In The Saddle with Anita Marsh: Why I'm struggling with my horses in winter

As you know, I’ve got two horses and one pony (who pretty much is a small horse standing at 14:1hh) and what feels like lakes across my paddock.

That’s right, it’s raining as I write and to be honest it feels like this is our current default setting with the weather right now. So, how is it affecting equestrians?

Well, most of us are feeling pretty fed up of the mud and huge lakes that have descended upon our paddocks.

It’s been that bad I’ve even had random ducks fly in and take to the water. I kid you not.

I don’t mind cold weather, but at least can we order dry weather?

To save my paddocks from getting trashed, I’ve got a corral area and a small sacrifice paddock.

However, this means I’m using a round bale of haylage per week and if you’ve been following the news - we are paying what feels like millions of pounds for one bale this winter.

So, why is it so bad? Well, in the summer we had beautiful dry weather which is fine if you don’t have horses or livestock.

This meant haylage could not be bailed and therefore there was a shortage of this. It was a good year for hay for the first cut as the conditions were dry, but it equally meant no further grass growth so there were no second cuts possible.

This meant the prices due to the shortage would rise and we all knew it was going to happen.

Fast forward to a wet winter and we are having to feed haylage to keep the horses off a wet field and from churning it up, but of course, prices are crazy.

I can’t store hay, unfortunately, so I have to use haylage as that can sit out in the fields wrapped.

This winter is just proving to be too wet, so by the time I do dry the fields out for a day’s turnout, you can bet your bottom dollar that it’s raining the next day for a week.

Today I have sat and calculated how many weeks it is exactly to spring to try to reset my mind into a more positive outlook. I know there are so many of us just wishing for drier weather, not just equestrians but farmers alike.

Ask me today if I love winter? No. The people that sit there and say it’s a time for hibernation and being cosy with hot chocolate seriously don’t have horses.

I shall scream if they are shown to me again on reels through social media. I’m sure I’m being taunted.

The best thing about this year is I have finally invested in an equi-dry coat. It’s expensive and I have debated it for a couple of years.

However, this winter it’s been a godsend to wear and I’m so pleased I bought one. The rain runs right off it and it’s long enough to keep thighs and legs dry too.

When you’re outdoors you need to invest in good pieces of technical clothing. It’s my form of self-care. It won’t be long until the dark nights are over and we can share stories of fun with horses again, but until then - all I can say is keep going.

You’ve got this and if you feel like you haven’t - come and find me on ‘In The Saddle Anita Marsh’ on Facebook and we can share muddy photos and pictures of our paddocks together.

Thank you for following my equestrian column.