With another long Ontario winter just around the corner, now is the time to prepare your property for the winter months, before the snow and cold arrives.
The object is to create a safe and healthy environment for your horses and make your property as chore-efficient as possible over the winter months.
Bring in footing material
Laying down a footing material, like sand, gravel screenings or wood chips will assist in drainage, thereby reducing mud and slipperiness caused by frozen surfaces and cutting down on soil erosion.
Don’t wait till winter to do this – not only is it much easier for trucks to deliver their loads before areas become slick and muddy, footing materials may also become more difficult to find, once the demand increases.
Create “sacrifice” and winter paddock turnout areas
If practical, restrict your horses’ turnout area to sacrifice areas, especially during the wet fall and spring periods – this will go a long way to preserving your pastures for summer turnout purposes.
Pastures grazed too closely in the late fall are subject to winter damage and slow growth the following spring.
Also with fall rains and soggy winters, soils become water saturated and easily compacted by horse traffic, causing damage to grass root systems.
Make sure winter turnout areas have shelters for horses to escape driving winds and precipitation, should they wish to do so.
Buy your supply of hay now
Not only will this help ensure that you receive the same quality of hay for the entire season, you will also be assured of having a secure supply when the demand increases. Consider a regular delivery program.
Store your hay in a clean, dry environment – ideally on wood pallets above ground level to prevent moisture from “wicking” from flooring into the hay. Be sure to allow spacing of at minimum 4-6” between haystacks to ensure good ventilation.
Nutritional guidelines suggest that a horse should receive approximately. 2% of its body weight in hay (forage) per day. For your average 1000lb horse, this represents about 20lbs of hay daily or 600lbs/month. Therefore 1 ton of hay will last your average horse 3-4 months.
Better to estimate a little on the high side – remember, a couple of extra pounds of hay fed in extremely cold weather is the best heat source you can give your horse – body heat generated by eating and digesting hay will help keep your horse warm.
Buy winter bedding now
Have sufficient bedding stored, ready for use, before winter months hit. While not always feasible, at least avoid having supplies run low before replenishing.
Manure management
The average horse creates 50lbs of manure daily. Manure should be stored in a environmentally-friendly manner – ideally in a walled cement containment area to avoid runoff and environmental concerns.
Placing a tarp over manure piles will significantly reduce nutrient runoff.
This has 3-fold benefit:
1. Preserves nutrients as manure composts;
2. Minimizes runoff in surface waters to avoid environmental concerns; and
3. Reduces more “mud” formation.
Manure compost adds micro and macro-nutrients to the soil and replenishes depleted stores of beneficial bacteria to improve soil and plant health.
Check gutters and downspouts
Clean gutters and downspouts and make any necessary repairs to ensure proper function. The goal is to divert rainwater away from paddock areas, thereby avoiding rainwater contamination from mixing with manure and greatly reducing the amount of mud and ice your horses stand in.
Have Adequate Lighting
If you do not have adequate exterior lighting to safely see as you bring your horses in a night or your barn interior lighting is too faint to see what you are doing, then now is the time to consult with your electrician about improvements to lighting requirements
Emergency preparedness
Make sure you have a flashlights in both house and barn, with extra batteries.
Have a well stocked veterinary emergency kit stored in a warm area so that medications do not freeze.
Invest in a cell phone charger for your car so that you always have a way to charge your phone.
Set Up a Water Supply That Won’t Freeze
A horse drinks 8-12 gallons of water daily and prefer water temperatures of 10-15 degrees Celsius. They tend to drink less when water is very cold. Horses cannot get enough moisture by consuming snow.
A decrease in water consumption is a major contributor to colic, so it is imperative that your horse always has a fresh supply of water. Consider installing a stock tank water heater or frost-free water hydrant in turnout areas.
Winter Blankets
Make sure that horse blankets are cleaned, repaired and/or replaced before your horses need them.
A little thought and effort ahead of time will go a long way towards easing the hardships that winter months can throw our way and keep your horses comfortable during the winter months.
This column was submitted by Maggie Horne, DVM, DVSc, and Broker with Royal LePage Royal City Realty.
