A dreaded rainy day

Currently our horses are not on turn out because once spring comes our barn owner likes to give the fields a chance to dry out and let the grass grow before all the horses start chomping it down. Makes perfect sense, but spring is still a very stressful time for horses and owners. Usually the horses are in for about a month, depending on when the snow melts and the fields thaw and then dry out. If it's a good snow year they're usually out through the end of March and
then stall bound for most of April and into early May.

I just checked my turn out record and they've been in about a month now. Now that we've been through this for four years, I see the cycle. For the first week they're in, Dude and Bestie are both really grouchy about the confinement. By the second week they're resigned to their fate. Then, when the grass starts to grow and it gets warmer and the smell of spring is in the air, they get stir-crazy, communicating in their horsey way (pawing, pushing at the stall door) that it's time to get on with life and GET OUTSIDE.

Last week it seemed like turn out was coming, because we had two weeks with temperatures in the 60s and 70s and the fields were looking great. We all go out and handgraze our horses in the common area around the two riding rings and talk wistfully about the grass and how it's growing. But yesterday and today we got a ton of rain, so the fields are back to being really spongey and it's not looking like turnout will occur anytime soon. Ugh.

Bestie and Dude got spoiled with the nice weather, because I'd arrive and immediately take them out one at a time to graze them for about a half hour each. Yesterday, when it was drizzly, I mucked their stalls and killed a little time hoping that the rain would stop. They were both really antsy. But the rain did slow down to a slight mist so I was able to get them both out for about 20 minutes each. It's not much time to be out of the barn and I feel bad for them, but there's only so much I can do between work and getting home for dinner. When I do have more time on Fridays (my day off) and weekends, I try to keep them outside for a longer period. It's just a horrible time of year with cranky horses and humans!

Then they go out for the summer and usually in November we get another month of stay-in time because the fields get wet and muddy prior to winter. Oh well. I've learned to put up with this given the fact that they are in a lovely barn and are fed on time and correctly. You learn to choose your battles!