Dream Farm Design

Can I come live with you??? That sounds pretty darn perfect for me- no edits!!! :lol::lol::lol:

Only on COTH would someone not define barn and property chores as “work,” and we all totally agree.:lol:

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I’m gonna throw my “dream” out there too (manifestation might kick in right :cool:), but just so the universe knows, I’d be willing to take on quite a few variations of horse property :winkgrin:

I want an idealized 24/7 live-out situation. You know, so I can have babies and maybe even some broodmares of my own, along with some riding horses and rejuvenation cases. But with some creature comforts (horse and human!) available as needed too.

So lots of lovely rolling pasture land. With great fencing and more paddocks than needed so I can rotational graze like a beast. But also (at least if in my current climate) sacrifice areas/dry lots with footing that won’t turn to mud, so I can lock em up as needed. Also, a way to have individual feed given without fully bringing in (feed stalls or stations). Safe, attractive sheds with fans. Simple slow hay feeders. Auto waters or some other option that doesn’t involve tank heaters that blow the breaker constantly :o . Hydrants at the troughs… no hose dragging or hauling water in this dream!

But even with this pasture paradise, I still want a few the niceties that come with some of the best indoor facilities. I am, after all, Canadian, and it seems like 9 months of the year are either hotter or colder than I’d prefer :lol:. So, plumbing with hot water. I want the indoor washrack, a big sink, laundry, toilet. Lightly heated barn (frozen pipes suck!) and nicely heated/cooled tackroom. Oh…and a well sealed tack room…lets keep the cobwebs and barn dust out as much as possible. Lots of storage.

I do want some stalls for injuries, convenience, training, etc. I also want a way to keep every horse on the property in for ice storms. tornado warnings, etc. Doesn’t have to be a box stall each per se. Loose housing, even a few tie stalls, would be fine.

Some on property trails would be ideal, along with a nice grass ring and sand ring. Round pen. Obstacle course for shizz and giggles (and proprioceptive work, actually). Of course, since this is a dream, an indoor too (Canadian remember…). If I’m dream-dreaming, it’s big, insulated, and has windows with a view. But modest size and average would work fine too, so long as the footing is fine.

For how I want to live on the farm…

Smallish house. Would rather spend my time keeping up the outside rather than in! I do want a loft lounge or some such as my very own (well, me and the dog(s)!)… sort of an office, sort of a hangout (I’ll give my SO a studio/area of his own too in this fantasy!). An on farm apartment (that we don’t need the income from) so I can give some person their country living dream while also having a built in farm sitter. A garden and orchard (heck we’ll have the compost) and root cellar for all my potatoes and pickles and whatnot we produce!

And of course, the funding to have all this without stress :o

I would want pastures radiating out from a central barn and arena area. Each pasture would start with a dry lot with run in shed, which would then open into the larger pasture. The horses would ideally stay out 24/7, being locked into the dry lot if necessary, but I would also still have the barn with some stalls, and all the other amenities you’d like to have in a barn. This is far different than what I have now, which is a single 5 acre pasture with the barn in it.

We built ours a couple years ago in Central Florida. 15 acres - new concrete block barn - covered arena (critical for riding in the summer in Florida) - open airy stalls with metal “mesh” stall doors on both the inside and outside for lots of ventilation (with sliding outside doors we can close in a storm or cold weather) - irrigated grass paddocks so that every horse can be turned out every day - fans in every stall and fly spray system - 4 inside grooming stalls and 2 inside wash racks in the center of the barn - two tack rooms (one for trainer and one for clients) - covered patio overlooking the arena and air conditioned lounge also overlooking the arena - two bathrooms (one in the lounge with a shower) - two air conditioned feed/hay rooms on either end of the stall aisles - a small house on property for live-in groom and room for working students - 4 open aisles so we catch whatever breeze there is, with roll up metal doors we can close in a storm or when it gets cold in the winter - hacking trail along the outside fence line all around the property - covered utility area for tractor/trailer/mower parking.