What I think Is The Best Paddock Footing For Horses
Вставка
- Опубліковано 4 жов 2024
- #horses #paddock #footing
I wanted to quickly get out an answer to Laurie who asked about footing around here and what to use in the horse's paddocks. This is what I think is the best material to use as it's easy to clean, fix and manage and the best part is that it stays dry. We have a wet climate here and it's very important to be able to manage environments to keep them clean and dry for the horses.
Please consider joining up on Patreon for horse health and horsemanship classes! It's just a couple of coffees per month!
/ stablehorsetraining
Check out our new 360 degree horse videos channel here: / @stablehorsetraining3602
See Our Introduction Video For 360 Video Here:
• Introduction To Stable...
Like us on Facebook: / stablehorsetraining
Follow on Instagram: / stable.horse.training
Follow us on Twitter: / horse_stable
We made a cool little movie going for a ride in our famous local park, Golden Ears Park. Check that out here:
• The Ride
Main site: www.stablehorse...
I love that you mentioned that horses love to dig. Lots of people think that that’s a really bad behaviour but you’ve given your horse an outlet to be able to do it 😊
ha.. yes, sometimes :)
Hi I’ve been watching your posts on u tube for over a year now ..usually at my bedtime , which has given me such a calm relaxing and happy end to my day. I believe they have helped for a greater peace of mind and also restful sleep after watching and listening to a good mix of your excellent nature observation and documentary of intriguing behaviour of your beloved horses and their surroundings , always delivered in a positive way with such a sense of humour and sensitivity .So thank you again so much for your hard work and for taking the trouble of sharing. l have always loved horses , (rode when younger ) but could not ever have afforded a life amongst horses. I’m grateful that you share your everyday experiences amongst nature and the animals around you and in your care. Thank you so much . I know of late you have not been posting so much , so I wish you your family and your animals well . And hope you feel after a decent break from it all able to continue to share your wonderful moments in your day. Sue
Love property maintenance videos as I am always looking for ways to "better" my property! Thanks for sharing 😁
Thank you! and you're welcome :)
You maintain your property really well. Good horse care. And dog care - precious Zeus. Precious Graeme.
Here in Australia, we would call that crusher dust it packs very well if compacted correctly!!!
Yup, that's we call it too
(Laurie) Thank you Graeme :) ... I have done a lot of research here in Michigan & we are going with diamond dust (baseball fields) I do believe it is the same as the stuff you use & when I asked you a month or so ago you called it crusher dust. I can't find that anywhere here, but all the gravel pits I called said they use diamond dust in arena's for 4-H & horses shows. So Thank you for all your help & sharing your info for all of us to use to help keep our new horse in a cleaner & safer area. Your property looks great & has come a long way, just love what you & Jen are doing with it.
I think I've heard of diamond dust too. You're very welcome :) and thank you for the compliments and kind words
Beautiful horse. :-) We have seven wonderful Appaloosas.
Thanks
You're welcome
Hi there is there a video on the path construction in the Forest , my land is so wet I want to build a track system ,, thanks a million 😁☘️
Somewhere in this playlist for sure: ua-cam.com/video/4MCR5zJKHp4/v-deo.html
I use DG stands for decomposed granite and it packs down well
At least, you don't have dust with this kind of gravel as you would have with fine sand. I noticed horses love to roll in it after the rain as it is denser and comfy. This grey color seems typical of rock coming from northern mountains or laying in river beds.
We have the same kind of lush green grass here too. I wish I had a sheep or a goat (no room for a horse) to help me shorten it a bit although I like it to be natural and ideal for the micro-fauna that hides in it. 😀
On UA-cam there are plenty interesting videos about Arabian horses in local Arabic Countries (sometimes sub-titled in English) , they only have sand in very basic concrete stables or paddocks. Their handling of horses are quite tough and so different from occidental methods. They seem to love their horses but so differently. Energetic stallions and mares.. Some are really beautiful🐎
It sometimes gets a little dusty when it's super dry though. I've had to sprinkle them down here and there to help that
@@StableHorseTraining I imagine, yes
I am going to set up a track system for my horses, including one who suffers from laminitis. I was just thinking of using this stone dust as an underlay and then 10 or even 15cm of sand on top. Except you don't seem happy with the sand. Is it because you placed the sand directly on the earth?
I think sand is fine overall but it's hard to maintain for sure. I haven't put sand directly on the dirt since about 8 years ago when I made the first paddock, that was a nightmare for sure.
I use red sand. It’s different from beach sand. It’s okay but I do have to keep putting more in after a few months. I keep it in my horses paddock but they as have their field always open for them to graze. I’ve been lucky so far that they don’t poo in their sand. Fingers crossed that they keep that up.
Not sure if I've heard of that. Is it like dirt or actual sand?
Red sand has Silica. Wouldn't it damage the hooves?
Silica is in all sand... What do you mean by damage the hooves? What damage would be done? Wouldn't the question be more of "does silica (quartz crystals) damage hooves? And if they do, how do they damage them? My answer would be no unless I see objective proof to the opposite, which I haven't seen so far.
It also cuts down on dust therefore keeping horses cleaner and alot less coughing.
That's true
Have you tried the expanded slate/shale product? It depends on how common shale or slate is in your area, but basically it's run thru a tumbler furnace until it pops, like popcorn. It's chemically neutral, the baking and expanding eliminates any sharp edges, and it's lightweight and easy to handle. It 0does come in several size grades down here, the only problem is the larger grades get picked up when you muck out, so the smaller, pea stone size tends to compact more and forms a more permanent surface.
Also, in one of your videos, you mentioned the arena is built upon a hard base layer. Is it a clay hardpan which you scraped down to, or is it something you constructed? And how satisfied are you with the long term use?
I've never even heard of it... Not sure if it's available here as there isn't anybody around using it that I'm aware of. Thanks for the tip though. As for the arena, it's a base of clay, dirt and rocks, then cloth, then road base ramped down with a sixteen thousand pound roller for 3 days and then sand. Very happy with it so far
@@StableHorseTraining Sounds like the base I put under gravel town roads
Yes, exactly
You mentioned in your last Q and A video that when making a paddock.....that you have to put something down over the actual ground before you put is the crushed gravel. What so you put down under the gravel??
Heavy landscape fabric
good morning do you know a mixture of latex and sand was used in the equine world to develop a sand to use in training and prevents v the sand moving too much when the horse gallops on them?
Yes, I'm aware of it and it's pros and cons. It's very expensive though and not for us.
Yaayy now i know for the paddocks ....but what do you use in your arena?? And how thick
ua-cam.com/video/G2zTZ-p2gHg/v-deo.html
Xenophon, an ancient greek horseman and military general, recommended in one of his books to have the stableyard floor made of pebbles so as to strengthen the hooves. What's your opinion on it?
for a hoof that is not weakened, yes. Good maintenance for sure. Soft squishy footing is the absolute worst for horses. hence horses out on pasture all the time have horrible feet usually.
@@StableHorseTraining Thanks for the input. I've got my first horse and his paddock is still made of hard compacted clay. It seems fine for now, since it's summer, but I think i'll have to do something about it because it gets quite slippery when wet.
Building a dry paddock for my horses….we have run french drains for water and are putting geotextile on next….any updates on a good top footing? Thinking 10-12” of footing.
I use 3 to 4 inches of crusher dust.
@@StableHorseTraining i know the crusher will pack down goos, does it still allow for good drainage? Im in Ontario….heavy clay is an issue here, hence the french drains for our dry paddocks. In the spring here, forget the pasture…..big muddy mess.
*good, not goos….sigh
Rains a lot here too. If you look at newer videos here you'll see that it works really well. Make sure to put fabric in between the gravel and mud/dirt/clay. You'll regret it if you don't.
Curious what you have under the crusher dust? Landscape fabric? Dirt?
Yes, a heavy landscape fabric
What are the mats made of?
Rubber
Graeme I’m having trouble with my corral . I have like crusher dust but they call it shavings . But grass grows up in it. I now spray to kill grass then go over it with shavings but the grass still comes up . I just like to know what would be best to do
Did you put fabric down first between the dirt and gravel?
@@StableHorseTraining no , I did one time and the grass came up again. I did not have the professional one that you use .
Unfortunately in time it will just become mud. If I were to make a suggestion it would be to scrape up as much as you can to save, put down ANY fabric, and then put the gravel back. I know it's a pain but you'll lose all that gravel to the dirt as it's more dense and will naturally sink, especially when wet. That's just physics unfortunately.
@@StableHorseTraining ❤️thank you Graeme so much I so much value your thoughts . That is what I’ll do . I tried to send pic I don’t think they went thru . Thank you for taking time out for me .
@@jodellfields2533 You're welcome. I haven't seen any pictures yet
Hi, I was reading about a type of fine sawdust called “pin dust”, do you have some idea about this product???
I've never heard of it and a search comes up with nothing on the internet. Not sure if you have the name right. Either way, I never use sawdust here anyways so I'm not sure if I'd be a good resource for that.
I've been researching different paddock footing options for horses, and I truly believe that a combination of well-drained gravel and sand works wonders. It provides excellent stability, drainage, and comfort. I've heard about FoamFooting from Performance Footing, and I'm curious to know if anyone here has experience using it. How does it compare to traditional gravel and sand footing? I'd love to hear your thoughts and insights!
never heard of it, don't know a single person using it. Probably far overpriced for what it is
My farrier doesn't recommend the rock dust because over time it becomes very dusty and there are micro sized shards in the dust that are sharp as glass and they will enter the hoof wall if they stand/walk in it freely. I'm at my wits end of what to use. Laminitis kept my one horse out of the field for a solid year and the paddock won't grow a blade of grass, now going on two and half years. Stalled during rains and muck. As we enter autumn soon, it's gonna be another disaster. I hate this. It's basically soured my delight in owning horses. never ending back breaking work, all to keep a horse's hooves well. This is not how it should be.
I'm unsure of the point of your comment other than to rant about horse ownership. Sorry you're having a rough time. All I can say is that I'm sure glad I don't have your farrier talking to me about anything. My horses would probably have the same feet as yours does.
@@StableHorseTraining I'm sorry, yes, you're right, was apparently a rant and I didn't know it. I get conflicting advice I guess, and its frustrating. Believe me, I want to use this stuff. It's readily available. I I was ready to get it done then the farrier visited and I asked and he said no. I have another horse who has no structural problems but he has stubborn thrush. It's a very light case and we work on it everyday. I'm sure it's because the paddock. I Have never had this problem till he's been the companion to the one in the paddock. I have got to do something. I think I'm gonna have to do it. I just can't have them (or us) walking through the mud again this fall.
Thrush can be an environment problem, but is most always a trim problem. I've fixed many thrush cases not by changing the environment, but in fact just fixing the trim. Don't get me wrong, my place is like it is for a reason and there's nothing wrong with stacking the deck in your favor, but science is science in the end.