S-P-A-C-E

 Regardless of the containment system you choose to safely confine your herd, carefully consider the amount of space you allot for the horse’s daily life.  In reality, most horses do not get enough healthy physical or mental exercise due to limited turn-out/limited use.  The less space you provide for each animal, the more apt they are to develop “bad” habits, attitude “issues” and socialization problems.  Simply put, it’s really boring to stand in a pen/stall for hour upon hour!  Horses usually find a way to pass the time that is not always acceptable by human standards.

In a perfect world, horses would have many acres to roam, socialize, eat, learn, escape, mature, explore and problem solve.  The herd would provide guidance, establish rules and teach its hierarchy to all the members.  In the human world, things are quite different.  Horses are often isolated and confined to small pens.  They may be segregated by sex, age or eating habits.  “Normal” herd interactions and learning experiences rarely occur and as a result, behaviors that we classify as “problematic” arise and create additional training challenges.

For example; in the herd, a stallion may teach an uppity yearling patience by selectively nipping him until he waits his turn or stops pestering an aged mare.  In isolation, a human caregiver may think that the yearling’s aggressive/explorative behavior is “cute” and not establish a clear boundary.  The youngster becomes overly aggressive and eventually a caregiver is challenged to the point of injury.  Many handlers/caregivers are simply not capable of providing the structure a horse would receive from the herd.  In another case, an energetic 2 year old may run and play on open space for hours, enhancing strength, coordination and his ability to balance and perform.  The confined 2 year old is only allowed training time with controlled lunging and then the added weight of a rider, limiting the self-regulated “play” that truly affords a growing horse the opportunity to become strong and confident.

If we have no other choice than to confine a horse to a small area, we are responsible to provide enough exercise and stimulus to the animal to keep his mind and body fresh and healthy.  Not doing so is the MAJOR cause of behavioral issues in many horses!  Excessive fears, aggressive behavior towards other horses and/or humans, bad behavior at feeding time, wood chewing, kicking and biting are just a few of the problems that arise with small area confinement.

So what amount of space is needed to prevent problems?  There is no one size fits all answer for the average healthy horse except that bigger is better!  I advise owners to allow as much space as possible when planning turn-outs and pastures.  At a minimum, horses should be able to canter and play in their daily area, escape from other more aggressive pasture-mates and eat/drink without fear.  Every turn-out area should have at-will access to safe shelter from the weather.  Ideally, more than one horse occupies the area and visual access to activities (whether man-made or natural) is available.  I often hear about horses losing daily turn-out rights due to over-extending themselves or fighting when let out for their one-hour of play.  That in itself is a good indicator that the physical/mental needs of the horse are not being met in the current time/housing allotted!  In my experience, with all other aspects equal, horses allowed to self-regulate exercise over a long period of time tend to show better judgment in how they play and perform.  

So carefully choose your fencing.  Then, as carefully, determine the maximum amount of space you can provide so that your horses are mentally and physically sound.  Planning ahead for optimum turn-out areas can prevent problematic issues in the future.  Ultimately, the space is as important as the fencing that surrounds it!