Horses Can Be Successful Grazers

Horse owners want to help their beloved animals be healthy, have land that's in good shape, make good use of their paddocks, and reduce feed costs.Ìý For all these reasons, they are increasingly considering careful pasture management in order to produce optimal forage for their horses.

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The latest nutritional research indicates that forage-based diets are the best option for horses.Ìý However, horses’ high energy levels, reliance on flight as a primary defense,Ìý hooves, teeth, and their need for low protein, high fiber forage, combine to make equine pasture management a challenging goal.

Horses evolved as migratory grazing animals, but having a single-chambered stomach instead of a four-chambered one (as cows do), they digest their feed very differently from cattle.Ìý Because of these differences, horses are quite possibly the most difficult type of livestock to graze—but don't give up!

Seeking Balance: Elements of a Successful Horse Grazing System

Grazing Horse

There is no simple prescription for perfect pastures, but this 2011 primer by Gwyneth Harris, Betsy Greene, and Rachel Gilker will help you on your way to keeping your horses in grass, decreasing soil erosion, and striking a balance between the needs of your horses and those of your pastures.ÌýÌý PDF icon Download a .pdf of the 12-page Seeking Balance publication here.

Greener Pastures: Sacrifice a Little Bit to Save a Lot!

Healthy Horse Paddocks

A good pasture or grass stand serves as a natural filter to clean surface water of organic matter prior to entering lakes or streams.Ìý If the soil is compacted, it is not able to sustain healthy grass growth and does not absorb water.Ìý

This 12-page publication details the use of geotextile fabric and stone to alleviate the problems caused by poor drainage of the paddocks at the ¶¶Òõ̽̽ Ellen A. Hardacre Equine Facility, a highly public area where casual visitors, passers-by and staff and students alike were able to clearly see the mud, ice, muck, and ice patches in the farm's winter months.Ìý

PDF icon Download a .pdf of the 12-page Greener Pastures publication here.

Stable Footing for Your Horse

Horses on the Early Summer Pasture

This is the story of pasture management and high traffic area renovation at Enniskerry Farm in Colchester.Ìý Like many others, the owners found themselves with overgrazed and compacted pastures, as well as fencing that had been maintained on a shoestring, and with the priority of containing the horses instead of effectively utilizing the pastures.Ìý The owners were interested in the environmental effects of horse ownership, as well as a desire to lower the costs of feed and of upkeep.Ìý These were the factors that went into their renovation plans.Ìý PDF icon Download a .pdf of the 12-page Stable Footing for Your Horse publication here.

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Interested in knowing more about the Center's work or do you have a question we haven't answered here?Ìý Contact us via email cheryl.herrick@uvm.edu orÌý 802-656-5459 and we'll do our best to help.

Renovated Horse Pastures with Stone

Contact

  • Help with a plan for grazing your livestock:ÌýÌýAmber Reed atÌýamber.reed@uvm.eduÌýorÌýKimberly Hagen atÌýkimberly.hagen@uvm.eduÌýorÌý802 522-6729Ìý
  • New England Grazing NetworkÌýor regional partnerships: Jenn Colby at 802-535-7606 or jcolby@uvm.edu
  • General inquiries, pasture walks, other upcoming events, or to include your event in our Pasture Calendar: Colene Reed at colene.reed@uvm.edu
  • Vermont Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship Program Education Coordinator Mary Ellen Franklin at MaryEllen.Franklin@uvm.edu
  • Pasture or grazing research questions or ideas: Juan Alvez at 802-656-6116 or juan.alvez@uvm.edu



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