I believe from what’s been written that the picture labeled south side is an error and that’s actually the west end/big western door referred to earlier??? Hence the confusion here.
So: BIG update
DH is on board with cleaning out the former horse barn, AKA the little barn. There is a small area just outside that could be graded, turned into a small dry lot, fenced and used as a run-out. The setup is for one horse only, but honestly, if I need to move her urgently, she might have to go it alone for a while. I could fence another area for her to use during the day when the weather is good.
This is a far from ideal setup, but it would work in a pinch, and is much less expensive than building new.
The stuff in the little barn is mostly not ours; much of it belongs to the handyman who has worked on the house for years, and could be from other projects he’s had locally. He comes down from Vermont, and we’ve let him use the little barn for storage. But if we have to get a dumpster and clean it out, that can happen, and we do have other places he could store the things he really wants to keep.
The floor is mostly concrete and some wood. And yes there is a latrine in the corner, but no plumbing – I don’t know the story there and don’t really want to.
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Won’t hurt to try your mare alone, just watch her closely to be sure she adapts, which for an old horse she may enjoy not having to share her attention at all.
Our old ones have generally liked their alone time, didn’t fret like when younger.
They even have slept better when other horses left and they could relax from watching others.
Maybe you won’t have to bring her home after all if you find some other place that fits her, if she has to move.
As for the latrine in the corner, growing up in the mountains without running water and electricity/phone/etc. we had a two holer in the corner of the horse barn right by the door, the horse stable accessible directly from the house.
Every several months, the lid was lifted and a long pipe with a bucket welded on the end was used to reach down there and clean it out, carrying the bucket outside and dumping it over the edge into the land below the house.
That was a terrible stinky chore, everyone left and the one/s in charge complained for long time.
Would not be surprised if all they had in your barn was also a hole under the latrine, that they bailed out regularly.
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What a very pretty barn. SO glad it’s in your good hands. I think the little barn is a gem. What are the interior dimensions? If it’s only big enough for one horse, I’m pretty sure Nevins Farm can find a mini that needs a good home 
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What with your update, little barn looks perfect with a nice grade away from the building. Clean it out (probably not a bad thing anyway?) and put a bit of fencing up. As for in/out access, for decades, our neighbor had a horse happily living in the lower bit of a dairy barn, similar sort of clearances. It looks like it is right next to the house? If so, you may find a horse happily knocking on the window…
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I think it’s 16 by 20 but I’m not sure. The trick would be setting up the door for 2 horses, because my mare loves other horses - as long as there’s a fence between her and them. She’s completely unbothered by minis, or curious about them.
It’s a beautiful little barn under all the dirt.
Umm WHAT??
That barn is so beautiful. Here I was expecting a run down thing, and you’ve got that gem on your property?
I’d kick DH out of there and tell him to build himself a garage. That barn is MINE now. I can fit my horses, a gardening area, a party gathering place for when the friends and family come by……
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Snicker. We actually got married in the big barn – 175 guests and us. We were going to be outside but it started raining, and our “Best Person” ran herd on all those people to grab chairs, get them into the barn, and dry them off. Of course it was much cleaner back then. It does cost some money to keep it looking nice but it’s worth it. He bought the house because of the barn.
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It is a beautiful barn, he did good buying it. 
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Can’t you clean it out the old horse barn? Then cut a door or two in the areas where the windows are (of course framing them out to provide the proper support etc. and then put your panels off them to have paddocks? When we bought our previous place we put stall in an old barn/shop, cut the doors out ourselves, framed them etc., made the stalls (FYI the barn was full of junk, we hired a dumpster and cleaned it out, was worth the work).
Seems like you have some decent options, you just need to get some cleaned out (you might advertise that wood as free for someone to come and get, that might get it cleaned out faster) and decide to use the small old horse barn or the big dairy barn. If there was water at one time to the dairy barn seems it would be easy to reconnect it.
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Sounds like you have a good plan! Also, rather than a horse-pal, you might consider a goat. Goats and horses have a natural affinity for one another. I kept a single horse for almost 20 years with just a goat. Horse was never distressed and LOVED his goat(s).
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Unfortunately the little barn is raised, so the bottoms of those windows are about 10 to 12 feet above the ground.
The handyman needs to clean it out anyway, so the next time he comes down, we’ll get a dumpster and at least start with the stuff that can’t be salvaged.
Oh on goats… the mare isn’t a fan. When I first had her, the sight of a goat would get her shying and trying to rear. Apparently she spent a summer as a borrowed lawnmower when she was 2, and shared the lawn with a big mean goat that would chase her around. Livestock of any sort are a problem. OTOH she could probably get used to a goat that was always around.
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How do you, your DH and the mare feel about chickens? I’ve known more than one horse that had a pet chicken. Just no roosters: they can get aggressive.
That little red barn is lovely, and will make into a fine horse home with your creativity. And if there are some big hunks of wood in the pile of stuff in there, you may be able to make a loft from it. I’m big into reusing lumber if it’s ok. I gather the windows aren’t 10 feet off the interior floor of the barn, just the outdoor grade. Correct?
Yes - windows are high up on the outside. The main worry with this barn is whether the floor is still horse-safe. We’ll find out.
Plenty of room for 2 stalls. I am sure you will figure something out. Great news that you can use what you already have. I am incredibly " thrifty" and usually prefer to try and work it out with what is on hand.
Keep us updated if you get started on it.
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What a fun turn of events. It will be fun (I’m sick that way) to get it cleaned up and sorted. I used to travel up your way and miss my dinners at Ithaki. The area is so beautiful but so very expensive, it will be nice to have a way to have her at home if need be.
@quietann I have a friend who boards two horses in southern NH (she lives in MA) and the barn is being sold so she’s looking for a new place. Her reports of barns closing and zero open stalls available is consistent with your comments.
You’ve got some great ideas on here. I have a couple of things from my ongoing barn renovations that you may be interested in for your project (I’m relatively close). I’ll PM you.
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Hi all –
I haven’t really made any progress on the plan as I have a lot of other stuff going on, and has been pointed out elsewhere, a bad hand that would limit my ability to do some barn chores.
It’s a gamble, but I have reason to believe the barn where I board will stay open for at least a couple of years, although it will be very expensive. OTOH things can change very quickly. I recently learned of a barn that was sold and the boarders, who did not even know it was for sale, were given 2 weeks notice to move their horses.
I am really torn about going ahead with planning.
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For just 2 horses’ manure, a commercial dumpster with bi-weekly pickup would be do-able. But on top of budgeting dollars, make sure you’re budgeting your time realistically. It’s a LOT of work to keep a pasture clean enough to satisfy picky neighbors who aren’t enamored of horses (not saying that’s your situation, but the risk of this is higher on small acreages where horses are a new addition to the neighborhood).
Update: I talked with the carpenter, who is back for the season working on our place and several clients’. places in the area. (He comes down every other week and prioritizes his work for all of us. DH and I get a higher priority because we are closest to where he likes to stay, and we allow him to store so much stuff here.)
Anyway… unfortunately, he thinks the floor of the little barn would need a lot of work to be safe for horses. The little barn sits over a “cave” on a stone foundation, but it is slowly failing. So it might not work.
DH and I have had some unexpected expenses, and I may have to move my mare to another barn, but I will look slowly. She’s just high-needs, and I don’t think most places would want to deal.
