tank I can lay my hands on (cause when the power goes out, so does the well) and turn 'em out. They always have the option to go in the barn and get out of the rain but 99% of the time, they don't. They stand with their butts to the wind and eat grass.
For the big storms, the major changes in barometric pressure tend to freak them out and put them on high alert. If they hear anything creaking or clinking or otherwise threatening them, they run away from it. I'd rather them have the option to run away from the barn caving in on them. dumb question were were on wells tooo but we had all the well where we could plug in the extention cord to generator to run water
i have heard from quite a few people om wells that had not i was surprised also we kept a small generator around always in addition to living quarters
We don't have that set up either for our well. It's one of those things we'll get around to one day but until it's hurricane time I don't think about it.
Luckily our power has always come back on relatively quickly and I've only had to haul water once. |
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I Am a Snake Killer
Posts: 1927
Location: Golden Gulf Coast of Texas | I'm the odd one out I guess. I always put mine up in the barn. I have seen too much blowing around. |
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Horsey Gene Carrier
Posts: 1888
Location: LaBelle, Florida | The problem with putting them away in a barn here in Florida is the UNLESS you have a hurricane proof barn, they are safer out than in. Most barns here in Florida are of the open pole barn type (due to the non stop heat), not concrete.
Mine was professionaly built pole barn type, with hurricane strapping put in. I still turn my horses out.
We have a well, a very large generator and an easy switch type plug to go from power company to generator. We can run everything off the generator if we have to. Hubby has to have ac so we invested in a welding generator (it is huge).
Edited by kasaj2000 2016-10-11 9:19 PM
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 To the Left
Posts: 1865
Location: Florida | Halters with tags and leave them out. The barn is open in case they want to come in. Then all you need is a cooler of beer and sit back and watch the show. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 878
Location: "...way down south in the Everglades..." | mreklaw - 2016-10-11 9:13 PM I'm the odd one out I guess. I always put mine up in the barn. I have seen too much blowing around.
I'm odd one too then. I put them up. If it's going to be crazy extreme (Cat 5) I evacuate. My barn held fine through a Cat 3 so I feel they are safer in there then outside with everything blowing around. I still do halters/name tags. Fill water everywhere I can. I don't have a generator but need to get one for the trailer so I guess that could be our back up. Get lots of drinking water, fuel, and non-perishable food. Hurricane shutters up if need be.
Other than that I grab a drink and pray!
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 679
Location: KS | Stupid question, but I live in Kansas and we were always told to release our horses if a severe tornado came through. Luckily we have never been in that position, but if you know a hurricane is coming and is going to be severe, would you release your horse's. (The tag idea is smart.) |
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Expert
Posts: 1718
Location: Southeast Louisiana | ACowgirlsLastRun - 2016-10-12 12:14 PM
Stupid question, but I live in Kansas and we were always told to release our horses if a severe tornado came through. Luckily we have never been in that position, but if you know a hurricane is coming and is going to be severe, would you release your horse's. (The tag idea is smart.)
Release, as in open the gate and let them off of my property, no. Just turn them out in my own pasture. The tags are just for in case a tree falls on the fence or something. I think a tornado is a different story, though. They could get out of the path of a tornado, if it wasn't during a hurricane. Although tornadoes during hurricanes are a big problem, it's wind and rain everywhere and no calm place for them to run to. |
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