I’m so jealous!
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we had a scale at my old barn and good lord, that thing was incredibly helpful when we were trouble shooting an ulcer-ey horse’s diet. He also wasn’t gaining muscle, so it was great to track his muscle progression and how that impacted weight. If I ever own my own barn, I would absolutely get one.
Right?! I had no idea one was semi-easily available. I keep thinking someone should buy one that could be taken to various barns for weighing. I don’t believe the local horse hospital even has a scale. My aisle is limestone with the center covered with stall mats, I wonder if it has to be perfectly level. I have an open area off the aisle that’s just limestone, it would be out of the way of traffic there.
@LCDR where did you buy this? --nevermind, Valley Vet has it?! But it’s over a grand there.
Those scales can be put on dirt also, don’t need a concrete pad.
They need to be leveled and you can do that any place.
The basic horse sized scale tends to start a bit over $500, then adding extra to them, better materials, better program to the reader, printing capabilities, etc. adds to the price.
Some are strong enough for many animals going over them, like along single, snake cattle alleys and under chutes.
Some are portable, you can move them to where you need them next, like at state fairs for their livestock barns.
They come in different sizes also.
For most private barn uses, the basic models are fine.
I bought mine online from A and A Scales. They have an online store on ebay, and also on Amazon, but I ordered directly from them. If you have or know someone with building skills, a kit is available to build your own. It comes with the 4 electronic weight sensors (the feet) and mounting hardware and display, and you build your own platform.
If I were building a new barn I would use the kit and make a platform flush with the floor. The one I bought is supposedly portable. It has retracting lifting handles, but I am too old to lift it by myself. The young Fedex delivery guy had no problem lifting and carrying the entire boxed unit from his truck into my barn by himself, without needing to use any moving equipment.
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How long ago did you buy yours? The horse scale is $899 now (does not say free shipping) and is 82" long x 39.5" wide with 3000 lb max, while the cow scale is $599, 30" x 59" with 2200 lb max with free shipping. I found scalesgalore.com has the 3000 lb scale for $795 “for a limited time.” Looks like $230.50 for shipping. 
I started a thread back in 2016 when I was considering buying a scale. The prices look similar then:
Please share more SuzieQ - how do we all get this too/accessory/gadget/strategy??? 
And amazing, real Morgans.
Lamented is an understatement
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I went with the free shipping scale, both for the shipping and because it is the same length as the standing area in my trailer. My trailer is 65” from breast bar to butt bar. The scale ad said that was too small for horses, but mine have no problem walking right on and stopping long enough to get a weight.
If I were equipping a vet clinic I’d go bigger, but for my barn and horses it functions just fine. And a bigger scale would be impossible for me to move around by myself.
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Smart Carts instead of traditional wheelbarrows! They are seriously witchcraft. I can have five box stalls worth of manure in it and still maneuver as easily as if it was empty. Push it with one hand, spin it in a 360 degree circle. Plus the bucket can snap in and out for seriously easy dumping if I need it. I’d never go back to a regular wheelbarrow.
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You have a 65" body trailer for Clydesdales? Even my Brenderup was 78" IIRC. Most are 84 or 90". Too bad they don’t make a 72" long option for the scale–with my horses wearing 75-81" blankets that would at least seem reasonable. I saw the “horse” scale is 250 lb so wonder if I could even get that set up by myself. Can’t imagine I’d ever need to weigh more than 2200 lb.
Sorry. It was freezing and I was measuring by flashlight before I posted before. Chest to butt bar is 75” from inside padding to inside padding, 80” metal bar to metal bar. Overall standing space is 10’5” long. Width is 32”, including 1” padding on wall and center divider. Height is 7’5”.
If anyone has more horse scale questions, why don’t we post scales as a new topic? I feel guilty for hijacking and cluttering the current thread.
I’m not sure which post you are referring to, but if it is the best horsey husband you are referring to. After being married he told me he wanted nothing to do with the horses as not his thing.
Of course not, he was not brought up with horses and they were an unknown commodity. I am actually trained as an instructor.
I told him I had to take him out and teach him how to take a bridle off. If he came home to a saddled horse and no Sue, I know he would want to help and I didn’t want him ripping their teeth out trying to take the bridle off.
My two were big, but were were well trained, quiet in your pocket horses that were not scary. I introduced him and he found out they were not scary. To start with he would rug and unrug and feed as I worked longer hours in an office job. He also oiled their hoves, which I has said I did daily and I found him months later still doing it daily.
Fast forward nearly 20 years and we moved to a farm after 6 months. His suggestion, not mine. He won’t ride in Public but he rides dressage better than a lot, although he has never done a test and never ridden an untrained horse.
He has 2 otttb that were given to us. The first was too green and after one ride I knew he was not enough horse for me, so I started off lunging him in side reins. I put hubby on for the 2 to bond and it worked. The 2 are still together and hubby has built us a dressage arena, a tack shed, 2 shelters with automatic water troughs and has nearly fiinshed 2 x loose boxes with automatic water troughs.
The other is the school horse he learned to canter on, which was given to us, my instructor said to teach hubby to canter as Dodge prefers canter to trot and is really comfortable.
We do not have kids. Hubby dotes on the horses instead.
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It was and what a great story and hubby. Thanks for sharing and hoping some of your good juju will come across the universe to my farm too.
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Masterful job! I applaud you!
Mine is “horse tolerant.” And I am “motorcycle tolerant.” He has no interest in riding horses, and I have no interest in riding motorcycles, but we both appreciate the allure of a serious hobby.
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We had a motorbike when we first moved to the farm. Nobody told me not to ride it on a ploughed paddock. I did make it down to the irrigator and back but let me say for newbies DO NOT RIDE A MOTORBIKE ON A PLOUGHED PADDOCK. I knew 6 feet in I was in trouble.
We sold it and bought a quad. I LOVE the quad and it can be driven on a ploughed paddock with no skill. I am mindful when riding it, as it is supposed to be the one thing that kills most farmers yearly.
Hubby loves tractors. I also have my own tractor (Case) and the David Brown will have a shrine when he finally dies.
I bought something similar when I re-roofed my garage. I did not want to be driving over any of my clumsy fallout. Once that project was done, I took the thing to the barn. It has been the best tool ever. Putting up/taking down something in a stall with screws, nails or hooks? Break off an old fastener when trying to remove it? Wheelie Magnet for clumsy fallout recovery. Farrier visit? Wheelie Magnet picks up even the tiniest nail tip along.
I agree about the Wheelie Magnet. I bought one when we had the barn re-sided, and was glad to have it when we later constructed run in sheds. I don’t care what you say to construction people about picking up dropped nails - they are not going to really understand the gravity of the situation. Also, trying to find nails in grass or loose dirt is no joke, so even if they do try they are bound to miss some.
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I just discovered the effol sweat scraper. Best. Scraper. Ever. Worth every penny ($19 in pennies to be exact). Seriously, better than wood sweat scrapers, even better that the amazing heavy duty aluminum scrapers we had on the track back in the 80’s.
https://www.smartpakequine.com/pt/effol-orca-sweat-scraper-11173
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