Our Horse Care Program
Turnout is Paramount
Fly Away Farm is designed first and foremost to be a horse- friendly facility. All of our facilities are designed to be safe, to promote soundness, mental and physical well-being for our resident horses.
Horses living at Fly Away Farm are fortunate to spend much more time on turn out than horses kept at the average full care boarding facility. In good weather, they may live outside 24/7 for periods of time. However, in bad or extreme weather, or when the insects are bothersome, they are always brought into the barn.
Providing horses with the maximum amount of turnout that is reasonably possible is good for their health for a number of reasons. It allows them to move freely and self-exercise, which keeps them better muscled and fitter than if they spent 12 hours per day in a stall. This constant movement is especially beneficial to our retirees and older sport horses, who usually have some degree of arthritis. We find that older horses who come into our program often start moving more freely, performing better under saddle, and even acting younger!
Ample turnout also has great mental and nutritional benefits. Our pastures are large (1-2 acres) and we turnout in pairs or very small groups to prevent the pastures from becoming overgrazed. We also have an intensive pasture management program that includes over seeding. This means that horses have good grass coverage with minimal weeds. It also means little mud, good footing and ample grazing. During the warm months, the grass provides for a large percentage of the forage needs in the horses’ diets. Grazing, as well as being able to wander freely and explore different areas of a large pasture, is mentally relaxing to most horses compared to being stabled because it is closer to what horses are biologically designed to do.
Horses living at Fly Away Farm are fortunate to spend much more time on turn out than horses kept at the average full care boarding facility. In good weather, they may live outside 24/7 for periods of time. However, in bad or extreme weather, or when the insects are bothersome, they are always brought into the barn.
Providing horses with the maximum amount of turnout that is reasonably possible is good for their health for a number of reasons. It allows them to move freely and self-exercise, which keeps them better muscled and fitter than if they spent 12 hours per day in a stall. This constant movement is especially beneficial to our retirees and older sport horses, who usually have some degree of arthritis. We find that older horses who come into our program often start moving more freely, performing better under saddle, and even acting younger!
Ample turnout also has great mental and nutritional benefits. Our pastures are large (1-2 acres) and we turnout in pairs or very small groups to prevent the pastures from becoming overgrazed. We also have an intensive pasture management program that includes over seeding. This means that horses have good grass coverage with minimal weeds. It also means little mud, good footing and ample grazing. During the warm months, the grass provides for a large percentage of the forage needs in the horses’ diets. Grazing, as well as being able to wander freely and explore different areas of a large pasture, is mentally relaxing to most horses compared to being stabled because it is closer to what horses are biologically designed to do.
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We support our horses while they are turned out by:
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Our Barn
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Our barn is a circa 1890 Pennsylvania bank barn that has been renovated for horses in the past few years. With their stone walls, bank barns maintain their temperatures better than most modern barns. They tend to remain cozy and warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Our barn is very special among bank barns because it has four enormous banks of windows which let in a tremendous amount of natural light, and 11’ high ceilings. It is especially light and airy for a bank barn design.
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Within our barn, there are currently four stalls, with eventual plans to expand to eight.
Each stall has the following features:
The barn aisle is extra wide. Both the aisle and the indoor wash stall are well-lit and fully matted with interlocking non-slip rubber mats for your horses safety and comfort. There are multiple sets of cross ties for grooming and tacking up. A small insulated tack and feed room is available as for tack storage as well as extra space in the barn for tack trunks. Some additional storage is available in the upper level of the barn for out of season blankets, etc. |
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Our Equine Nutritional Plans
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In order to keep our horses in excellent weight and condition, we feed a forage-based diet. This means quality, free choice grass hay and fresh grass make up the majority of the horses’ diet. To the forage, we add a concentrated feed program tailored individually to each horse’s needs. Many of our horses eat a low sugar ration balancer which provides essential vitamins, trace minerals, and amino acids, glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, and organic sulfur (MSM). This feed is particularly great at supporting joint and respiratory health. Many owners are able to stop feeding their horses oral joint supplements while using this feed and in combination with our turnout program. Owner-provided oral medications/supplements which can be mixed directly the feed are administered at no extra charge.
For some horses, we add a high fat, high fiber "super feed" designed for performance horses who require high calorie intake but may be sensitive to grain rich diets. This feed also works exceptionally well for our senior horses. In addition to our standard feeding plan, we have been successful in developing nutritional plans for special needs seniors (i.e. horses with missing teeth or who can no longer digest long stemmed hay effectively). The concentrated feed program for these horses typically remains the same as for an average horse with some important exceptions. We replace the long stemmed hay dietary component with more easily digestible forages and fibers such as soaked alfalfa cubes and hay stretcher pellets. We often work with an equine nutritionist to develop the initial plan and weigh all feeds and forages to ensure correct amounts are being fed and to make adjusting those amounts easy and precise. Full or partial forage replacement programs are offered at an additional cost depending on how much extra "bagged" forage is required. |
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Our Riding Areas
Fly Away Farm has a professionally designed and installed, over-sized (140’X240’) outdoor riding arena. Our top footing is a custom blended sand and fiber performance footing. The arena sports a course of show hunter-style jumps.
A large arena with consistent footing is a great training tool to promote fitness and soundness in riding horses. The large size means that horses do not have to turn as many corners as they would in a smaller arena, which can be tough on soft tissues and joints. Consistent, stable but cushioning footing, like our sand/fiber blend, means less chance for missteps that could cause injury or soreness from concussive injuries.
In addition to the arena, Fly Away Farm has a long, grassy perimeter hacking trail. On the back side of this hacking trail, one can find an amazing, long and gradual conditioning hill we fondly refer to as the “booty builder" hill. We believe that riding outside of the ring is wonderful, both mentally and physically, for horses and riders of all disciplines. At Fly Away Farm, this is easy to do. Use the perimeter hack as a warm up or cool down in addition to your arena work, or choose a leisurely hack by itself.
A two acre grass Derby Field is planned to open in Autumn 2019.
A large arena with consistent footing is a great training tool to promote fitness and soundness in riding horses. The large size means that horses do not have to turn as many corners as they would in a smaller arena, which can be tough on soft tissues and joints. Consistent, stable but cushioning footing, like our sand/fiber blend, means less chance for missteps that could cause injury or soreness from concussive injuries.
In addition to the arena, Fly Away Farm has a long, grassy perimeter hacking trail. On the back side of this hacking trail, one can find an amazing, long and gradual conditioning hill we fondly refer to as the “booty builder" hill. We believe that riding outside of the ring is wonderful, both mentally and physically, for horses and riders of all disciplines. At Fly Away Farm, this is easy to do. Use the perimeter hack as a warm up or cool down in addition to your arena work, or choose a leisurely hack by itself.
A two acre grass Derby Field is planned to open in Autumn 2019.
