Alternative Grazing Systems in the UK:
What Horse Owners Are Doing Differently
As horse care continues to evolve, many owners are questioning whether traditional grazing and turnout arrangements truly meet their horses’ physical and emotional needs. In recent years, a growing number have turned to alternative grazing systems - not as a trend, but as a thoughtful response to health concerns, welfare, and land management.
​
A UK-based research project explored how these systems are being used in real life, and what owners are experiencing as a result. The findings offer valuable insight into why people are making changes, and what seems to matter most across different approaches.
​
About the study
​
The study was conducted via an online survey between July and August 2020, with 758 horse owners responding. Most participants were using track systems (56%) or Equicentral (19%), while others used woodland turnout, rewilding, moorland grazing, or combinations of approaches.
​
It’s important to note that all results were owner-reported. Previous research shows that owners may unintentionally under-report issues such as body condition or early laminitis, so the findings should be interpreted thoughtfully rather than as definitive clinical evidence.
Understanding the Two Most Common Systems
​
Two approaches appeared most frequently in the survey: track systems and Equicentral systems. While both aim to support horse health through movement, social living, and careful management of grazing, they are designed in slightly different ways.
​
Track Systems
​
A track system is created by fencing a pathway around the edge of a field (or sometimes around several connected fields). Horses live and move along this track rather than having unrestricted access to the entire field.
​
Resources such as hay, water, shelter, and enrichment are placed at different points along the track. This encourages horses to walk between them throughout the day.
​
Because the grass on the track is usually sparse, the system helps manage calorie intake while still allowing horses to move freely. The central area of the field can often be rested, used for thinner horses, or opened for controlled grazing.
​
Track systems are popular with owners managing laminitis, Equine Metabolic Syndrome, or weight gain, as they allow movement while limiting high-calorie pasture.
​
Equicentral Systems
​
An Equicentral system takes a slightly different approach. Instead of horses living on a track, they spend most of their time in a central loafing area.
​
This loafing area is usually surfaced and contains the key resources horses need - hay, water, shelter, and enrichment. From this central area, horses are allowed controlled access to surrounding grazing paddocks.
​
The grazing areas are rested and rotated regularly so that the grass remains healthy and the soil structure is protected. Horses return to the loafing area once grazing time ends.
​
The aim of Equicentral is to support both horse health and soil health, allowing grazing to be carefully managed while still providing movement, social contact, and access to forage.
​
How Are They Different?
​
Both systems aim to support the horse’s natural needs for movement, forage, and social contact, but they organise the environment in slightly different ways. A track system encourages movement by placing resources around a continuous pathway, prompting horses to travel between them. An Equicentral system encourages movement between a central living area and multiple grazing paddocks that are opened and closed according to land management needs.
​
In practice, many yards combine ideas from both systems, adapting them to suit the horses, the land available, and the practical realities of daily management.
The Three Fs: What Matters Most to Horses
​
Across all systems, a consistent theme emerged - what many respondents referred to as the Three Fs:
​
-
Forage: Access to forage throughout the day, often low-calorie but varied
-
Friends: Horses kept predominantly in social groups
-
Freedom: Freedom of movement, space, and choice (including whether to be inside or out)
​
These principles reflect a move away from restriction and toward supporting natural behaviour, choice, and movement.
​
Movement Without Excess Calories
​
One of the main goals of alternative grazing systems is to encourage maximum movement with minimal calorie intake. Rather than restricting turnout entirely, owners aim to design environments where horses need to walk between resources such as forage, water, shelter, and enrichment.
​
Low-calorie forage - including sparse grass, standing forage, or soaked hay - is commonly used, particularly for horses prone to weight gain, laminitis, or metabolic conditions.
​
Enrichment as a Daily Feature
​
Enrichment featured heavily across most systems. Owners described providing scratching posts, food-based puzzles, herb gardens, sand areas, ponds, and varied terrain. These additions were intended to keep horses mentally occupied, encourage natural behaviours, and reduce frustration or boredom.
​
Rather than enrichment being an “extra,” many owners saw it as an essential part of daily management.
​
Mud, Land, and Practical Realities
​
Turning out horses in groups year-round brings practical challenges - particularly mud. Most systems incorporated some form of sacrifice or loafing area, often surfaced, where horses could rest and eat hay without damaging grazing land.
​
This approach helped balance welfare, land preservation, and day-to-day practicality.
Why Do Owners Choose Alternative Systems?
​
The most common reason for changing grazing systems was health management, particularly for horses with:
​
-
Laminitis
-
Equine Metabolic Syndrome (EMS)
-
Arthritis
​
Many owners also expressed a broader discomfort with traditional systems that limit movement or choice.
​
Beyond physical health, respondents frequently described their horses as happier, calmer, and more settled, and noted fewer behavioural issues. Owners themselves often reported increased enjoyment - from observing natural social behaviour to feeling more connected to the land they were managing.
Health and Weight Management
​
Owners felt that the combination of increased movement, reduced stress, and appropriate forage helped manage both physical and behavioural conditions.
​
Different systems appeared to support weight management in different ways:
​
-
Track systems and woodland turnout were most often associated with weight loss
-
Equicentral offered flexibility for managing multiple horses with different needs
-
Moorland and rewilding systems relied more on natural seasonal weight cycles, with horses losing weight in winter and gaining modestly in spring
​
Small Changes That Still Make a Difference
​
Not every horse owner has the freedom to redesign fields or install a track system. Many horses live on livery yards where grazing arrangements are fixed, and large changes simply aren’t possible.
​
Fortunately, even small adjustments can still support the same principles that alternative systems aim to provide: movement, social interaction, and mental engagement.
​
Here are a few gentle ways owners can support their horses’ wellbeing without changing the layout of the field.
​
1. Spread forage out where possible
If feeding hay in the field, placing several small piles rather than one large one can encourage horses to walk between them. Even a few extra steps throughout the day help maintain natural movement patterns.
​
2. Add simple enrichment
Small enrichment items such as scratching posts, safe branches for browsing, or herb planters can give horses something to investigate and interact with during the day.
​
3. Vary the feeding locations
If the yard allows it, occasionally moving hay piles or feeding areas can encourage horses to explore their environment rather than standing in one place.
​
4. Encourage gentle daily movement
Hand grazing, in-hand walks, or short periods of groundwork can provide additional movement, particularly for horses on restricted grazing or small paddocks.
​
5. Focus on the Three Fs
Even when space is limited, owners can still prioritise the three elements that appeared most important in the study: forage, friends, and freedom of movement wherever possible.
Small changes may seem modest, but over time they can still make a meaningful difference to a horse’s physical and mental well-being.
A Thoughtful Shift, Not a One-Size-Fits-All Answer
​
The study doesn’t suggest that alternative grazing systems are universally better - or suitable for every horse, owner, or yard. What it does show is a clear shift toward intentional, welfare-led decision making, with owners adapting systems to suit individual horses, land constraints, and health considerations.
​
For many, alternative grazing isn’t about copying a specific model - it’s about asking better questions:
Does this environment support movement? Choice? Social contact? Long-term health?
​
And for a growing number of horse owners, the answer lies outside traditional grazing norms.
​
If you’d like to explore calm enrichment ideas that support systems like these, you may enjoy our short course: Calm Choice and the Horse.
Let’s Work Together
Get in touch so we can start working together.
