To think a lot of horse owners don't deserve their animals?

[Goodnurseorgremlin]

I keep my horse on a DIY livery yard. We have access to daily turnout with no time restrictions throughout the entire winter.

For the last three months the vast majority of the horses on the yard have had little to no turnout. Some literally stand in their stables for days/weeks at a time, with the owners mucking out around them. I could count on one hand the horses that are regularly turned out aside from my own

It just makes me so so sad. These poor animals being imprisoned for months at a time for no good reason. The owners basically can't be arsed to turn out and bring in because they don't want to walk to the fields or get themselves/their horses muddy.

AIBU to think these people don't deserve the privilege of caring for these amazing animals if they can't even be arsed to meet their basic need for freedom?

In my experience as long as they have access to hay/haylage they are happy enough.

It’s standing in bare muddy fields that causes problems.

I’m a yard owner. South East and very built up area with not many yards. Our horses have turnout dawn til dusk October til March, and from 1st April they go out 24/7. Horses need daily turnout, they aren’t meant to be caged up all day. The only time our horses are in is very high winds and rain together. None of the other local yards do the turnout I offer, but that’s because they have too many horses for too little acreage.

I’m lucky enough to have my horses at home and operate a voluntary in-out stable system. Both unclipped. Their stables have fresh water and thick barley straw and I feed them (very small scoops of balancer) but mainly hay and check them over in the stable two or three times a day.

What has been mind-blowing this winter is how much they choose to stay outside in really massive downpours of rain, even in high winds - there is a lot of natural shelter in their fields too such as thick hedges and trees and corner loafing areas on higher ground - and they are inside in summer seeking refuge from flies, much more than they are in winter!

Good hay is what keeps them warm. They enjoy eating inside and then go straight back out.

They even chose to stay outside in a couple of heavy storms this year taking refuge by a thick hedge.

In other words, what I have learned is, horses are much wiser about weather and more tolerant of it than we imagine. And also if I had been making decisions about when to bring them in, or put them out, I would have got it totally wrong!

Oh give over. There are a huge range of opinions on this thread, but you seem to have decided just to pick on me. Hope it makes you feel better. I'm out.

We have unrestricted turnout! We have winter paddocks that get trashed through the winter, they move onto summer paddocks and the winter ones are rolled, harrowed and rested.

This is what we do too. my winter field is ruined right now, but i do have a hard standing area that i put hay on so they dont have to stand in mud all day if they chose not to.

Mine are in at night in winter (7am - 6pm) but out 24/7 in summer - counting down the days!

Most horses want to come in during the winter within 5 hours. THey don't particularly lashing rain, icy conditions 24/7. Not all, but most. And it also gives the fields a small chance to recover.

Our fields are pretty dire at the moment so my mare prefers to come in at night, usually about 6 and then back out first thing. In the summer she gets sweet itch, so tends to come in during the day. Interestingly she’s the only one with native breeding but is always the first one wanting to come in, the warmbloods are still at the far end of the field!

Back in the late 90s I worked at an Equestrian Centre (aka riding school). Every November, when the multiple fields started getting dangerously muddy and poached, the riding school horses were brought in full time, save for maybe an hour a day turnout together in the indoor schools (ponies in one, horses in the other).

It made them fractious, skittish and bad tempered, and we all knew which horses suffered the most and would buck people off or turn tail and bolt. It was incredibly stressful and I only last 18 months (so I covered two winters).

The job of turning out 23 fresh horses in March/April who had been indoors for 4-5 months was pretty dangerous as well. Dreadful place, shut down now thankfully.

I once took on a beautiful Irish Draft who had only ever been turned out for an hour a day on a horse walker for his entire 9 years of life (other than doing elementary dressage)! When I put him in a field he didn't know how to horse and walked in a sad little 10m circle for the first few days. He soon got the hang of it though. 😁

@LennysRucksack I had a horse that hadn't ever had much turnout. He used to stand at the gate after 20 minutes. That was his routine. We created a new routine abd he soon got used to being out all day, then out 24/7 later.

I couldn't be on a yard with inadequate or severely restricted turnout. Our ridden horses are out together (2 horses on 4 acres) 7am-4pm every day in winter and switch to out overnight in spring. Our non ridden horses are out full time.

I have had 5 horses in my lifetime and all have stayed with me to the end of their life.
My last one is buried on the edge of her paddock 🥺

I think that’s the nub of it and it’s not all livery owners fault tbh. Costs have risen so sharply that they are having to accept more horses than they would like or face closing altogether and to be fair, the weather these past two years has been dreadful for horse owners.

So I don’t think it’s a case of people setting out to be cruel in many cases; rather that life with horses in this day and age is extremely difficult.

I am not saying it’s acceptable for horses not to be out; on the contrary, I will only own horses now as long as I have the land on which to do it. And I’ve had to move far away from family to do that. But, I think society as a whole is far more accommodating of other sports such as cycling. And if we had a better bridleway network that joined up so we could avoid roads, at least stabled horses could be exercised more easily. I know that’s not the same as loafing with friends but it’s better than nothing.

In years past, when horses were our only means of transport, horses lived in close proximity to us in towns, in stables and mews, some two stories high! And they adapted because they were working all day. Nowadays though we have the fatal combination (literally in some cases) of stabled horses that are underworked too. And I think that is cruel as it’s tough on the horse’s mind and the body. And what are horses all about; if not movement?

Same. One of my non ridden horses is only five, and I have had her since she was a yearling (had her accident at 4). She's with me until the end. They all are, but the two boys are a lot older, one discarded by previous owner because her wasn't rideable anymore, they other previous owner, her circumstances drastically changed, just showing the PP that not all us horsey folk are callous and think only of them in terms of use. I have them because I love them and they want for nothing.

Well, I'm not the only one who commented on your post, so not sure why you've picked me to snipe at.

Oh well, as you say, hope it makes you feel better.

I'm not convinced it's particularly kind to keep a horse that you can no longer ride when the alternative is to re-home it somewhere where it can fulfil its' potential.

I agree that elderly horses should be a commitment and kept on as field ornaments, but with young, fit, healthy horses that the owners have outgrown, I personally think it makes much more sense to give them to new homes.

Personally I don't think people should be keeping horses if the only options are "outside in lashing rain" or "cooped up in a stable" - they should have a choice.

Free access to both a field with shelter, and their stable too. Let them decide where they want to be and when.

I also suspect many horses who "want to come in" do so because they're fed in their stables. Not all, obviously, but many.

Whaaaat that's mind blowing.
I thought owners wanted as much turnout as possible and always more than what the livery yard wants to offer. I'm surprised that so many can't be arsed, I thought it would be the very occasional odd person.

I am currently compromising at a livery yard where my horse has to be stabled at night. To be honest I thought she would hate it as previously much preferred to be out 24/7 but as the whole herd come in at the same time and she does not want to be left out she is coping well. Of course, it helps to come into two big haynets to munch on. They go out at about 8.30am and come in about 4.30pm at the moment, during the summer months that is turned round so they are out of the flies/sun during the day and out at night. They do also go out whatever the weather albeit suitably rugged (most are clipped).

I did keep her at one place who said they would be turned out everyday. After a few weeks it was painfully obvious that she was being turned out maybe 2 hours a day every 2-3 days. She became incredibly difficult to ride and was very unhappy, I lasted there 5 weeks before moving her.

I do hear of yards that don't provide much turnout, it seems to be all about protecting the grass rather than the horse welfare. I just couldn't do that to a horse

Every horse I have owned has stayed with me for life. They are just as much a pet as the dog/cat/kids.

Oh god the poor draft doing his circles has broken my heart

I do hear of yards that don't provide much turnout, it seems to be all about protecting the grass rather than the horse welfare. I just couldn't do that to a horse

I think some yards take on way too many horses and then can't give them enough turnout as a result. The cost of keeping horses has absolutely skyrocketed lately and I think that doesn't help.

Only come to see them once a day? How often are they supposed to come? People work and have other responsibilities, are they expected to visit 3 times a day to get the horse out of bed in the morning and tuck it in at night?

Also "deserve" is a weird take on this - if people can afford to buy, keep and feed a horse, and aren't actively cruel to it, that's fine, isn't it? Horse owners aren't graded as to how well they are doing?

Sounds like OP thinks - and may well be right- that horses should be let out during the day not imprisoned and if the owner is too busy to do that they are too busy to own a horse

Isn't that what you pay stable staff to do? (no clue, I have never had a horse or had any desire to be anywhere near them)