# Must-Haves for Horses..?



## secuono (Apr 25, 2011)

Ok, got this from someone asking in the Goat section.
What do you guys have for your horses that you think is an absolute Must Have? 
From out in the barn, health, etc.


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## patandchickens (Apr 25, 2011)

Safe fences.

Good appropriately-chosen food and a constant supply of good clean water.

Footing that stays not too muddy year-round i.e. horse should not be knee-deep in muck all winter.

Shelter from wind and (if horse chooses) rain/snow, structured so that the horse can be locked indoors if necessary due to health reasons or etc.

Safe fences.

Somewhere covered and reasonably-indoors for the farrier and vet to work, with a flat reasonably-hard floor (i.e. not a bedded stall or mud)

A halter and good strong leadrope (no chain, and round not flat) for each horse you own.

Safe fences.

Basic first-aid stuff like sterile gauze pads, vetrap, flashlight or headlamp, etc

Hoof pick, stiff brush, soft brush, rubber curry mitt or equivalent.

And the #1 very biggest of all supply that is a true "must have" if one expects to keep a horse happy and healthy: SUBSTANTIAL EXPERIENCE WITH MULTIPLE HORSES UNDER EXPERIENCED SUPERVISION, _plus_ good books and experienced people to call on when you need help.

Also safe fences.

JMHO, 

Pat


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## carolinagirl (Apr 25, 2011)

I don't have horses now, but one thing I have learned about them from the years of having them, if there is a way to get themselves injured on something, they will find it.  So when you are setting things up for them and think like a horse.  Fence is probably the #1 souce of injury for horses.  If you can't afford the expensive fence that has holes too small for a horse to get his hoof in it, then you MUST have electric wire to keep horses away from a fence.  NO barbed wire around horses EVER.  No hay nets unless they are mounted up high.  No tin down low.  Look for nail heads sticking out of boards.  No halters when in the pasture.  The list goes on and on and on and on......  the point is, horses are not really all that bright.  If they become entangled in anything, they don't stop and think of the logical thing to do.....they panic and fight it with all of their might.  There are expections to this, but for the most part if a horse gets hung up in barbed wire, it will cut it's self to ribbons trying to get free.


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## secuono (Apr 25, 2011)

So horses are stupid animals, great!
There is standard 'field fencing' around most of it with wooden posts. Holes are 4x4in or so. I will use left over 'no climb' fencing for the smaller paddock with 7ft metal T-Posts. Holes on that are 2x3in.
Will the 7ft posts still need caps on them? I'm not planing on keeping Clydesdales...

Can horses be fed grass only diets? Or is hay and grain always needed in some amount?


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## patandchickens (Apr 25, 2011)

secuono said:
			
		

> So horses are stupid animals, great!


If this is news, I would strongly suggest a boarding barn ;P



> There is standard 'field fencing' around most of it with wooden posts. Holes are 4x4in or so.


You can, but let me just say that it's not an especially safe fence for horses, especially for a smaller paddock (i.e. less than a couple acres plus). It is exactly the right size to get a hoof/leg THROUGH but not BACK OUT OF in one piece, and tends to produce horrifying tendon injuries when a horse tries to walk it down or does an inaccurate sliding stop in front of it.

It is better than barbwire, but there are a lot safer things. You might consider at least keeping an eye out for a good deal at auction, or a sale at the feedstore or TSC, on more horse-safe fencing.



> I will use left over 'no climb' fencing for the smaller paddock


2x4 no-climb is a pretty good safe material when installed correctly.

However, just checking, you mention the holes being 2x3"... are you suuuuure this is actual livestock-type no-climb fencing, not stuff intended for gardens or pets? I have never in my life seen livestock fencing with 2x3 holes, whereas garden-grade stuff is commonly sold in that size. Perhaps it is a typo and you mean 2x4 of course. But if it is by any chance garden-grade 2x3" mesh, I would not use it around horses, it will not hold them and it will not hold them *safely*. 



> with 7ft metal T-Posts. <snip>Will the 7ft posts still need caps on them? I'm not planing on keeping Clydesdales...


<scratching head> Well, your 7' posts will be only 4-5' aboveground (depending how deep you set them -- but if they are holding 2x4 mesh, I would really suggest closer to 3' than to 2', because that stuff catches a lot of wind, also horses tend to lean on it sometimes, even if it has a hotwire).  

4-5' above the ground is right exactly at horse jugular-and-chin-and-eyeball height. 

Translation: yes, you nstill need caps on them!



> Can horses be fed grass only diets? Or is hay and grain always needed in some amount?


Can I seriously, very very seriously, suggest that you take a while off forums to go do some basic reading instead on horse management, because some of these questions are really worrying me. You can't expect to learn as you go, you have to have a reasonably sound knowledge of the basics before becoming responsible for a horse's care.

To answer the question as such: horses most often do quite well on only high-quality pasture (tho some ages/stages or horses in hard work may need some grain, this is unlikely to pertain to any horse you'll get) but only if it _is_ ample good quality pasture. If it runs out, or was not good quality to begin with, then they will obviously need other food.

(edited to clarify: "only high-quality pasture" means 24/7 access. If the horse is stalled at night, he needs hay during that time, no matter how good your pasture is)

The most fundamental nutritional need of horses is roughage. They get this from either grass or hay (there are some more-obscure substitutes, like beet pulp, but that is beyond the scope of this discussion). So if a horse is not getting enough grass to meet his roughage needs he absolutely MUST have enough hay to compensate. 

On top of that are the other nutritional needs like enough total calories, enough protein, proper balance of minerals such as calcium and phosphorus, etc.  I am not going to even try writing a dissertation on this here except to say, you _need_ to learn at least a bit about this.

Grain or other concentrate (pellets, etc) are usually used to add total calories more than anything; but as I say, this is NOT USUALLY NEEDED for typical adult horses in light work. And you can actually cause quite a lot of problems, sometimes fatal, with grain or concentrates. 

Please, please, go read some books and websites, you need to have gotten at least a B+ in the lecture portion of Horsekeeping 101 before it is safe to proceed to the lab portion i.e. actually having a horse at home.   I am sure you have done some reading already and that's great but it needs to be a lot more if these are the questions in your mind...

Pat


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## Blue Dog Farms (Apr 25, 2011)

If you are planning to take a grain fed horse off grain and on only grass,good luck. My mare is fat as a pig our grass and gets minimal QUALITY grain for the vitamins and minerals. You can give mineral blocks, but if your grass is not exceptional you will not have a happy horse. And during the winter hay is a must. It is expensive. and cheap hay is not going to cut it. Good grain and nice hay is a must for most horses. You need to know what colic looks like and when to call a vet. Then you must be able to PAY the vet. Not cheap. Not knowing when to call the vet or how to treat colic can kill your horse QUICK and its very painful. A good ferrier is hard to find. You must know what thrush looks like. Do you have someone to call to come out and look at your horse if you have questions? I have had horses my whole life and still I ask my mother questions all the time. My mare is at her place because although I have 5acres it is not sufficient for horses.Grass turns to dirt quick then you have sand colic issues and must provide lots of hay daily $$$$$$$ Good Luck 
:/


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## secuono (Apr 25, 2011)

I want the horse shoeless, eating grass 24/7. Hay I can add from time to time, mainly in winter. Grain isn't something I'm wanting to buy.
I see two horses on a 1/3 acre lot, never ridden or taken out. They have a 4-5ft bale of hay, still have grass on the ground. 

Pat is doing a great job of making me not want a horse...Don't mean that in a bad way, but...lol....jeez.


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## carolinagirl (Apr 25, 2011)

secuono said:
			
		

> I want the horse shoeless, eating grass 24/7. Hay I can add from time to time, mainly in winter. Grain isn't something I'm wanting to buy.
> I see two horses on a 1/3 acre lot, never ridden or taken out. They have a 4-5ft bale of hay, still have grass on the ground.
> 
> Pat is doing a great job of making me not want a horse...Don't mean that in a bad way, but...lol....jeez.


Shoeless and eating grass 24/7 might work well a horse like a mustang, but the kind of horse you are considering buying it won't work.  The more refined breeds are not as hardy and need more specialized diets and care.  Once in a while you come across a horse that is considered to be an "easy keeper", but they are few and far between.  I had one once.  She stayed fat and healthy on pasture alone, with carrots and treats. I never shod my horses, but also only road them on dirt or pasture.  A horse that has been shod her whole life probably will need to stay shod.  At the very least, you will still need to get her professionally trimmed once a month.  

I don't mean this in a nasty way, but you really really need to step back and learn a whole lot more about horses before you get one.  You just aren't ready!


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## chubbydog811 (Apr 26, 2011)

Eek...I'm going to agree with the others on this one...Go back to horse school before you buy a horse. Leasing is always a good place to start - you can work behind the horse/barn owner and ask crazy questions, but it is in their control, so you cant kill the horse in your care. 
Most horses now - unless they have at least 2-3 acres of good pasture need GOOD QUALITY hay and grain. This also depends on your location (around here, it is hard to find a field that you can just graze and not feed anything else). If you don't want to buy grain, don't buy a horse. At some point in the horse's life, it will most likely need grain (like when it gets older, if it has a hard time keeping weight on. Younger growing horses as well) 
The going rule is at least 1 acre per horse. Otherwise your pasture will turn into a dry lot in the summer, and a mud pit in the spring (ask me how I know!) The short grass that the horses dont kill isn't enough to support them.
T-posts are a BAD idea. Enough said. 


Also, other than safe fencing, ect that has been covered - don't forget about vet and farrier care. It seems that is always the first thing new horse owners forget (when they haven't had proper training). A good farrier is a MUST. As they say (whoever "they" are) No foot, no horse. Make sure you find a good vet ahead of time as well. With those t-posts, you might need one! 


Sorry, I'm not trying to be rude, but SOO many people jump into horse ownership without knowing what is going on. That is the worst way to start...Seriously, find a barn that will let you lease a horse at their farm, and learn there first. It will ruin your horse experience if you start off on a bad foot.


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## itsjustjen (Apr 26, 2011)

* T-post fencing, when done incorrectly, can be very dangerous! I boarded at a barn but quickly moved after they started chopping pastures down with t-posts. They were weak and the electric was strong enough and my horse WALK straight through the fence! I was very luck that he simply walked into another pasture and not out into the woods or , god forbid, the road! *

I have owned horses for years but they were always boarded. I just renting a new house in March but there was nothing set up for horses...I had to put it up all myself! I did LOTS of reading and asking as many questions as I could on the must have to fences, shelter, etc. 

Here is what I did/have to date : 

High tensil electric fencing, 4 strands high. 4 in posts for the main fencing with 6 in posts at the corners with 4 inch posts bracing the corners for extra support. 

Coverd run in that is walled on one side against the elements. ( Was a shed that I completely converted into a run in.

At least a dozen or so trees within the pasture as horses will not always stay in the run in in light rain. 

Seperate pasture that is 1/3 the size of the main pasture as a back up pasture/ holding pen for my unruly 5 yr old. 

They have access to a round bale of hay 24/7 plus grass to graze on PLUS a high quality feed. 

 2 water troughs with clean, fresh water 

All the tools ( brushes, picks, curry combs ) along with bandages, wraps, santizing products ( iodine ) etc. 

Total cost of everything I have : $ 2200

And that's just for the things I've listed. That doesn't include the feed I buy every month OR the hay I buy weekly. That's another $ 250 a month. 

It's great that you want a horse, I'm all for it! But please, do more research and cost listing. I saved for quite some time but the bulk of my money was my tax return.  

If I had the money, I would have a pasture twice the size I have now with wooden board fencing with electric running the top, a full sized barn with seperate paddocks attached to each stall, trailer parking within the barn, feed room, tack room, high quality pasture grass. But all that can come later once I own my own home and land.


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## patandchickens (Apr 26, 2011)

secuono said:
			
		

> I want the horse shoeless, eating grass 24/7. Hay I can add from time to time, mainly in winter. Grain isn't something I'm wanting to buy.
> I see two horses on a 1/3 acre lot, never ridden or taken out. They have a 4-5ft bale of hay, still have grass on the ground.


\

Yes, well we all *want* the magic self-maintaining cheap-and-easy horse, don't we, but we do not always GET it, especially in the what used to be meat-price bracket 

You will need to feed hay all winter, really you will (I saw the pics you posted on your other thread). Plan on 20-30 lbs of hay per day per 1000-lb horse, from sometime around your first killing frost of the Fall (or earlier) until most likely a few weeks before your last frost of the spring; AT LEAST. 

I say "at least" because... those horses on a 1/3 acre with the roundbale that 'still have grass on the ground'? Either they aren't out there very long during the day, or that ain't grass, it's either inedible weeds or grass *stubble* that they pare off as fast as it grows. Really really.

If you are going to feed a horse entirely on grazing during the growing season, you need between 1-4 acres of land PER HORSE in most areas east of the Mississippi (west, it often takes more or is virtually impossible period). One acre per horse, which is frequently cited in books, is NOT a typical amount to fully support a horse; it is a reasonable allowance when horses are stalled and hayed at night. There are *a few* pastures that are so lushly growing for much of the year that they can support full-time grazing at that rate, but for most, it takes more land than that. 

As a point of comparison, I can tell you that where i live right now, I have pretty average pastures (not going to win any prizes, but not "bad" or overgrazed or all-weeds, either) and it takes about 5-6 fenced acres to support 3 horses fulltime during the grazing season... and it gets real *thin* out there rather earlier than it should, I wish I had another 5 acres or so.

If you don't have a couple of acres of decent grazing per horse, you will most likely be feeding SOME hay essentially year-round, although it will be less during the growing season than the numbers I quoted you above for wintertime.



> Pat is doing a great job of making me not want a horse...Don't mean that in a bad way, but...lol....jeez.


Well, you can say "jeez" all you want, but Pat has been around for a number of years and see a _lot_ of people go down the exact same road you're on right now. 

Pat has sent some of them condolences-on-the-loss-of-your-horse or get-out-of-hospital-soon cards; Pat has helped retrain some of the serious behavior problems they've innocently created; Pat has seen horses "accidentally" end up fit only for the meat auctions (which, since they don't really have them anymore, would instead mean a $600 vet-and-knacker bill). Pat knows how this all too often ends up.

Look. I am not even remotely trying to get you to not want to get a horse. 

What I am trying is to get you to want to get more EDUCATION and PREPARATION *before* you go gettin' any horse.

For BOTH your sakes.

Pat


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## freemotion (Apr 26, 2011)

And now for yet one more opinion:  I agree.  Whole-heartedly.  I've seen too many bad things happen when people get a horse when they are not ready.....either to the horse or to the people.  I've heard hundreds of people tell me they are afraid of horses because of something that happened to them....and when I ask them to describe it, the incident was 100% preventable and 1000% stupid.

My credentials:  I am several decades old and spent most of those decades riding and owning horses.  I spent many years teaching riding and managing a show and breeding stable.  I trained many, many horses from birth to the show ring.  I re-trained spoiled or scared horses.   I made plenty of my own mistakes.  I spent literally thousands and thousands of dollars on lessons and clinics to improve my own knowledge and skill.

Yes, you can keep a horse barefoot, but only certain horses in certain circumstances.  You can buy a horse who has been kept barefoot, bring it home, and discover that in your pastures or with your riding that it cannot remain barefoot.  It is a very individual thing.

You will save yourself thousands of dollars.....really, I'm not kidding.....if you spend the next couple of years getting lessons at least weekly at a local GOOD lesson stable (yes, I know group lessons are $40 an hour....cheap!  When you figure out what you pay hourly for riding your own horse, compare it to lessons, financially you will opt for lessons!)  The next step, while still getting lessons, is to lease or half-lease a horse for a year or so.  By then you will know for sure if you really want a horse, or if you got it out of your system.  And this from someone who thinks she has some equine DNA in her cells.

If you follow this advice and spend two years getting lessons and leasing, you will have a BLAST the entire time and if you are still having a blast and hungering for your own horse, then is the time that we will cheer you on and ooooo and aaaahhhh over the pics of your new mare or gelding.

Oh, and 1/3 acre will be a mud pit or dust bowl very quickly with any equine.

If you've read my posts I usually am very encouraging, so please take this in the spirit in which it is meant.  It is meant to prevent you from heartache, disappointment, huge bills, and injuries.  Really.


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## patandchickens (Apr 26, 2011)

Well said, freemotion.

Because I know what the usual reply is, I would like to add that riding lessons are NOT at all like driving lessons, where a short course teaches you all you really need to know for most peoples' needs. (edited to clarify: I mean lessons driving a *car*, not a horse ) Even a whole year or two of casual riding lessons, in most cases, does not put you in a good place to manage or handle even straightforward horses, let alone problems as they arise.

Seriously, they are more complex than bicycles or cars or dogs. Not comparable. Need MUCH better preparation in order to have reasonable expectation of things going well.

Pat


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## chubbydog811 (Apr 26, 2011)

What freemotion and Pat said...Horse are NOT easy to ride, handle, or take care of! No matter what some nut job trainers/horse owners might tell you!

And my post was coming from 13 years riding, 12 of those owning. I got a horse after my first year riding (but I also picked it up quick and could ride/handle pretty much any horse the trainer threw at me at  that point).
I was boarding when I got my first pony. I didn't bring her home until a year later. I was at the barn every day, learning as much as I could on the ground, in the barn, and in the saddle. Wasn't easy! 
Even now, after 13 years, and teaching/training other people for half of that time, I still take lessons...You can never know enough. That is the key with horses (and anything in life): You never know everything, and HAVE to be willing to listen to advice from people who have more/different knowledge than you.


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## secuono (Apr 26, 2011)

The horse will be alone on a little over 4 acres. I plan on buying hay fall/winter, but so far the only place I can get it from with my car is TSC, so their schedule or bust. 
I've read a lot about natural shoeless horses and I can't agree with you that it's anything like that. 1yr or more transition, on just grass never anything else, it'll be fine. 
No idea where you are getting what we call 'free' lessons, mine were $120 per 45min, 1x a wk, for 6wks. 

Either way, something killed 60+ chickens last night, so I won't be here much for awhile.


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## patandchickens (Apr 26, 2011)

secuono said:
			
		

> The horse will be alone on a little over 4 acres. I plan on buying hay fall/winter, but so far the only place I can get it from with my car is TSC, so their schedule or bust.


I thought this was going to be two horses and some sheep? Anyhow, not gonna work as written here.... you can't realistically provision a horse by buying individual bales from TSC in your car.

Instead, what you need to do is get a good big delivery of hay (either pay the farmer to deliver, or rent a U-haul type truck and pick it up yourself) in the early Fall, preferably enough to last you thru the whole winter and spring. If not that, then be VERY attentive about restocking WELL BEFORE there is any possibility of snow blocking access, and remember that hay prices go up throughout the winter. Make sure your storage space has absolutely ZERO roof leaks above it, and store the hay up on at least one thickness of pallets, ideally with airspace left between the haybale stack and the barn walls.

Hay from the hay guy is likely to be cheaper (and quite possibly better) than hay from TSC anyhow 

It is ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL that you always have at least several weeks supply of hay on the property. I don't mean restock it every several weeks, I mean have several weeks' worth sitting in the barn AT ANY GIVEN MOMENT. Run out of hay, colicky or dead horse. Period. "It was the snowstorm of the century, it's not my fault I ran out of hay" does not cut it. Have the hay in the barn.



> I've read a lot about natural shoeless horses and I can't agree with you that it's anything like that. 1yr or more transition, on just grass never anything else, it'll be fine.


Ah, reading. Reading is nice. REading is useful.

However out here in the actual real world, it often does not work quite that way all the time 

So it would be wise to at least _consider_ the reports being communicated to you from here in the real world 

Sorry bout your chickens, hope you can get that fixed somehow,

Pat


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## secuono (Apr 26, 2011)

patandchickens said:
			
		

> secuono said:
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> 
> 
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That's why I post Qs on here, they may sound stupid or questions I should know the answer to already, but that is what this site is for. So I can re-ask all the Qs floating in my head, to get answers from 'real' people and not books or years old threads. 
As far as snow, 2yrs ago we got 2ft, other than that, rarely snows enough or lasts longer than two days. 
And the car, I can fit 6-8 40lbs bales at a time, drive back n forth, every day after work and pick up more and more and stock pile, no issue on that. I said I needed to work on finding a hay person by fall, It'll get done, just takes forever when your in the middle of nowhere and no body wants to help you out with just 50 bales at a time.
Yes, I realize the chickens mean near nothing to most people. But I put a ton of time, sweat, blood, $, heartache into them. They used to live free and were the happiest dang 80ish birds you'd ever see.


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## carolinagirl (Apr 26, 2011)

It's understandable that you have questions and yes...that is what this board is for.  But the time to ask them is prior to making arrangements to have a horse delivered at the end of the week as you originally planned when you started asking! The fencing issues, the needed supplies, feeding, farrier, etc.  This is all stuff that needs to be in place prior to even shopping for a horse. Just slow down.  The right horse will come along at the right time, after all prior planning has been carefully researched and carried out.  I know it's hard to wait when you have your mind set on something.


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## michickenwrangler (Apr 26, 2011)

6-8 40 lb bales is 240-320 lbs. Making multiple trips is NOT good for the suspension of your vehicle.

Honestly, not to discourage you, but it takes YEARS of experience with horses to have a horse. They are not for casual buyers.

Yes, many people put up a fence, buy some hay, and get a horse. BUT many of these people are not educated and often buy horses they cannot, do not or will not ride.

Lugging 40 lbs bales even through a few inches of snow is hard work. You can feed small amounts off a round bale, but realistically you'll need a tractor for round bales. 

The weight of horses combined with grazing will quickly destroy grass roots and 1 horse on 1/3 of an acre will wear it down. 1 horse usually eventually means 2 horses. Yes, there are people who only have 1 horse, but again, it is not an ideal situation. Horses are herd animals. They need companionship.

Not all horses can be barefoot as well. Depends on the individual horse and the terrain. Do more education, talk to local owners and farriers. Not all horses can survive on just grass and hay. At the very least you'll need a mineral block. Know what minerals your local hay/soil are deficient in. Here in the Great Lakes, it is selenium and copper, yet we have a lot of calcium and iron. EVen different areas of the state or county have different nutritional contents.

Really, you need to have a few years of riding under your belt along with working or helping at a barn or EXPERIENCED horse owner before you take the plunge. A horse can/will hurt you (accidentally) a LOT faster than any other domesticated animal.


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## patandchickens (Apr 27, 2011)

michickenwrangler said:
			
		

> Lugging 40 lbs bales even through a few inches of snow is hard work.


In the interest of disseminating information *and* proving I *am* trying to help rather than merely be a wet blanket <g>, I would point out that a plastic kiddie sled (toboggan/boat style) makes this pretty easy, at least once you've tromped an initial path if the snow is deep 

However, at the same time,



			
				secuono said:
			
		

> As far as snow, 2yrs ago we got 2ft, other than that, rarely snows enough or lasts longer than two days.


I do not think you are hearing me. It is not just snow, it is ANY OF A LOT OF REASONS why *having only a week or two supply of hay is dangerous*. What happens if your car breaks down? What happens if you are snowed in for two days at the same time as you discover half the bales you bought are moldy? Or... and this is honestly by far the most common reason for people running out of hay... what happens if your supplier runs out temporarily? This is really not AT ALL uncommon.  

It is not a matter of "oh well he will survive being hungry for a day or two and I can feed him apples and oatmeal out of the kitchen." That does not do it. Horses need large amounts of roughage and they need it more or less continually, not let's skip a day. Colic is not infrequently fatal. You just CANNOT be in a position where you could even POSSIBLY run out of hay.

A number of horses also cannot deal gracefully with switching batches of hay every week or two, *that* can make them colicky. If you buy car-size batches from TSC they WILL be from different batches, sometimes very very different.

So the number of bales you can cram into a car is not really even relevant here IMHO. Even if your TSC sells hay (I didn't realize any of them do, I suppose it doesn't surprise me tho) it will be more expensive for decent quality and will come in too-small amounts and from too-diverse batches. 

You simply need to find a farmer or hay dealer. It is really not difficult at all (tho this time of year you would have a bit more trouble and spend more for the hay, simply b/c it is late in the season). I would recommend taking along an experienced horse person to check the hay out with you before you buy, or at least talk to some local GOOD boarding/breeding barns (i.e. not people who are tending to cut corners) and find out where they recommend you get your hay from. 

As with horses, not all hay is created equal, there is great hay, good hay, perfectly-fine-for-idle-horses-with-a-ration-balancer hay, poor hay that your horse will dwindle on, and actively-bad hay that can make him sick or dead. It is NOT just a matter of is it green and nice-smelling. Protein % is a significant issue and for that you need either a lab analysis or advice from a very experienced person. 

(Another advantage, therefore, of buying your whole winter's or year's worth of hay at once, aside from convenience and price, is that you will only have to worry about quality and shopping *once* )

Pat


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## secuono (Apr 27, 2011)

patandchickens said:
			
		

> michickenwrangler said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Yes, I realize I need to buy in bulk. A neighbor came over today to say hey again and he will be back next week to mow the grass, I will ask him where he gets his hay from and hopefully I will have a person to order IN BULK from. The barn is large enough with water going away on all sides for a mass amount of hay. 

As for the sled idea, that is a great one. I put our little chicken killer to work this past winter pulling 50lbs of chicken feed 250ft to the barn. She's 16lbs herself and it was very easy. It's a great idea all around for dogs to work and to make moving things easy. 

I'm under a ton of stress right now with the move and now my lost birds, so I'm sorry if anything comes off rude.


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