This message is from: Kathleen Spiegel <[email protected]>
On Thu, Aug 4, 2011 at 10:40 AM, S K <[email protected]> wrote: Re self regulate feed? > I have a herd of 11 Fjords and three brunettes. They will self regulate > only within strong fences. Mine have access to pasture 24/7 and I now feed > them a bale ( 60 lbs between them all) of coarse grass hay. My pasture ( 10 > acres) is short and not lush but has remained green this year. REgardless > of how much you feed them and how fat they are, they are such a food driven > beastie that they will move heaven and earth ( and my buck fences) to get > that piece on the other side . the mature mares get a little on the tubby > side in June but the rest of them stay nice and trim. They all slim down > in the late summer , fall and winter. Last week I had a three year old who > found a hole in the fence between my pasture and the neighbors. It was left > as a small gap to walk through with neither of us dreaming that a horse > could get through. Well she did, and had to really force the issue and > pigged out on the more lush pasture on the other side and then her fat > gut would not fit through the hole again. Kind of like a snake eating a > rat. I ended up having to jack out a fence post, peel back the fence and > then dribble a line of grain to get her back on the right side. ( I had > tried to lead her through the hole through which she had come but when the > posts touched her sides she refused. and then would not come anywhere near > the hole). The neighbor was gone and had a lock on his gates so I could not > take her through his place and around. All the time the rest of the herd > was eying the now wider hole and the tall grass on the other side, the > neighbors horses were eying my pasture. I was alone trying to fend of the > opposing camps at the same time trying to get the lone piggy back where she > belonged. I could have cheerfully shot them all on the spot but it was > funny later. Without electric fences, my crew will demolish just about any > fence except five stranded barbed wire or steel pipe to get to grass. They > just put their heads through and push hard, usually more than one at a time. > I had 35 tons of hay delivered for the winter ( September-May) and they > counted every one of the bales as they went into the stack. 20-22 > lbs/day/horsein fall and winter keeps them in good condition and they have > the pasture for exercise but there is no nutrition. Kathy in McCammon Idaho Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw Classified Ads: http://tinyurl.com/5b5g2f
