Dapples Track Livery, Merseyside

Finally feels like spring is well and truly in the air! ☀️
And most exciting for the horses - a dry track means the return of treat balls! Happy ponies! 🦄

Especially important for those of us on tracks where the majority of forage is hay 🌾

Always grateful to have our three-monthly check ups with Nikki Meggison BSc Hons - Independent Equine Nutritionist to make sure everyone is getting everything they need 🐴

Friday focus…ensuring your horse has enough vitamin E in their diet!

This is particularly the case if your horse has no or very little turnout as hay and haylage are low in vitamin E, so the shortfall that would usually be made up from eating grass, will be missing.

Whether you feed a vitamin and mineral supplement, a feed balancer or a balanced compound feed (a balanced mix or cube), not all are equal!!

NRC guidelines recommend that a 500kg horse at maintenance needs a minimum of 500IU of vitamin E per day, but 1000IU is recommended.. There is vitamin E in fresh grass, a tiny amount in hay and haylage, so if your horse or pony is on a hay/haylage only diet, is on soaked hay and restricted short grass, their daily vitamin E requirement will not be met and it needs to be provided in the feed.

I have used this example previously, so I will again today for ease. If I take 3 mainstream makes of low calorie / lite balancers (I prefer to call them balancers that balance a calorie restricted diet as this is what they should do!), the vitamin E levels in them all vary and this is what a 500kg horse will receive;

• Balancer 1 provides 800IU/kg - the horse receives 400IU
• Balancer 2 provides 1000IU/kg - the horse recieves 500IU
• Balancer 3 provides 2000IU/kg - the horse gets 1000IU

So all quite different which is why I usually recommend a specific balancer after assessment of a horse and his or her management etc, so I know that that each horse receives what they need to according to their individual requirements and environments.

So if someone says to you “ I would use this one as it is cheaper, easier to get, on offer, balancer 1 is the same as balancer 3 ” or whatever reason they give, I would definitely not recommend taking their advice! They are not all the same! All nutrients are important, not just vitamin E, but during the winter months when many do not have access to grass, it is worth checking that your chosen feed provides enough and that it balances a hay / haylage only diet.

🐴 Why Track Livery Costs the Same as Stabled Livery

There’s a common misconception that track livery should cost less than stabled livery — or that it’s basically grass livery. In reality, track livery is a completely different setup and involves just as much — if not more — work.

First, track livery is nothing like grass livery. It isn’t a case of turning horses out in a field with minimal daily intervention. A track is a fully managed environment that requires daily input to keep everything safe and working properly:
* Fencing checks & adjustments
* Maintenance to ensure horses have access to shelter 24/7
* Tracks widened, narrowed, areas opened up or closed off dependent on weather and ground conditions
* Hay stations monitored and moved
* Ongoing monitoring of herd dynamics and safety

🦄 Plus ever-changing enrichment activities and points of interest to keep horses’ minds healthy.�
Unlike a stable or a field, a track is a working system that changes and evolves — and that takes time and labour.

👀 Every horse is managed individually�Track livery is never one-size-fits-all. Care is tailored to each horse, including:
* Easy-access or extra hay 🌾
* Supplementary time on grass
* Individual feeds & supplements
* Close monitoring of weight, body condition & wellbeing

🍽️ A steady supply of safe forage takes time�Multiple feeding stations, careful planning, and making sure every horse gets what they need — not just what’s easiest.

On top of this, track livery relies on specialist knowledge and ongoing decision-making. Balancing terrain, movement, nutrition, herd dynamics, seasonal conditions, and individual requirements takes experience and constant attention to get right.

🏠 No stable doesn’t mean less care
Every horse still receives the same level of daily care you’d expect:
* Daily Health checks
* Rug changes, feet picked out, fly masks, sprays and topical treatments
* Injury and welfare monitoring
* Experienced, hands-on management

✨ So while track livery may look simpler, the time, effort, and specialist knowledge involved are equal to — and often more than — stabled or grass livery, which is why the cost reflects that.

As always, our focus is on welfare, and happy, healthy horses. Not cutting corners to offer the cheapest option ❤️🐴

🤔❓Are we causing the problems we’re trying to solve?

My own horse had the farrier the other day (no, this is not a barefoot trimmer/ farrier debate - everyone stay calm!!)

We were chatting about how good Rocky’s feet are looking after 6 months full time on the track. He was explaining the mechanics of a horse’s foot; how they are designed to expand, contract, and send valuable feedback and blood supply up through the frog, digital cushion, and back through the leg. I remarked that I’ve been so pleasantly surprised that Rocky’s feet have remained thrush free, despite him being in wet/ muddy conditions most of the time, since thrush has been something he’s battled for years. My farrier also pointed out that Rocky’s sole has been naturally shedding, and he’d only taken off little bits and tidied up, because Rocky’s foot was looking after itself like it would in the wild.

All this achieved with simple ✨ 24/7 MOVEMENT! ✨ No fancy surfaces, endless foot picking, sprays, pastes, or treatments.

This got me thinking - 🤔 has the way that we keep our horses become so far removed from natural that we have started unintentionally CAUSING THE PROBLEMS?

This track all began as the only feasible solution for Rocky to live a normal life, without extremely restricted food/ company/ turn out. But now I’m questioning whether it was ever a solution, or whether it has just returned him to a way of life much closer to what horses are designed for.

When we strip everything back, let our horses’ bodies and minds operate as they’re designed to do, are we not simply solving problems, but removing the cause of them altogether?

Food for thought! 🐴

Photo of the boy in question feeling festive from 2023 - probably the last time he was clean 🫠

The 3 ‘F’s Part Two: 🌾 FORAGE 🌾 (or FIBRE)

When it comes to horse management, FORAGE is easily one of the most important elements. And not just any forage. Horses’ guts are designed to have a steady trickle intake of low sugar, high fibre forage, for at least 18 hours a day. Their digestive system, mental wellbeing, and overall health depend on consistent access to fibre.

The truth is that often in conventional livery set ups, it’s a battle between keeping your horse munching and keeping their weight in check - something that anyone with a horse with EMS/ cushings/ laminitis/ PSSM (and many more!) will be more than familiar with. This dilemma often results in unnatural long gaps between eating, which can disrupt gut function and increase stress levels. Horses may finish their hay hours before the next feed, leaving them without fibre for extended periods.

✨ This is where track livery truly shines. A well-designed track system encourages horses to keep moving while giving them continuous access to forage. Whether it’s ad-lib hay stations, browsing opportunities, or slow-feeding setups, horses can eat the way nature intended: little and often, without the “feast or famine” cycle.
✔️ Natural trickle-feeding — supports gut health and reduces colic risk
✔️ Encourages movement — horses walk for their forage instead of standing still over a haynet
✔️ Reduces stress & frustration — no more anxiously waiting for the next feed
✔️ Promotes social eating — healthier herd dynamics and happier horses
✔️ Helps maintain healthy weight with controlled but constant fibre access

When horses have freedom, forage, and friends, everything else falls into place. 🧡
Track livery isn’t just a management style — it’s a lifestyle that respects what horses truly are.

If you’re considering a more natural alternative for your horse, a track system might be exactly what you’ve been looking for. 🌿

**SPACES AVAILABLE**

Due to a change for a lovely lady whose horses were coming at the end of December, there are now a couple of spaces available to join our happy herd 🐴🥰

🦄 24/7 turn out year round in a mixed herd
🏠 Unlimited access to a 24ft x 60ft shelter with a huge bedded area
🐴 Separate introduction paddock with shelter
🌱 Ad lib meadow hay refreshed twice daily
🐎 Constant movement over an 800m track, with wider areas for rest, play, and enrichment
👩🏻 Weigh in and body condition score every 3 months with an equine nutritionist
🌾 Feeding programme designed by equine nutritionist available
🪱 Full worming programme in place

🐴 25m x 50m floodlit arena
🟠 floodlit round pen
🟩 40m x 60m summer riding grass paddock
🌳 2km off road farm hack

And most importantly of all, the 3 ‘F’s:
🐴 FRIENDS 🦄
🐴 FORAGE 🌾
🐴 FREEDOM 🙌🏻

PART LIVERY FROM £108 per week

FULL LIVERY FROM £134 per week

Message for more information or to arrange a viewing 😃