Stream Care Strategies for Your Horse Property

Horse owners with a stream on their property know exactly what kinds of headaches a waterway can cause. Besides posing a hazard to your horses and other animals, or being inconvenient when moving machinery and vehicles around your property, use of your stream is likely subject to a host of strict government regulations designed to maintain water quality, which is something we all benefit from.

The value of your stream isn’t defined only by the regulations that govern it. A stream can be a clean and constant water source for your horses, and depending on its condition, it can also provide a habitat for fish and other wildlife. By following a few management guidelines, you can both protect the safety of your horses and minimize your impact on the natural habitats in and around a stream. You will benefit from cleaner water, more biodiversity, reduced erosion and land loss, and safer movement across the waterway for you and your horses.

Here are six best practices for waterway management:

#1 Fence

Although your creek may offer a supply of beautiful water for your horses, streams and their banks (riparian areas) are sensitive to disturbances by large, heavy animals. The compaction and churning that happens in these wet areas results in erosion, low survival of riparian plants, and muddying of the water. Many fish and other aquatic organisms cannot survive in clouded water, and the bare soil means there is nothing holding the bank together, which means high water levels can wash them away more easily.

Standing in these muddy areas can put your horses at risk of foot rot, soft hooves, and other health problems. Horses also leave behind manure and urine, further contaminating the water and creating pathogen risks.

To keep horses out of these fragile areas, fence at least three metres (10 feet) from the top of the bank. This leaves room for riparian plants to grow, and for the natural shi

Excluding your horses from the stream doesn’t mean they can’t access that fresh stream water. Water can be pumped up with electricity, solar power, or even a gravity system, to a watering spot away from those sensitive areas. Nose pumps are especially useful because they eliminate the problems of water going stagnant or getting wasted, and will supply fresh water on demand as long as there is flow in the stream.

Research which native plants in your area are water-loving (such as certain native varieties of willow, which can be propagated from cuttings for free). Plant these