Cross Breeds

How many horses can you keep in a 1 acre paddock for 2 days?

Lets say you had a bunch of horses. How many could you keep in a 1 acre paddock for 2 days, moving them to a fresh 1 acre paddock after that time and repeating the process? And how long would it take the pasture to recover afterwards? In terms of grazing... The idea is that the horses always have access to good grazing, don't trample the grass so much that it won't recuperate and aren't sitting in their own manure all the time.

Public Comments

1. Pretty sure this all depends on the size of the horses, and how small the pieces you cut them into are...
2. you could probably keep about 4-5 ponies or 3-4 cobs why do you have to keep moving them???
3. I know that people say it is about one acre of good grazing per horse per year. At my old boarding barn the horses were kept off pasture until late spring when it dried up. There were 5 horses and the grass was about 2 ft. high when they were turned out.The pasture was divided into 3 areas 2 were about an acre and a half and the other close to 2 acres but with poorer grazing. In approximately 2 weeks they needed to be put in a new section originally then about a week after they had used all 3 once because the grass wasn't recuperating fast enough. Now at my own farm we have close to a 2 acre section for my horse and llama and it took them only about a month to clean up the grass in it. Mind you it was getting late in the fall and the grass wasn't long to begin with.
4. It should be 1 acre per horse. Simple really.
5. as a general rule one horse requires 2 acres for permanent pasture. If this pasture is important to you then think twice before overstocking it as next to the rootling pig the shod hoof does the most damage.
6. How many is a bunch? How many 1 acre paddocks have you got? Rotation is good but moving them every 2 days isn't practical as you need to let the field lie for months to kill worms. Are they out the whole time or do they come in at night? What type of grass long and lush or short and rough? And if it is winter where you are the grass won't grow at all at this time.