Pastures are vitamin-rich and provide substantial energy and protein for many classes of horses. There is both a psychological and physical health benefit for horses to be turned out versus stalled. If a horse has access to a good quality pasture (a pasture that can provide nourishment, unlike a turnout area that is devoid of edible forage), the pasture should be considered as part of that horse’s daily ration.

Along with longer, sunnier days, Spring presents management challenges and opportunities on the horse farm. Melting snow and spring rains can, at the very least, produce muddy pastures and at the very worst create dangerous flooding.

Believe it or not, some people think horse manure stinks! People don’t like to see it out their window or drink it in their water. By using some “perfect” planning suggestions, you can prevent water contamination, be a good neighbor and have healthy, happy horses.

Forages supply energy, crude protein, minerals, and vitamins at varying levels, depending on forage species and nutritive value. Forage nutritive value and the resulting effect on animal performance are greatly influenced by forage stage of maturity and soil fertility. Unlike ruminants, such as cattle, horses are limited in their ability to utilize forages that are low in nutritive value.

Every horse owner has to deal with the same by-product of horse ownership — manure. Horse owners have a common obligation to practice sound environmental practices. Composting is one of the manure management options that horse owners can employ as a viable manure management strategy.

Understand the purpose of a fence. The true test of a fence’s worth is not when horses are peacefully grazing, but when an excited horse contacts the fence in an attempt to escape or because he never saw it during a playful romp. How will the fence and horse hold up under these conditions?

This is the time of year when you start thinking about New Year’s resolutions, and you may want to think of ways to make your stable and farm more environmentally-friendly in 2011. Going green on your horse farm is not difficult or expensive. You may already be using environmentally-friendly methods of horse-keeping and just need to make some adjustments.

Nothing is harder on grass than constantly being grazed down to the roots, and horses are notorious overgrazers. Grass needs to be rested occasionally to allow it to rejuvenate. This pasture management method, called rotational grazing, offers your pastures their best chance at rejuvenation. Rotational grazing also helps keep weeds at bay and combats soil compaction by promoting root growth.

Each year numerous horses (and other livestock) are injured or die as a result of accidentally ingesting poisonous plants. Recent wide-spread drought has exacerbated the problem, and many horse owners and hay producers are simply unaware of the potential injury from poisonous plants.