1 acre for one horse?

I would definitely do two paddocks so you can rotate; it's a huge help.

Other things to consider - how much time your horses spend out on pasture, and what you do about manure will greatly influence the quality of your pasture.

If you're planning on keeping them in stalls part of the day, you'll have much less wear and tear. Keeping them off the pasture when it's really wet is also an excellent suggestion.

If you pick the manure piles up or drag or harrow your paddocks you'll have more even growth and fewer dead spots.

I usually drag the old paddock as soon as I move the horses into the other.

Should I keep them stalled at night? Does anyone do this? I didnt stall my last horses at night, or ever come to think of it.

If you want to keep them stalled some of the time, during the summer keep them stalled during the day and out at night. In the winter, do the opposite. That way, they're out of the major heat of the day during the summer, and they can take advantage of any warmth from the sun in the winter.

I keep mine out pretty much 24/7, except when the weather's bad. Not everyone wants to do that though, and that's fine.

It's a personal preference.

I don't stall mine; they just have access to their stalls when they want to. However, I have 5 1/2 - 6 acres inside fence, a 4 acre paddock and a 2 acre paddock. I keep 2 horses and a 10 hand pony, and I only feed hay 10 - 12 weeks per year.

My neighbor has 2 horses and has 1 1/2 acres inside fence. She keeps her two up at night. She also hand picks the manure rather than dragging and feeds a *LOT* more hay. The paddock locks great and she has good quality grazing.

If you aren't going to stall them at all, I would definitely do the small sacrifice paddock around whatever shelter they have, and then split the remaining portion into two separate areas so you can rotate grazing.

PS - and what Speed said about up at night in the winter, up during the day in the summer.

Where are you, Amba???

The set up I have has the sacrifice areas right outside the barn so the horses have access to their stalls 24/7 and depending on what gates are opened or closed they can venture out into one of two pasture spaces.

This is our set up as well, except we only have one pasture area at the moment.

I like it because my horses can go out side every day with out me having to try to guess what the weather is going to be. A sudden down pour while I am work does not require me to run home and let them in, etc.

But if the pasture gets too wet or chewed down I can leave them in the dry lot (sacrifice) area and they can still be out and about.