Your Horse Barn

©  2007 Cherry Hill           www.horsekeeping.com

Cherry is away from the ranch for a bit and my calendar says the July newsletter is due. So, I'm going talk about something I know - horse barns.

Do you want to build a horse barn or remodel the one you have? Do you know where to start? You're not alone. Many people get bewildered by the many choices and decisions they are confronted with when planning housing for their horses. That's why we wrote the book, Horse Housing, in which we explain many of the options you have, from flooring to lighting, so you can make the right choices for the comfort and health of your horses and your horsekeeping situation.

But many horse owners are too busy to read or are more visual and would rather get information from video rather than from a book. So, we've just finished a 4-hour, 2-disc DVD called Your Horse Barn. It has much of the good information that the book Horse Housing contains so you can make good decisions about roofs and windows, the aisle and your tack room, feed room and wash rack. Plus you get a detailed look at Cherry Hill's barn that we built mostly by ourselves here at Long Tail Ranch. We go through every corner of the barn, inside and out and show you what we did and tell you why we did it that way.

Here are a few excerpts from the DVD, Your Horse Barn: Planning, Designing, Building :

 

 

Getting Your Horse Barn Built 

One of the first things you have to decide when planning a horse barn is who will build it. Basically, you have four choices:

1. Buy a modular or pre-manufactured barn to be delivered and set up.
2. Hire someone to take charge of all or part of your barn project.
3. Act as your own contractor and hire the construction workers and tradesmen.
4. Build it yourself from scratch or from a modular barn package.

The method you choose will depend on how soon you need the barn, how much time you have to spend on the project, your budget, and the extent of your construction ability and experience... read more...

 

Stall Size and Number

Stalls are the horses' dorm rooms inside your barn. When planning your barn, the main things you need to decide about stalls are:

• How many stalls you need.
• How large the stalls need to be.
• The type of floor the stalls will have.
• What to cover the walls with.
• What type and size of doors to install.
  

 

NUMBER

The number of stalls you need depends on how many horses will require stabling at one time. If your horses live mainly outdoors, read more...

 

Heating

If you live in a winter climate, you might be thinking about heating the entire barn or at least a room or two.

Ask yourself this question: "Is the barn primarily for my comfort or for my horse's health". You may want to work in the barn in your shirtsleeves during the winter, but your horses dress for winter in the fall and can't take off their coats till springtime.

Horses are generally more comfortable - and much healthier - living either outside or in an unheated barn. as long as they are protected from drafts. When it gets really cold, say below 0 degrees F, it is healthier for a horse to wear a blanket and have plenty of fresh air than to close the barn up tight and blast him with a heater.

When a horse does require additional warmth, say because of sickness or injury or to dry off, an infrared or radiant heater or a well-protected heat lamp can be used to warm the animal without heating the entire barn. Learn more on the DVD...

 

 

Happy Trails and Good Luck with your horse barn !