Has anyone had their horse or a horse you know be kicked because their head is out of the stall/the stall door only goes halfway up? I am wondering because I have the chance to stall my horse in a stall like this but I am worried about him being kicked in the head or something…
Anything is possible. A lot depends on the width of your barn aisle, the skill and intelligence of the horse handlers, and whether your horse is the sort that will be hanging out over the door and picking fights.
When our stall doors are open the horses often hang over the stall guards and annoy horses going down the aisle. IME this is more of a danger to the handler of the horse in the aisle, who has to deal with a skittery horse. The horse in the stall can get out of retaliation range easily enough.
I suppose a kick is possible if some dolt let their horse stand butt facing the stall door and dudnt see the horses were fighting. But mostly kicks don’t go that high anyhow. I’m assuming door must be about 3.5 or 4 feet tall?
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Maybe I don’t get, what you mean exactly - a stall like this?
Yes, the doors are a bit lower though.
Are there loose horses on the other side? A paddock? If it just opens into an aisle, I wouldn’t be concerned.
This is very common and popular … Lower … hm … depends on the horse (jumping or making other nonsense). Normally theses doors have a 2. part and this part can be closed if needed. If not, maybe you are allowed to adapt the door a bit?
To me this is totally normal. Completely closed stalls are not selling anymore here. People want stalls like this or a window to the outside or a paddock. If you have a ‘creative’ horse, try to adapt the door to your needs.
The stall is all barred in except the actual door? I can’t see that being a problem.
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My barn has open stall fronts - no bars at all, just a 4’ kick wall. But it’s my barn, with just my horses. So, I wouldn’t see a topless door as a drawback in a boarding situation.
So true. Horses love to watch what is going on. If the aisle is wide enough I would modify closed doors and allow the horses to look outside. If a horse is especially grumpy or needs a closed door for any other reason, there are solutions.
Yeah, we just don’t know the horse well but he is from Spain so he is most likely been gelded late. He has been showing a bit of stallion-ish behavior but I think he should have to get used to a stall like this.
If the farm will allow it you can get a stall guard to put over top if it is problem for your horse.
https://www.chicksaddlery.com/centaur-plaid-stall-guard
It’s tough to know how your horse will handle any boarding situation without really knowing him. But you can’t really know how it’ll go until you try it… and who his neighbors are can change things
My barn has completely closed stall doors with metal bars shoulder height and up. Sometimes the workers open the doors and let the horses hang their heads out. While this is very considerate, not all the horses get along.
My horse capped his hock this winter. It wasn’t significant, but I had to take away his open door privileges. It isn’t his fault his neighbor terrorizes him into flying backwards and hitting the stall wall. My horse is accident prone, so take it with a grain of salt 
Yours may take quite well to it. He may already be used to it. It’s a great idea, and I’d love a situation more like that for my horse. Even taking into account the capped hock! They do LOVE to look around.
Stalls with open tops into an aisle are fine for most horses, until a horse has a real need to get out, then they are not any more.
If a horse is very young, or gets scared, or wants out to follow another horse, or fight another horse, that horse should not have an open top front.
We have to be sure our horse will be ok in those stalls, or find a way to keep them from getting out.
One common problem with horses sticking heads out of their stalls into aisles is that some end up banging on the door with their knee, not good for the door and their knees.
I would say, there are plenty of reasons to have open tops and plenty more not to.
It depends on the horse and how risk adverse the one managing is.
Good luck your horse be one of those that is fine in a stall with an open top.
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@DewiPony talk to the owner of the barn. If the horse is stressed or shows stallion behaviour maybe you can install a temporarily construction until the horse is settled in. And check that your new horse is no ‘Houdini’ with skills to open doors.
The grille (see attachment in my former post) can be installed in addition and is available in different sizes. The ‘V’ closes it completely if necessary.
The only time I have seen a horse being led down the aisle kick at horses with heads hanging out, was when a certain horse was known to try and bite the horse that was being led down the aisle.
We had a horse bite his run mate as she was being led by and she nailed him in the jaw. He was bruised but fine and never tired to bite a horse walking by again. Horses do loose their aisle way privileges if they are nippy but generally horses enjoy being able to hang their heads out.
The stall doors at my mare’s barn have grates that can be lifted up and closed if a horse needs to be confined. We also have dutch doors to the outside and leave the top doors open when it’s warm.
