Best animal to "mow" lawn? Need suggestions please!

[halo]

I have a mini pony that I use for company for my race horses when they come home. When he's not in use for that, I let him run in the alleyways between the paddocks. He keeps them mowed like a golf course. All I do is make sure he has water, and away he goes. Hes adorable, comes running top speed when he's called. Absolutely no care at all.

 

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

...a mini pony that I use for company for my race horses ...

I'm sold! Get a pony.

Lisa​

 

[Kansaseq]

Halo, that black horse is gorgeous!

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

Meet my lawnmowers, Fred, Boo,

& T-Bone

 

[greathorse]

Cattle supposedly do the best job of eating grass without pulling up roots etc. That is compared to horses and donkeys. Donkeys are cool animals. I think you will like their personalities a lot. I dont know how fast your grass grows but as someone else has suggested it would take a few of the little buggers. They dont eat very much.

Get one of the oxen breeds of cattle Milking Shorthorn, Devon etc. You will have a cool looking animal that will have the genetics to be quite docile, that is if you dont want to be eating your lawmmower

 

[Kansaseq]

Birdaholic, freakin' cute!!!!

 

[jodief100]

I am going to BEG you , Please no Goats! Goats are very susceptible to internal parasites, they need to be rotated frequently and should never be allowed to graze anything lower than 5 inches. They tend to eat a little here and a little there so the lawn would be "patchy". If you want low maintenance, hire someone. All animals need to have some level of care, shots, worming, feed in the winter, constant access to water and treatment for injuries. Cows will leave big holes and big piles in your yard. Mini donkeys or mini ponies will do a good job but are by no means low maintenance. Sheep rip the grass out by the roots.

I have a goat farm and am frequently hear from people who want to "rent" my goats to mow their lawn. Well, usually they want to "do me a favor" by "allowing" my goats to graze on their lawn for free. This a fast way to kill a goat. Goats can and will do a good job clearing out brush and weeds but are not good for daily maintenance.

I kept a small backyard mowed down with chickens, maybe you need a lot more chickens.

 

[halo]

Mini ponies are very low maintenance. Studley gets his shots once a year, I do fecals on him occasionally to see if he has worms (he never does), and he gets his feet done a couple times a year. I don't feed him anything until the fall when the grass goes brown; he goes thru a bale of coastal hay ($5.00) in about 8 to 10 days. I have higher maintenance on my puppies.

 

[cassie]

I used to know a man whose large lawn looked like a park. He had about three sheep and they did a beautiful job. You just have to balance the number of animals and the amount of feed available.

 

[minnesotachicken]

birdaholic- your 3 minis are adorable!!!
Thanks for all the ideas! I married a "city boy" and he keeps saying "nothing with hooves"....... but he also said "nothing with feathers" last winter