Transitioning Your Horse to Outdoor Living

If your horse is accustomed to living in stables, transitioning it to outdoor living on your own horse farm will be quite a challenging task. You’ll have to plan out your course of action, as well as keep your personal time schedule free at the start.

Why?

Many things can go wrong during the transitioning period.

For those equine owners who put their beloved horses in stables both during the day and night, it can be tough. The process won’t be just difficult for the horse to adapt, but also for you.

During the transitioning, you might constantly be worrying whether your horse is feeling okay. Each time the rain falls, or it’s snowing, you’ll ask yourself whether your equine friend is doing fine.

However, these worries are usually justified. Most of such owners get up during the night to check in on their horses just to see that they’re fine.

So, to help you with transitioning your horse to outdoor living, we came up with the points below. They’ll mention important aspects of the transitioning process.

There’s No Need to Give Tough Treatment

One of the most difficult things for a horse-lover is doing something they think their equine friend doesn’t like.

However, not everything is actually as simple as it seems. Often enough, horses simply follow their established routine by you.

Of course, you taught them that in the evening, they have to go to the stables. So, they’ll come to the gate each evening and wait for you to lead them into stables.

Still, we can understand that you may interpret this as if the horse is begging to be let inside. Nonetheless, on most occasions, the horse actually doesn’t mind undergoing transitioning to outdoor living.

You must know, though, that not all horses necessarily go through the transitioning period fine.

In some cases, you have to avoid giving your equine friend tough treatment. Instead, some suitable solution needs to be thought up.

The troubled horse that’s transitioning to outdoor living might be a danger to themselves and other horses!

It’s why you might have to think up ways of more gradual transitioning or ways to keep them entertained as they’re living outdoor.

Pick the Correct Timing

The transitioning to outdoor living should happen at an appropriate time. If it’s possible, then conduct the transitioning during a warm season of the year. It’ll make the process much smoother.

First of all, not all horses will like for the transitioning to happen during winter. Many horses might straight out reject the change and throw temper tantrums.

Secondly, it’s not recommended because of health concerns. A horse from the stables can’t adapt to the cold environment immediately. That is a change that happens gradually through the autumn season.

Keep the Transition to a Time Plan

The most common way to start transitioning the horse to outdoor living is by not bringing it into the stables.

That’s how it happens for some of the horses — their owners just stop bringing them in. As we discussed, it’s not possible with all the horses. Some can reject outdoor living and get seriously upset over this.

Such a situation calls for a gradual transition to outdoor living. It is where the warm season makes all the difference.

During summer, horses are usually brought into stables at day rather than night to protect them from the sun and bugs.

This single fact allows for a smoother transition to outdoor living. You, as an owner, can gradually bring the horse into the stables less and less. Over some time, finish the transition to outdoor living completely.

If you’re a horse owner and a student, then it might be problematic for you to do this. You’ll require a lot of free time, and that’s hard to come by as a student.

It’s Natural for Them to Be Outside

If you get too worried about your horse and how it’s doing outdoor, don’t panic.

Horses are creatures that can easily live outside. In fact, it’s much more natural for them than stables.

So, transitioning to outdoor living shouldn’t be a big problem. Nonetheless, you have to keep in mind a couple of things about taking care of your outdoor living horse:

Don’t Remove Its Natural Defence

The horse’s whiskers, fetlock, and fuzzy ears are its natural defense against the cold when living outdoor. Additionally, these things help your equine navigate.

So, as the transitioning to outdoor living happens, you need to stop trimming them.

Stop with the Human-Made Coats

Because the horse will be out during winter, you need to stop blanketing it. Allow your outdoor living horse to grow out its fur. It is how they naturally protect themselves against cold.

Clip with Care and Have a Blanket Handy

Clipping should be eliminated to its absolute minimum. By clipping heavily, you’re endangering your horse’s health.

Also, you must know that if you’re going to ride it in the winter, then, of course, you’ll have to clip it. You don’t want it overheating and becoming ill.

If you’re clipping minimally, then there’s no avoiding a blanket. It’s very situational and depends on the climate where the horse lives.

Your Equine Friend Will Be Just Fine

When done with proper care, the transitioning process from stable to outdoor living shouldn’t be an issue. Study the behavior of the horse.

In fact, many owners, after transitioning their beloved equine to outdoor living, say that the horse is happier and healthier.

Of course, this transitioning to outdoor living should happen under your close watch. It means that you’ll have to arrange your personal schedule accordingly no matter what.

Written by

Nicole Henry. He is an IT PM(in the past) and freelance journalist. He is the guru to hundreds of students, the author of hundreds of analysis studies, and the voice behind most liked articles on content creation and strategy at PrivateWriting.