Pasturing horses - together or separately?

Question

Just a hypothetic question (hypothetical to me, anyway, as I do not own a barn!):

Some barns have a separate turnout area (a small pasture, not just a run) for each horse, and/or routinely turn horses out separately a few days out of the week. Other barns pasture all of their horses together, or else specific groups of horses (all mares, all geldings, whatever).

I don't mean mares and foals or stallions; I mean horses that *could* be turned out with others, but that instead are given their own turnout area.

If money and space were no object, which setup would you prefer, and why?

Answer 1

I would turn the horses out by owner.  If there are only a few horses, then the pecking order should be fairly stable, so long as new horses don't keep coming in.  If an owner only had one horse, then I would turn that one out with those of another owner, but in a smaller group.  This keeps injuries down to a minimum, while still allowing the horses to have a herd.  Also, it prevents problems between people, because owners can't blame others for having an injured horse.  If there was a particularly aggressive horse, I would turn him out in his own paddock/field, but nearby other horses so that he didn't get lonely.  Maybe after a while he would calm down so that he could be put with other horses.  However, I don't object to having one big field, because then the horses can form their own little groups (not really miny herds, but groupd of two or three within the herd).  I personally do not like having horses turned out individually because they're herd animals, and in order to be happy they need buddies.  But I would rather turn them out in small groups than anything.  Hope this helps!!

Answer 2

In my opinion horses do much better socially, physically and even training wise if they are kept with other horses.  So to me turnout with other horses is ideal, but I would have big criteria in place.

First, horses at boarding places should be turned out with the same horses regularily so they get secure pecking orders.  Its hard on a horse to be moved from one group to another all the time.  So I would insist that my horse stay with a stable group.  Next, I would insist no truely rank or mean horses were in with them.  Ideally I would also want four groups - young geldings, mature geldings, young mares and mature mares.  You have alot less injuries and problems if they are kept that way.

Answer 3

I prefer to have group turnout that allows mares and geldings together. The horses are able to establish their heiarchy and usually do very well.

I also like the idea of turning stallions out together...similar to the bachelor bands that are established in the wild. I know of a few places that practice this, and it seems to be a good way to keep the stallions from developing habits, and being generally bored.

Horses should be allowed to be together, since they are herd animals. However turn out should be monitored, especially when a new horse enters the group.

Answer 4

Seperate turnout, but maybe small fences so that the horses can still groom and bond with eachother.

I do like group turnout because it's lovely to see the horses together and able to canter together, but maybe once in a while, seperate turnout is a good idea. ;)

Answer 5

i would prefer small mixed groups - obviously no overly aggressive horses.

I wouldn't like to think of horses turned out in solitary - so unnatural to them

Answer 6

Both. Where I keep mine there are smaller separate turnouts (owner's responsibility to turnout their own horses), and a few larger ones. I turn usually both of mine out together and some of the other tenants turn their horses out with mine when they are in the bigger pastures. I like to have the option of both for the days when my horses need to be turnout by themselves (like because of injury or something), but I do like for my horses to be able to socialize and play with others as well.

Answer 7

Id probably put them all together, that way theyd be happy and would lern to befriend each other and get along.

But unless one or two of them werent cooperating with the group, Id probably seperte them from the rest and introduce them slowly.

Answer 8

Preferably, I used to keep my horse in a private pasture with only one companion gelding.  I had an alpha mare who was such a bully.

When you pasture multiple horses, there is always going to be dominant personalities which may result in fighting, biting and injuries.  If I personally knew my horse would interact well with several other horses without causing a fight, I would've preferred her to have several companions.  Such was not the case with mine.

Answer 9

Putting horses out separately prevents injury, blanket destruction, lost halters, etc. On the other hand group turnout provides the natural herd social structure horses biologically need.

That needs to be determined by a horse by horse basis. An ideal barn would be able to accomodate both situations.

Answer 10

I would build 5 acre pastures and put at max 3 horses in them each. I would do that so each horse would have at least 1.5 acres. Also, when you go to catch them it is hard when you have like 5 horses in a small pasture and some will occasionally try to guard the other horses!

Answer 11

I have both, I have turn out paddocks for show horses that cant "in the moment" during promotion be out with others and take the risk of getting injured but are able to share a common fence. Then I have a mare pasture and a gelding pasture. I don't breed anymore and no longer have a Stallion on the premises but do on occasion have yearling's in for Halter conditioning and training. I myself think its more healthy for them to be out side in properly maintained pens and small pastures then being inside, Show horses are in at night, turn out daily and everything else is out all the time.

Answer 12

Together:

Horses are herd animals. They travel in herds and they need other horses to be truly healthy.

Answer 13

I prefer segregated group turn-out.  Meaning the geldings in one group and the mares in another.  This allows the animals to maintain a herd structure without some of the problems that arise from mixing genders.  Geldings can still show an interest in mares, especially when cut late, and mares will show an interest when in season.  It can lead to fighting and injury.  

Horses are social animals and it is key to their mental well-being that they are allowed to form bonds with and learn social skills from other horses.  An isolated horse can turn into a real head case and I find it to be borderline cruel.

Answer 14

My ideal would be small group turnout. I think that is the best compromise between letting the horses get the social interaction they need - playing, grooming, running, grazing - while minimizing the boo-boos and owies that they inevitably get when outside. They will always get those, but a small group is not going to be as crowded or as likely to tangle each other up. In my ideal, the small groups would all be compatible companions.

I know that some barns do solo turnout, and I believe they do it over safety concerns because turned out horses always seem to have a scrape or scratch. But I think that solo turnout sacrifices a horse's happiness for a small measure of extra safety.

Answer 15

I would separate agressive horses from the more passive ones. It would keep severe bites and kicks down to a minimum. Otherwise, if they all get a long, keep them together. They are herd animals afterall and they need a least one other buddy to hang out with.

Answer 16

They would all be together, mares and geldings:)  Happy horses, unless there was a bad bully then I would find one or two they got along with and separate them.  I've got two mares out together right know, and no barn.  But building one this yr and they will still remain together.  

A friend of mine keeps the geldings and mares separate not sure why, but that's what she likes.

Answer 17

since horses are herd animals we always put them together.  we didn't segregate them.  we put mares and geldings together.

in california the base had a set up of individual stalls with a small tack, hay room and corral.  then had two seperate pastures to use.

a corral is nice when a horse needs to be seperate.  illness or whatever, but we usually had a pasture to keep them in.

Answer 18

I prefer turnout in small groups, preferably a stable group so there are not constant pecking order issues going on.  For my own horses, I've had 3-5 mares/geldings, horses/ponies out together. It always worked out great, and I think it's better for the horses, too.

I had to board out of state, in southern Rhode Island for 10 months in 2000-2001.  It was hard to find farms at all, and the one I chose had a 4 acre pasture with at least 20 horses on it.  Strangely, it worked out okay most of the time and the horses sort of formed their own cliques of 4-5 horses.  The few other places I found only had private turnout a few times a week in tiny paddocks.  My horses were used to a huge field 24/7, so I didn't think they'd adjust well to that.

Answer 19

Horses are herd animals so they are happy with a herd. If you have a horses beating up on the other horses, put the bully in another field with a different partner. I personally like turning horses out in groups of 3 to 5. I wouldn’t try turning them all out together nor would I do 1 per field. Keep in mind that mares do better when they are with just mares and geldings do best when they are with just geldings.

Answer 20

I think horses are usually happier living in a herd setting.  If money were no object (yeah, right! haha) I would prefer to have a few small pens and a couple of large pastures, fenced with pipe panels or smooth wire or some other horse-safe materials, so that I could run horses together who got along well but still have the option of isolating any who had problems getting along within a herd.

I would not turn horses out together unless they had been pastured together before.  Even then, if they had been apart for a long time, I would introduce the animals to each other slowly, penning just  two or three animals together for a couple of days and then adding one more animal every day or two, until they all got used to each other.  Horses need to work out their place in the social hierarchy before they can be safely turned out together.  Maybe in a really large pasture with safe fencing, where the more submissive animals could easily escape from the more dominant ones, it wouldn't be necessary to be so fussy.  But all it takes to cripple a horse is one good kick in the wrong place, so personally, I'd lean toward being fussy.

Horses that know each other and have been together long enough to work out their social status relative to each other are probably happiest when pastured with other horses.  However, if some animals are extremely dominant and bully the others, or if some are extremely submissive and get beaten up or can't compete well for food, they still may need to be pastured separately or at least with more compatible herdmates.

Some stallions are very mellow and get along fine with geldings and young colts, but most stallions probably shouldn't be pastured with other horses unless it's a pasture-breeding situation and the stallion is turned out with a broodmare band.

I would be especially careful if there were any mules in the mix.  Most mules like having at least one adult horse around, but some of them, especially the john mules, will attack young horses.

Answer 21

Gee Lus - I thought with all the great answers you have provided you'd be a big-time stable owner.....this one kinda caught me by surprise.  I must say as well, I think it's a well worded question - direct to the point etc.

Horses are social creatures.  They actually need by nature to interact with other horses to be happy.  They have social structures that if they don't have a place within, they can develop behavioral problems if they don't get interaction with something or someone else regularly.

With that said, I believe there are certain levels of "natural" horse beliefs.  I have found that people within racing or english disciplines aren't as likely to have embraced such ideas or methods as much as the western based disciplines and people are.  I expect this may be because so many "natural" horsemen are ranch cowboys.  It seems that Pat and Linda Parelli have done a good job of bridging that gap as Linda's a Dressage rider with warm bloods and Pat's a good 'ol fashioned cowboy.

Anyways - people with strong beliefs in the natural way of horses seem to leave them in large herds in open pastures - sometimes without shelter.  Others have a different kind of idea and I can't think of any other term than this one - and it's going to come out deragatory, but I don't mean it to - Barbie Doll horses - the ones that stay in their stalls, get groomed and sprays and trimmed and trussed up (Saddlebreds) and just stand in 12 x 12 stalls all day maybe getting out for an hour or so to work on their respective discipline.

Somewhere between these two I feel is the right place to be - allowing horses that don't harm each other to be together in a group, with plenty of shelter from weather and bugs, free choice grazing and plenty of water I believe is very healthy for a number of reasons.

1.  Horses were not created with the intent to consume large amounts of grains - in fact very little grains only as part of grasses in the later summer and fall are consumed by wild horses.  Us humans have enacted this process when their use required limitation of grazing time and freedom

2.  Horses have very delicate respiratory systems - dust, noxious odors, etc affect them much more than they affect us - by the time we smell ammonia odors in a stall, a horse's respiratory has already sustained some level of damage.  Therefore, allowing them to eat their hay out in the good, clean air allows the dust to fall out and blow away from them rather than them have their faces stuffed in a pile and breathing in the hay dust.

3.  They really do benefit from moving about as needed - my own mare has a slight problem with locking patella.  If she's kept inside in a box stall, she ends up sore in the morning because of not getting the proper exercise - like walking around while eating - they don't naturally stand at one place and eat all day unless you only provide them one area of hay in a dry lot.  Since I've left her out 24.7, she's become much more comfortable.

Therefore, if I had my own space (which I do) and money were no object (which it is) I would do darned close to what I do now - I'd have them in a turnout area that's at least 2 acres per horse (to combat over-grazing), I'd plant the pasture in orchard grass, timothy and maybe 10% alfalfa or less , each one would have access to no less than 10" x 10" shelter (or 12" x 12" per two horses) facing the proper direction to stay out of the majority of wind and weather.  I'd have a nice barn with 12' x 12' box stalls they would only come in when the weather was really bad, if they were injured and needed confinement and only for about a half hour morning and night to take their needed grain with supplements (I have a range of breeds and ages and physical health).  I would have something like Nelson waterers which would stay cleaner, fresher and healthier longer than a water tank and I'd fit it with a meter to judge how much water is being consumed perday to try to monitor average water usage (to help foresee health problems and dehydration).  The barn would be well ventilated with no hay mow above the horse's heads - windows with safety bars over them that can be shut or open for airflow with properly created stalls (for drainage and footing).  Can't forget any cement in the barn being "scuffed" rather than smooth for slip resistance.......I'm thinking - that's probably covers it other than riding area - I'd like best to have the type of structure that could be fully open or fully closed so riding for performance and practice could be done without bugs or heat or bitter cold keeping me distracted.

Is this close to what you'd wish for?