Also, would 8 feet be wide enough?
10’
It depends on what your barn is used for. Is it a space that will have lots of traffic going by the horse in cross ties (say a lesson barn with kids needing to get thru that spot)?
Mine is 10’. I have dealt with much smaller spaces and it worked out. Not the best. But it functioned.
11 feet
One is 11 and two are 12.
Depends how big your horses are. 8 feet wouldn’t work for my giant beasts but a 14 hand pony would leave you plenty of room to work.
Thanks everyone! This would be for a private space. I think I better plan on 12’
12’ is great if you have the room.
If you do not have that much room you will manage with something smaller.
Suggestion for you - make the space out of tape on the floor and see how it works for you. You can do this at home if at the barn is not an option. You will just have to imagine the horse there.
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For me personally, I think 8 ft would be sufficient. I have a 17.1 sport horse and regularly tack him up in his 12’ box stall. I feel confident I could use a much smaller space. I’m interested in setting it up for others to use and if 10’ to 12’ is more common, then I think I should plan on that.
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Ours vary from 8’ to 16’ depending on which cross tie is in use.
You need enough for YOU to be able to work and move away in the event of an equine “spook.” So it’s not just the width of the space, but what is around the space.
G.
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We have different ones.
By the stocks, on both sides, we have about 9’ and that is plenty to groom, saddle, wash, most any you want to do.
In other places we have wider crossties, up to 15’ in the aisle.
In some smaller barns in Europe the aisles were narrow, some 8’, down to 6’ in some.
We made it work, even vacuuming skittish horses, so very narrow can work if you absolutely have to, just not as safe if a horse were to act up.
I think it also depends upon the location and what else is in the area. If it is in a bay with a solid wall behind, horses tend to be calmer and you might be able to go smaller. However, these areas also tend to be used to store grooming supplies, etc, so you may need to take that into consideration as well. Personally, I like a wider area to be able to get out of the way of a startle, though I find that if a horse doesnt stand well, it is worse in a larger area! YMMV
I think mine is about 8’. I will have to measure; maybe it’s a little wider. It’s more than sufficiently safe for a horse in the crossties and for a farrier to work on the horse in the aisle. But it’s a 3 stall barn; there would never be more than one horse in the barn, ever.
The wider the space, the greater chance a horse will flip around on the ties if green or freaked out. I’ve had that happen (in a 12’ space) and the damage done was pretty ugly. If the space had been narrower, there’s a good chance she wouldn’t have been able to get all the way around.
Just something to keep in mind. Cross ties aren’t a particularly fool proof way to tie a horse. A wide space doesn’t necessarily make it safer.
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I think mine is about 9 feet, I think it was 10’ centers we put between the posts… I don’t have giant horses, biggest is 16.2. No problems turning around in there, and plenty of room for me to work, yet tight enough that the horse IS confined into that space- can’t turn around when in the ties.
Mine is 9’ and it works fine but I would not want to go smaller. The 9’ can be a little tight turning a horse around in, especially if they are bigger/awkward/old. I also have blankets hanging up high on hooks on the one side so that makes it feel a little snugger than it really is. My wash rack is 12’ wide and I wouldn’t want to go any wider than that. I think my ideal is in the 10 to 12’ range.
I have similar sized warmbloods to you with a private barn. My aisle is 11’ and my wash bay is 10’. Both have cross ties. Larger than 11’ the horse can move around more than I like. Actually the wash bay at 10’ is ideal.
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That’s very helpful! Thank you!
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I manage with 5 feet in my small backyard barn. It’s tight and I wouldn’t want to be there with a spooky horse. I wish I’d gone for at least 8 but my farrier is able to work in that tight space fine too. Luckily my guys are all old and chill.
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Mine is 8 foot but it’s an aisle that is open on one side so I have plenty of room to move out of the way.
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