Track Grazing 

$175 p/w

*includes all feed

Track grazing or ‘paddock paradise’ allows horses to live in a social herd with maximised area to encourage movement between forage, water and shelter without grazing traditional pastures. This system is perfect for horses which are ‘easy keepers’, metabolic, at risk of laminitis, or arthritic. The increased movement and variation in environment also makes this the perfect grazing option for horses that require a lot of stimulation and enrichment. Our track system sustains a herd of up to 11 horses from miniature ponies to Clydesdales.

Our track horses have mixed pasture hay available 24/7 provided in trickle feeder nets to limit intakes and encourage foraging.  The are also fed low sugar haylage at different times of the year to encourage ground foraging and movement between areas.

Makino has over a kilometre of varied surface track with different areas including pockets of trees for shelter, sandy areas for rolling and softer areas for sleeping.  Varied terrain and increased movement encourages strong feet and an ability to cope over many substrates.

During late summer and winter when sugar levels are low in the pastures and plants are stalky and fibrous, horses enjoy turnout in our low risk paddocks.

The weekly track grazing charge includes ad lib mixed pasture hay and haylage, a daily feed of Harvest Grains Timothy Smart Chaff and Kohnke’s Own Cell Vital. This also covers all track maintenance including daily mucking out, feeding out and enrichment activities. Full Livery Options are also available for our track horses.

As with all our grazing options our track horses are checked at least twice daily and owners are able to enjoy full use off all facilities as well as join our group hacks.

FAQs

  • Yes! There is plenty of space for you to store your tack, gear and rugs.

  • We have limited float parking on site however we normally have space to store floats if needed. Please note that floats stored on the property must be well maintained and have a current registration and WOF.

  • No. Our pastures are very carefully managed to minimise weeds and unwanted pasture species. Bringing hay onto the property introduces seeds which might not be desirable. We have plenty of hay available on site for you to use in hay nets when yarding or floating your horses. All winter hay and balage is included in the weekly grazing charge so you don’t need to worry about sourcing or storing any hay.

  • Yes! You’re more than welcome to store additional feed at Makino and feed it when you come out to visit your horse.

  • Of course. We’re more than happy to add one or two supplements to your horses daily feeds such as 4Cyte, Digest rite or any other supplement we can fit into our containers on the motorbike!

  • You’re more than welcome to ride your horse on our property at any time. There is also quiet road riding available and some farm hacking which we organise for group rides with a neighbouring farm.

  • You can bring your dog with you but they must be kept on a lead when around the yards and house. Please note that we have entire dogs (male and female) that are out and about so please leave your bitch on heat or entire male dog at home.

  • For the safely of our herd members only front steel shoes are appropriate. You’re more than welcome to have fully shod horses in private paddocking.

  • You can visit your horse as little or as often as you wish! Regardless of how often you visit your horse is treated as one of our own and is checked on at least twice daily. We will notify you of anything out of the ordinary ASAP.

  • If you think you want to use the arena on your own, we have a fb page for you to let others know things like this. Otherwise, it is a shared facility free to use at any time.

  • Lizzie Maundrell from Hoofcare and Horsemanship has us on her schedule and visits us every 5 weeks. Lizzie is a superb hoofcare professional and we recommend her while you are grazing at Makino.

  • Definitely! We have floats available for casual hire. If you don’t have a tow vehicle, we are more than happy to help where possible.

  • In the very sad event that your horse passes away while grazing at Makino we can offer to bury them on the property for you should ground conditions allow. The bond which is paid at the beginning of your time here will cover all the costs of burying your friend.