January- and still not feeding hay!

[Ponyofdoom]

OK the two who are in at night are having a haynet of course, but the two who are living out are just having a half bowl of feed to cheer them up; but I have not fed ANY hay! They are looking very well indeed on their 6 acres of grass! What a strange Winter..

I know, it's mad, I shouldn't be worrying about the shetland in january. We have used some hay but not nearly as much as usual and tbh they are a bit fat. I was talking to the owner of a big DIY livery yard near us. People put their hay orders in a box and once a week he goes round with a tractor and trailer and drops off hay in the tack rooms. Last year he was going through about 70 per week. He said the other day he emptied the box and he had orders for seven!

it is freaky, I am actually awake because I'm worrying about the likely amount of weight pony will carry into spring - no hard feed, regular (but probably too light) work and he is FAT like a show pony. I think he will die when the new grass appears, but it must still be growing now. Is that possible?

Even the horse hasn't dropped any condition, which is great, he looks fantastic. I don't want to separate them but might have to?

The farmer puts 300kg bale of haylage in the field (which we share with two and a half others) which am not even paying for so can't complain. I thought about putting lighter rugs on him (pony not farmer) but is that mean?

We bought loads of hay back in September and worried if we'd need to reorder at an expensive price mid Winter. As it is we've been feeding the three of them a small hay net at night but they are only just finishing them when we turn them back out in the mornings. Still got probably 100 bales left so should be fine without reordering.

Horse and Hound website says 'However, the first frosts and snow falls mean an abrupt end to abundant grass, as growth slows down once the soil temperature drops to 5°C'. I have a laminitic too, but she looks OK and I worry about her more when there are frosts and therefore the fructans in the grass. My two which are living out are both 16hh horses and they are definitely rounder than they should be at this time of year! I too am relieved about the hay, we grow our own but like most people didn't get as many bales per acre last Summer so thought we might run out..

Lucky you - we didn't really get a spring flush last year as our fields went from liquid mud in places to cracked and dried out in 3 weeks. But dpony is only having a wedge a day, so not bad compared to last year

I finished my second bale since October yesterday.My landlord and I were discussing selling some of ours as we have a barn full.I told DH how we were getting off lightly so far this winter,with no freezing weather and he just looked like this .

I'm only feeding a fair amount because dhorse is incarcerated due to lameness, otherwise he gets hard feed twice a day, plus a slice in the morning to keep him from galloping around in the mud. POAPD (pony on a permanent diet) is as fat as butter, but I have to give him hay at night as he is in the yard keeping dhorse company - it's only for his digestion, not his figure. He looks now how he normally looks in high summer. When the grass comes through he will be spending a lot of time looking at it from the other side of the fence!

My TB mare now has a gutter down her back . She has always been a good doer and is no longer ridden because of my injuries. I too am now worrying about the Spring.

Although I have heard we are going to get snow and hard frosts this weekend, and I have a berry filled bush in my garden so I still reckon we are in for a severe freeze in February.

Grass will continue to grow, as long as the temperature is above 4degrees. Mine are all living entirely on grass. The only one who is remotely thin is the nursing mother!

lucky you !! My grass has disappeared in a sea of mud and my poor field looks like Glastonbury on the Monday morning :(

Ponies are confined to about a quarter of the field so they don't churn the lot up but there's precious little grass on the remainder.