Horse owner relocating to Denver seeks advice (Littleton: townhouses, school)

[Evannequs]

I am a 22 year old single male who is relocating to the south Denver area within the next month. But first I'm looking for some local insight on horses ownership in Denver and the the state of Colorado in general. Currently I live in ohio and my horses enjoy grassy pastures. What kind of pasture and grass access should I be expecting in this area? I have seen a lot of pictures of horses standing in dry dirt lots. Are there any areas of the state that have lush green pasture?

[davebarnes]

Originally Posted by Evannequs

Are there any areas of the state that have lush green pasture?

Ohio gets 43 inches of rain/snow a year.
Most of Colorado gets 15 inches or fewer.
The mountains get more, but the growing season is very short.

There ain't no Ohio in Colorado.

[sunsprit]

You wrote:

"What kind of pasture and grass access should I be expecting in this area? I have seen a lot of pictures of horses standing in dry dirt lots. Are there any areas of the state that have lush green pasture?"

We get all kinds of inquiries on this topic, from folk who move from riparian areas at lower elevations with long growing seasons. Typically, they want to know how long their acreage will allow them to graze their horses, and it's rarely more than a few weeks. Overgrazing the vegetation here is very easy to do, and one of the primary reasons why you see horses here in dirt corrals or pastures is because they have overgrazed the vegetation and killed it out.

One of the biggest differences is that in addition to the greater amount of moisture that falls each year, it arrives over a much longer time span. Colorado, OTOH, gets the bulk of it's annual moisture during the winter months in the form of snow when it's not gonna' grow lush pastures. Colorado survives by capturing the snow melt in reservoirs and metering it out as required during the growing season. Many irrigation supply reservoirs are quite low at the end of the growing season.

You should count on having to feed your horses through most of any year with hay brought in from irrigated farms. With the recent drought demand on the hay supply, you can find a lot of equine quality hay in small squares in the vicinity of $250-325/ton.

[KaaBoom]

Originally Posted by Evannequs

I am a 22 year old single male who is relocating to the south Denver area within the next month. But first I'm looking for some local insight on horses ownership in Denver and the the state of Colorado in general. Currently I live in ohio and my horses enjoy grassy pastures. What kind of pasture and grass access should I be expecting in this area? I have seen a lot of pictures of horses standing in dry dirt lots. Are there any areas of the state that have lush green pasture?

I wouldn't worry about it. Horses have done just fine in the Denver Area for over 150 years. A bigger problem I think would be finding land for your horses. When I went to school in Littleton in the late 1970s, there were several large properties right next to the school with horse stables on them. Today those same properties are covered with townhouses. I think you are going to have to go quite a ways from South Denver to find a place to keep your horses.

[maciesmom]

Originally Posted by Evannequs

I am a 22 year old single male who is relocating to the south Denver area within the next month. But first I'm looking for some local insight on horses ownership in Denver and the the state of Colorado in general. Currently I live in ohio and my horses enjoy grassy pastures. What kind of pasture and grass access should I be expecting in this area? I have seen a lot of pictures of horses standing in dry dirt lots. Are there any areas of the state that have lush green pasture?

No.

There are plenty of horses but no lush, green anything.