Preparing Paddocks For Autumn

Preparing Paddocks For Autumn

The nights are drawing in fast, so get preparing paddocks paddocks for autumn NOW!

Make the most of the last bit of warmth and sunlight, plus be ready for anything the weather has to throw at you! You’ll be the cat who got the cream, keeping your horse turned out for longer and field conditions, safe, secure and healthy, with these top tips!

Before autumn hits, make sure your fences have had a lick of treatment or paint. Meanwhile, you can catch the last rays of sun and top up your tan!

Treating fences before autumn hits is vital to ensure the future security and longevity of your paddocks. It also gives you the perfect opportunity to look out for any protruding, sharp edges, which may cause harm to your horse, plus any post that may have become rotten over the course of the year. This means your horse can only reap the benefits of turnout, without any nasty surprises.

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Grab your yard buddies and all muck in to make it a speedier job!

If you come across rotten fence post, replace them as soon as possible! Used as a scratching or resting post by your horse, could result in them snapping and giving your horse a free rein to go wherever they like. A snapped fence could also create a sharp edges and fallen nails, predisposing to injury of the hoof and body!

Make sure all latches and bolts are secure, as ‘Harry Houdini’s’ of the horse world are likely to figure out an escape route via these exits. Long bold heads will make gateways more difficult to open. If your horse still manages to escape, replace existing bolts with bolts designed for use with a padlock. Replace the padlock with a simple dog lead clip, so your horse cannot get out but you can have easy in-and-out access!

As autumn draws closer, the wet weather increases. Therefore, making sure you are turning out on well drained field is essential to continue turning out your horse through the autumn. Rest your summer grazing and relocate to a field on a sloped gradient, if possible. The natural lay of a sloped paddock provides perfect drainage and avoid poaching water-logged ground.

With the massive weight of horse hooves and the autumn chill making horse fresh, wet ground is extremely suspectable to poaching when wet. Wet and poached ground can encourage problems with your horse’s health, normally concerning hoof ailments.

To further avoid poached ground, try to allocate one acre per horse if you have the luxury of space. Additionally, ground suffers the most at gateways as horse’s queue to come in for some TLC. If possible, change the location of your exit and entrance gates regularly, so your horse isn’t waiting expectantly in one area. If this isn’t possible, try sectioning off areas with electric tape and alter the location of your exit and entrance along this fence line.

Knowing when your field, or an area of your field needs resting is also crucial to ensure field and turn out longevity. As areas of paddocks become poached, it may be too late to salvage for the dreary winter period. Area’s of mud and compaction will also cause problems further down the line, increasing suspectable to weed growth and reducing drainage ability, respectively.

How do you know when you should rest a grazing area though? The general rule is that grass should be kept at approximately 3 inches in length. Grass below 3 inches stress the plant and reduces the leaf surface. The leaf surface is crucial to absorb sunlight for photosynthesis, and help maintain the health and growth of the plant. Therefore, grass under 3 inches will have depleted energy reserves and suffer in terms of growth. Eventually, the ground will be stripped of living plant material for your horse to eat and result in bare patches, where mud is exposed.

Making sure our horses have appropriate shelter is also a key feature for any autumn paddock. As the weather changes on seemingly an hourly basis, it can be hard work to decide whether to keep our horse’s in or out.

A man-made field shelter might spring to mind, however a good hedge line or a few trees will do the job, just fine! Current research actually suggests that horse’s actually prefer to be out and grazing, rather than in a shelter during adverse weather! However, it is always best to provide sheltering options for your horse, especially when the weather take a turn for the worst. The addition of shelters can also provide a visual stimulus for your horse, keeping their mental health in check.

*TRY A MOBILE FIELD SHELTER FOR THE FREEDOM OF PASTURE MOVEMENT*

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