Strip grazing: the back fence you may not need

The facts

Source

Nutrition guidance from Spillers nutritionist Sarah Nelson, published by Your Horse on 14 September 2026

Obesity level

Up to 70% in some pony populations, according to the article

Study size

12 ponies, kept in individual paddocks for 28 days, four ponies per management method

Paddock set-up

Each 10m wide, with length set to supply grass equal to 1.5% of bodyweight in dry matter across the 28 days

Daily fence move

One twenty-sixth of the paddock length still ungrazed, after a two-day settling-in period

Strip grazing means fencing off part of the field and letting the horse into fresh grass a little at a time, usually by shifting the lead fence once a day. You can add a second line behind them, which is then moved forward by the same distance so the grazed strip stays a constant size. Or you can run one line only and let the area behind gradually open up.

Work led by Dr Annette Longland compared both approaches against ponies simply turned out on the lot. Over four weeks, the rationed ponies put on considerably less condition than those with the whole paddock available, and the two rationing methods finished level with each other. In short, the extra fence line did not buy extra control. If you have been running two lines, one is probably enough — and one line means no scramble to get water to a shrinking strip.

How far to move the fence is not a fixed number. It turns on field size, how much grass there is and how fast it is growing, how many horses share the paddock, and each horse's condition and weight target. A fat native on good autumn grass needs a much smaller step forward than a horse simply holding weight.

The fence only works if it bites. Horses learn fast when an energiser has failed or the charge has dropped, and once they have got away with it they will keep trying. Test the voltage, and if yours leans over, ducks under or hops the line, raise the posts or add a strand above or below. Keep poo-picking daily, weigh tape weekly, and expect several weeks before body condition visibly shifts. Grazed strips also need recovery time and weed control, and grass should not be taken down so far that horses start eating soil.

What this means for you

Owners already back fencing

You can likely drop to a single moving line. The research found no weight advantage to the second fence, and you lose the water-supply headache that comes with a fixed-size strip.

Owners of laminitis-prone or overweight ponies

Strip grazing lets you keep turnout going while limiting intake, which matters alongside diet and exercise rather than instead of them.

Anyone on a shared or co-grazed field

More horses on the strip means the daily move needs rethinking. One step-forward distance cannot serve a fat pony and a horse in work in the same paddock.

Anyone buying kit

Tape needs a break point so a tangled horse can get free, and post height must suit a horse that will jump. Budget for spare tape, posts and batteries.

What to do

1. Test the voltage in your existing electric tape and check the energiser is actually charging

   Before the next fence move

2. Decide whether your back fence is earning its keep, and work out water access if you keep it

   This week

3. Start a weekly weigh tape record with the date, so you can see direction of travel rather than guess

   From the next yard visit

4. Watch for cheating over or under the line and raise post height or add a strand if needed

   Ongoing

5. Plan recovery and weed control for the strips already grazed off

   Before the ground turns wet