Grass                                                                  reproduced in part with permission from HappyHaflingers.com and author Haley Madden

There is little in the world that Haflingers love more than fresh grass.  Sadly, this is not always the best thing for them.  Fresh grass can be packed with sugar and energy for the horses, especially early in the morning when grass sugar levels are high.  Most Haflingers should be on very limited grass; if you are concerned about your horse’s weight, or if your horse has a history of founder, laminitis, or some metabolic problems, he should not be turned out on grass.  If you would like to turn them out on grass, you should be very careful, follow a specific process, and monitor their weight and health closely.

Muzzles are great for Haflingers turned out on grass, and unless you’re trying to add weight on your Haflinger, he should probably only be on grass with a muzzle.  While horses don’t like them at first, most adapt and figure out how to eat with a muzzle on.  To get your horse used to grass, let him out on pasture with a muzzle on for short times and build up to the length of time you’d ideally like to let him out.

For example start with 15 minutes for two or three days, then 30 minutes for two or three days, then 45 minutes, and so forth.  This means it takes several weeks to work a horse up to a full day’s turnout.  If your horse is turned out on grass, he will not need as much (or any) hay or other feed, especially if he is out on pasture most of the day.  Reduce his other feed as you increase the grass.  

During this process monitor your horse carefully for signs of too much weight gain, founder and laminitis, which are discussed later.  If managed properly, some Haflingers can be turnout out to eat grass if you follow a program with vigilance.