Re: horses on pasture
This message is from: Kay Van Natta This is easy for me to say because I put my boys in their stalls every night and, as a retiree, I've got a pretty flexible schedule but when spring arrives around here, I limit their outside time each day. Maybe put them out for an hour on day one, 2 hours on day 3, 3 hours on day 5 and so forth. My pasture area is probably not as large or rich as Corinne's which makes this process easier but, after a couple of weeks, the ponies are back to being all day boys...even Bogie the Plump. Sent from my iPad On Apr 14, 2013, at 6:25 PM, Corinne and Scott Logan wrote: > This message is from: Corinne and Scott Logan > > > Our Fjords have always been hay fed, but we have big green pastures finally > and are looking to bring them to the grass. Problem is, there is no dry > lot/sacrifice area to close them up on. So they'll be going from hay 2x a day, > to fresh grass all day/night. I know enough to know this is not the greatest > thing for our food lovers, so am looking for some advice on putting them out > there. > > Thanks much! > > Corinne Logan > Willows Edge Farm > Boise, ID > www.willowsedgefarm.com > > Important FjordHorse List Links: > Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e > FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw > FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
Re: Waterers
This message is from: Fred Pack On 4/14/2013 3:38 PM, Julia Webb wrote:Fred, How does that work, exactly? And will it work on fencing? (I have Electrobraid knock-off). Thanks! Hi Julia, any spark will broadcast a "signal" through the air. The first telegraph/radio/amateur radio transmitters were simply a spark producing unit. I am sure you have heard the snap of lightning in your AM car radio, or the snap of an electric fence when you drove past a field. You will only hear the snap on the AM radio frequencies as FM is broadcast in a different way. I have a Sony FM/AM walkman headset. It has a vertical antenna for FM but...this is important...the AM antenna is built into the headband. Not to get too technical (I'm a ham operator) the headband acts like a loop antenna and can be used for direction finding. When I exactly face the radio station (or sparking short in the fence) the signal/volume is at a minimum. If I hear a snap in my headphones (while listening to talk radio) I go to the center of the field, or ranch area...tune the AM radio to the lowest frequency where there is NO commercial broadcast radio station...I>E 540Khz. Then, slowly turning my body until the snap volume is at a minimum. That gives a close directional indication where the short is. The short MUST be fixed ASAP as the kids won't drink out of my Nelsons until they will no longer get a mild zap... Clear as mud??? It will work to find ANY sparking Fred Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
Horses on pasture
This message is from: Me Kint I don't know the size of your pastures or how many horses you are talking about. I was told by a farmer that you calculate 3acres per horse for the land to be able to support horses. If you have lush pasture, I would start out a few days of 15 min, then some days of 30 min, then maybe an hour in the morning & an hour in the afternoon, monitoring their weight all along. If you have your areas divided up, rotate & then leaving them out on the pretty well eaten pasture for most of the time. Any one else have suggestions? We don't have pasture but foraging & I have to be careful in the spring depending on how much rain we get. I only feed my 2 once a day (eve) during the more lush part of the season. I can turn them out on either 5 acres or 15 acres. I vary which. I keep my 2 in at night. Mary >From Mary's iPad PLEASE REMOVE ALL E-MAIL ADDRESSES BEFORE SENDING OR FORWARDING THIS EMAIL. Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
Fjord Priorities
This message is from: Steve McIlree Bonnie's story reminds me of our guys yesterday morning. When I feed, I put them in the round pen to keep them from "helping" while I measure out their meals. They also get fed in the round pen so they think it's a great place when we need to get them out of out hair for some reason. The routine is, once I've measured their hay into muck buckets, I dump the meals over the pen panel into their feeders and then unlatch the pen gate. So night before last, when I flipped the chain latch up it caught without my noticing, and when I went out the next morning to give them breakfast they were still locked in. Since they had been all night without water I thought they would make a rush for the waterer as soon as the gate opened. No, they started checking my pockets for the dinner mint they usually get when I go into the pasture. After I gave them their mints, did they head for the water? Nope, they turned around, went back into the pen and stood by their feeders until I dumped breakfast in. -- Steve It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.-- Aristotle 384-322 BC Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
Non-electric Freeze Free Waterers
This message is from: Steve McIlree Since the waterer thread has sparked some interest, I am going to put in my two cents on what I believe is the smartest waterer design going. We have had a waterer from Bar-Bar A (http://goo.gl/Ez5tv) for about five years and I think it's the greatest thing since sliced bread. These look familiar at first glance, there is a paddle in the bowl and when the horses push their noses in it turns on the water for them to drink. That is where the similarity to other waterers ends; the water stands in the bowl for about a minute, then a valve opens and the water drains. Therein lies the advantage to these things, in the summer there is no standing water to grow algae and mosquito larvae, and in the winter there is nothing to freeze. There is of course the additional benefit of no electricity usage and no need for an electrician to install. The drain operates on the same principle as frost free hydrants. The valve system which allows water to flow up to the bowl and then drain back out is installed below the frost line, so water never stands long enough to freeze. When the waterers are installed, a gravel-filled sump is dug below the level of the feed line and valves which catches the water as it drains. So OK these things work in New Mexico, but I live where there is real winter. The Bar-Bar A Website has plenty of testimonials from New England, Canada, Alaska and even one from Norway where the writer says they worked at -32°. I should mention that in the five years we have had one of these waterers installed, the only maintenance required has been to replace a filter one time; a job which took all of twenty minutes. I do not work for or receive any kickbacks from Bar-Bar A, I just believe they have a great product. If you are in need of a practical non-electric freeze free waterer for your horses, I urge you to check them out. -- Steve It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.-- Aristotle 384-322 BC Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
Fjord escapes
This message is from: Carol Makosky A few years ago, I would turn the electric fence off in the evening because it interfered with our TV reception. I left the fence off for a couple of weeks one winter and we had some rather deep snows that year. One morning I opened the front door to go feed Heidi & she ran up to me with her "Where's my food greeting" I could see her foot prints going right over the fence line, so I closed her out of that part of her pen. The next morning she had gotten out again, but this time she just walked right through the tape line. Needless to say I never leave the fence off for any length of time even if it is winter and she would not get much if any shock. I believe hearing the clicking keeps her alert to the fence working. -- "God forbid that I should go to any heaven in which there are no horses." R.B. Cunningham Graham Built Fjord Tough Carol M. On Golden Pond N. Wisconsin Home of Heidi, The Wonder Pony Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
Finally! I'm Fjord'ed!
This message is from: "Julia Webb" After wanting one for more than 4 years, I finally have my own. Isabella (Smedsmo Graen x Raspotnik's Nona, 2008) arrived yesterday, escaping the mud of Wisconsin for the winds of south central Kansas. At the end of her arduous journey, she polished off some of the hay in the trailer, exchanged pleasantries with my Morgan mare, Eva, and found the one small puddle in the otherwise dry sacrifice paddock to give herself a grand spa treatment. A girl's got to do what a girl's got to do. She's settling in nicely, done the Eat, Poop, Love thing, and is busy trying to figure out how to get the treats out of the Amazing Graze toy. Since she's a Fjord and has a Morgan to help mentor her, I expect she'll be a pro in no time. Thank you, Patti Jo and Tanya for providing a stellar buying experience for yet another breed newbie. Thanks to the training and work done by you two and Ken Raspotnik, the vet doing the exam couldn't say enough good things about my new girl. I'm looking forward to many years with her. All the best, Julia Webb Cheney, KS Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
Re: Waterers
This message is from: Frederick Pack Valerie, I have the Nelsons...and have had them for years. With the heaters, they MUST have a good ground system. Even with a good ground system, a short in a nearby electric fence will feed through the water itself (unless absolutely no mineral content...i.e. pure) ... I use an AM radio headphones to listen for shorts and track them down. On my water system is also a water (gallons used) meter, which I monitor daily for water consumption. Allowances made for hot or cold days and accessible puddles to drink from. Good luck finding the problem My Nelsons are invaluable... On Sun, Apr 14, 2013 at 6:15 AM, valerie pedersen wrote: > This message is from: valerie pedersen > > > We built a new barn and put expensive Nelson waterers in each stall and one > in the paddock. The horses refuse to use them. One of the Fjords will use > it if there is nothing else, one Fjord mare will not use it at all. The old > Morgan has already had an impaction colic but it may not be the waterers > fault. I have tried treats in them, no one cares. I am trying to make my > life easier. Any ideas? > Valerie > Now in Virginia > > Important FjordHorse List Links: > Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e > FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw > FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l > > > -- Fred Pack Packs Peak Stables Wilkeson, WA Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
More on Nelson Waterers
This message is from: Steve McIlree After I answered Valerie's message, I Googled Nelson Waterers because I was curious about how the price compared the non-electric freeze free waterer we use. I still haven't found the price, but I did stumble on this comment in a thread on horseforum.com. "There were a few small installation problems in the beginning, but they were worked out easily enough, and you absolutely can adjust the amount of water you want in the bowl. The lids require a human with opposable things to get off--no way a horse could do it. The heater seems to work pretty well, but when it's super cold and windy the outside waterer has had a thin layer of ice develop on it (nothing the horses couldn't easily break with their muzzles, but we only have mild to moderate winters here, too). The waterers have not broken down and require no maintenance, except for when *the builders who put them in wired them wrong and caused our horses to get a shock every time they got a drink*but you can't blame that on Nelson." -- Steve It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.-- Aristotle 384-322 BC Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
Re: Waterers
This message is from: Steve McIlree On Sun, Apr 14, 2013 at 7:15 AM, valerie pedersen wrote: > This message is from: valerie pedersen > > > We built a new barn and put expensive Nelson waterers in each stall and one > in the paddock. The horses refuse to use them. One of the Fjords will use > it if there is nothing else, one Fjord mare will not use it at all. The old > Morgan has already had an impaction colic but it may not be the waterers > fault. I have tried treats in them, no one cares. I am trying to make my > life easier. Any ideas? > Valerie > Now in Virginia > âDo the waterers have electric heaters? If so are they connected through ground-fault circuits? We once had an instance at a boarding barn where the horses suddenly stopped drinking. We found that there was a short in the water heater that was giving a mild shock. We finally spotted it when it got bad enough that it knocked my Morgan to his knees and then threw me across the pen when I touched it. -- Steve It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.-- Aristotle 384-322 BC Important FjordHorse List Links: Subscription Management: http://tinyurl.com/5msa7e FH-L Archives: http://tinyurl.com/rcepw FH_L Shirts: http://tinyurl.com/8yky94l
