Horses for Courses

Property Planning for Horse Owners

Horses for Courses

Property Planning for Horse Owners

Taking Action -

LLCI031-007

The issue

Horse owners on smaller peri-urban properties are busy people who work during the week to financially support their horsey habits, and on weekends they are away competing or spending time with their four-legged friends. As a result, they often pay less attention to the quality of their pastures, water, soils and remnant vegetation, and the presence of pest and weed species.

If we could draw to their attention the reasons why it's a good idea to take care of these natural resources, and some simple ways to do it, horse owners could become 'grass farmers', and have healthier horses.

The solution

Southern New England Landcare sourced National Landcare Program funding through the Northern Tablelands Local Land Services to host international guest speakers Stuart and Jane Myers from Equiculture.

In late May 2017, 25 local horse and land owners attended a full day seminar addressing property planning for horse properties covering grazing management, water management, paddock design, horse digestion and health issues, and much more.

The impact

By the end of the day, it was very clear to participants that it was of great benefit to their hip pocket and to their horse's health, to plan their properties for healthier natural resource management. Most agreed that the day was an enjoyable and worthwhile use of their time, and that they would be implementing ideas at home in the near future.

Many registered for a second day to get practical help to plan ideas from the seminar on a farm map. 29 people attended the second day held in September to coincide with a funding information session for our Trees on Small Farms grant.

Images courtesy of Ben Shbeeb (top) and David Schertz (bottom) on Unsplash.com.

Learnings

  • Obtaining funding that enabled us to host international speakers worked well.
  • Creating a safe, positive learning environment for participants, with healthy catering provides an enjoyable experience they want to repeat.

Key facts

  • Horse owners on small properties are keen to address NRM issues if they can see how healthy land facilitates healthy horses and reduces the burden on their hip pocket.

Project Partners