Concrete wall coverings

[ThoroughbredLuver]

Hello everyone!

Questions on protecting horses from kicking concrete walls!

I have a concrete barn which includes the stall walls being concrete (even the dividers). I don’t have horses that regularly kick the wall, but I’ve had a few throw temper tantrums during stall rest and a little worried about them kicking the concrete walls directly. I’ve seen the specifics stall kick pads you can buy, that look like the pads on some gym walls, but they are awfully expensive and I’m looking to pad quite a few stalls. I’ve seen people use regular stall mats anchored to the wall, but does this provide enough cushion to lessen the impact? The ones I’ve seen are just anchored flush to the wall, but I’ve heard people say you need a gap from the concrete? Do you just put a piece of wood on the concrete and hang the mat from that? Does crap get underneath them then? I’d prefer to anchor mats to the wall directly, but just afraid this doesn’t really add any benefits.

Thanks!

[endlessclimb]

Well it adds 3/4-1" of rubber, so that’s a benefit.

If you want more you can add that gap but I’d make it go all the way around the mat, not just top and bottom, so that mice can’t get in there.

[LCDR]

Go with solid rubber, not the ball park or gym style mats that are foam sandwiched inside a vinyl liner. Those can be pawed to shreds quickly. It will be expensive and a lot of hard work to install with all concrete anchors. You could think about attaching a wood frame to the concrete wall first, and then screwing the rubber mat to the wood, I your walls do any water weeping, that would also provide a gap for moisture evaporation between mat and concrete. And, of course with that there is a downside of a space for pests to inhabit.

[sascha]

I’ve stabled in 2 block barns over the years. Horses tend to learn to respect their walls like they do electric fences. “Huh. Solid. Ok, not temper tantrum material. I guess I’ll be forced to dance around on my hind legs or buck without hitting anything. So. Much. Less. Fun. Oh well.”

I did have one padded for a client’s horse who was a confirmed knee/foot basher before he moved in. His stall had mats hung from a 2 x 4 all the way around including a little 2 x 4 inward-swinging half door to protect the sliding door. Worked a charm but it took 8 mats for that one stall. Thankful that was on his owner’s tab!

In other circumstances - confirmed wood wall kicker/smasher/breaker - moving into an unsoftened block stall can cure that behaviour in one kick. I’ve seen that a couple of times and both horses were absolutely fine after their one trial kick.

[clanter]

neighbor has TBs, she is a race horse trainer, the MD Barn Master they at home has concrete block stall walls, a few of her horses have virtually destroyed the back walls of the stalls, shattered the blocks.

They ended up overlaying 2 inch rough sawn oak over the back walls

[sascha]

@clanter

a few of her horses have virtually destroyed the back walls of the stalls, shattered the blocks

Holy crap. Both block barns I’ve been in are now over 30 years old and both still have all their blocks intact. Perhaps she needs to consider her management for her horses to be that consistently angry.

[CHT]

Our barn has an exterior cement pony wall to house the heat loops. We covered the cement with wood, not so much for the kick factor, but more to give a horse some grip should they choose to get cast. If you go with rubber, I would try to look for something that would give them some purchase if they do get cast.

An other downside to rubber is that it is typically black/dark. Puck board may be an alternative: although not as thick as a mat, it will offer some concussion, and it has the benefit of being white.

[Bluey]

We had over the years several race horses that would kick walls, wood or concrete walls, when excited by mealtime or other horses walking by.

Mats just started being used in horse stalls and we put a 2"x4" and hung mats sideways from them, not all the way to the bottom, about 18" to 24" from the floor and high enough, that would be 5 1/2’ or 6’ high. They rarely would kick past it and if they did, that high the kick didn’t have much force to injure themselves.

Hung only at the top, there were no safe place for mice to get behind them and seemed to make it not fun any more to kick, most gave it up quickly.

You could try that first, get the 3/4" 8’ or 6’ by 4’ and see what luck you have.
If you need to try other, you at least will have some mats already bought.

[Djones]

LOL I looked at a used slant load trailer one time that had been heavily used. One particular full-length slant, in the bottom rear quadrant, looked like a hand-hammered wok or something, I swear. It was literally kicked into a bit of a bowl from some horse absolutely giving it the business up and down the road x 400000. I wish I’d taken a pic.

I would think most horses will quit with one kick or two.

[clanter]

@Djones

I would think most horses will quit with one kick or two.

while working for a saddlehorse farm they also had a standardbred mare that was used as a roadhorse, when trailering her when ever we got below 35mph she would kick the wall for us to go faster , she was a speed addict, not the drug but she really like to go Fast