Re: RC: Horses Per Acre

[Kirsten Foruria <kirsten@vermilion.reno.nv.us>]

I'm no expert, but I can tell you that it depends on so many
things that there is probably no good "rule of thumb".

For example, are you in a position to rotate between
pastures or to limit the time that the horses spend on the
pasture (e.g. putting the horses in the barn for the
night)?  How good quality is the pasture?  What kind of
irrigation system do you have (if any)?

The good news is that a well-managed pasture can support a
surprising number of animals very well.  A friend of mine
pastures 4 horses on 1/2 acre, but she rotates regularly and
the horses come off pasture at night
or when there's a good rain (no irrigation, they just depend
on rain).

Last summer I pastured five mares (three of whom were
nursing foals) on approximately 2 1/2 acres.  The pasture
supported all five pretty well, although I probably would
have hesitated to put another horse in there. The pasture
was flood irrigated.  There was no rotation and they were on
the pasture full-time (24 hours) for approximately four
months: mid-June through mid-October.

I would think that 1/2 acre per horse would be fairly easily
do-able without intensive managment efforts. But, that would
depend on the quality of the pasture among many other
things.

Kirsten

Naztari@aol.com wrote:
> 
> Is there a rule of thumb in regards to how many horses per acre of
> pasture...or some way of gauging how many horses that can be kept in a
> certain area? Does region make a difference...ie the southeast?
> 
> Ed Roley
> 
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-- 
Kirsten (Price) Foruria
Vermilion Desert Ranch
Reno, Nevada


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Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.    
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