Tell me your winter routine

[Indoorvoicesbluey]

first winter as horse owners

The yard I’m in doesn’t allow horses out all winter/over night. Or you can but I think you’d be judged.

last night was the first night in, so I spent hours making her stable with straw , her hay net, feed and water bucket all sorted.

she came in at 4.30 because there was a firework display nearby at 5.

she was let out at 5.30 this morning by a friend who said she was well behaved.

went this evening to bring her in and her stable was disgusting lol by the time I picked her poo out I had to fill it again and it took ages. Obviously did her food/water which was all gone. She was the last to come in so was abit fresh coming up lol

I poo picked the field as much as I could with the light on my car lol.

il go over tomorrow about 6 and let her out, I’m guessing then poo pick her stable, refill buckets etc and take her rug off her?

is that kinda how it goes? Back over at 5 and if I’m running out of time she can just go straight in her stable as it’s ready?

also, how many hay nets do you recommend me getting and do you think I should just fill loads and so it’s easier? Ahh stress lol

@maxelly i like a reminisce, I remember getting my mare a quilted night rug and being the only person on the yard who had one . Our early days of ownership were also when slotted surcingles on New Zealand’s became the trend which was before leg straps . My horses always had the most up to date horse clothing !

Ooh, old fashioned rugs.... Do you remember the surcingles that had a metal part over the top, to stop them getting cast? (Looked like the handles you see on dog harnesses now.)
On the yard I learnt at and then worked at, I was SO impressed by the fancy woollen rugs with her initials that the owner's daughter had for taking her three hunters out.
So nice when all the modern fabrics came in. But even so, I had a love for my horse's Newmarket stripe exercise blanket. It went with him when he was put to sleep, along with a rather nice Thermatex cooler, in his colours and that had on it, my initials 😍

@LoveMyPiano , that’s what a roller was ( a surcingle with a lump or handle ) . Funny really looking back , all New Zealand’s were a shade of green of some kind whereas now turnouts are in all colours and patterns - our pony is out in her poppy rug this week , she’s very on trend .

Poppies - trendy and thoughtful of her 💕

I was still a child at heart when I got my horse, and in the end, his rug wardrobe (and yes, I did start with the colour co-ordination - all was green [I still have his feed buckets in my garden] - until some of the rugs I wanted only came in blue or purple) had cost me more than the actual horse did.

Someone give me tips on kicking out a shavings bed? I can’t seem to get all the little bits of poo and the wet without taking loads of shavings with it!

You need to pick the poo balls up with your hand. I usually use a marigold ir regular glove, but not always :)

I think you're overthinking it and you've just got to do what works for you.

I go to the yard at 7am, turn him out and give his breakfast out there, come back to sort mucking out, water, hay net, dinner all ready and waiting for the evening which takes me until 8am. I then come back after work in the evening to bring him in, pick his feet then either ride or leave him in his stable already done.

Works great for me :)

You could get a shavings fork; they can be a biy unwieldy as they always seem to have long handles, which is not always the best if you are working round the horse at any time. But also, as another P has said, get to grips (literally) with picking the baubles up by hand, so much quicker.
Also, yes, you might be - forgivably for first winter - overthinking a little. But I don't blame you - and it is not always easy on a yard with other people and their horses to align with 💕

Also to add - what are you using at the moment? A regular fork will allow too much through.... But you will always have to sacrifice some clean bedding with the dirty, just not too much. Equipment and practice will help I think.

I’m using a shavings fork and a normal fork lol going to get some gloves

Have you not had much mucking out experience before now? It's a learning curve, but you'll get there.

No none haha. She’s been living out since we bought her.

Hmm - well you have had some good advice on here, but don't get yourslef confuzzled by it all, as there are always as many opionions as there are people. Anything else you need to know, just ask 🐎💕

Mine used to have deep litter shavings that built up over time. I’d just remove poo and top up with fresh shavings. Once every 3 months or so I would dig everything out, wash out the floor and start again. Probably with changing rugs, feeding and turning out it would take about 20 minutes in the morning then about the same again in the evening with bringing in, feeding, quick groom and hoof pick.

I always used to pick poo up by hand but my back can't take it these days.
I've now got a gorilla shavings fork that's really lightweight, the long handled one so less bending.
When you load the barrow start with the droppings and then bank the wet bed on top, the more weight you can get over the wheel the easier it is to push!
And obviously the longer she is in the dirtier the bed.
One of mine stresses if he has to be in overnight, so I make sure he's last in and first out, or he does trash the bed, luckily they do live out unless the weather is really bad.

Another thing I remembered, from my days of single-handedly skipping out 20+ horses in the evenings. Old round laundry baskets (we had one at each door); we did have straw beds, but for shavings, the dry, clean ones fall back into the bed/ through the holes, but the holes do keep the droppings in the basket.
Can't believe I forgot about that!

Typically for us it would be 6am arrival
Tie horse outside stable, he would eat feed whilst I changed from indoor to outdoor rug.
Horse to field anywhere from a slow amble along to quick trot/me jogging.
Then empty remains of two big water buckets and put under to refill
Hang new large small holed haynet
Shove a few chopped carrots in holes of it
Lift bed, remove poo, wee etc sweep floor of stable and outside
Prepare night feed

5.20pm
Horse from field, tie outside, pick out feet, brush off any dried mud, change rugs over
Bed down and top up if needed

Or

Same but add in 15 minutes lunge or 30 min ride every other night

I have finally cracked and ours will be in at night from tonight. They will be fed and out at 8am. Slice of hay in the paddock, then back in before dark with their last feed and nighttime nets about 6pm. I muck out after I have had breakfast and walked the dog. That's me now until March.

OMG. Memories. Rollers on as tight as you could. Scratching fingers on the jute. Which had been wet for a week and weighed a tonne.

We have our routine sorted now lol

she goes out anytime from 7.30-8.30am with hay in her paddock. I then muck out and put her bed up to let the floor dry. Fill her bucket and do her feed ready, fill Haynes.

she comes In around 4.30. While my daughter brushes her and changes into her bed rug I bed her bed down. Into her stable for her dinner and lights out by 5/5.30 lol

We moved back to straw instead of shavings and I much prefer it!

Ive had horses all my life. Everyday in winter is like Groundhog Day !
0600 yard turn pony out
1500 I muck out/sort stable and catch in

i poopick his individual paddock once a week

rarely I have time to ride !

my boy is deep littered using pellets and shavings. We built him a big trough so he has loose hay

With regards to shavings forks - I use the Swedish fork and have done for around 5-6yrs. Best invention ever ! Expensive but worth it :)