no run-in sheds? could you live without one?

[Real_Rush]

A friend of mine really likes the place she’s boarding at, but it’s in the opposite direction of home and work, so has been looking for a new place to move to that isn’t so out of the way and enable her to ride more often. She went and looked at one over the weekend, and last night was telling me about it. Sounds good: nice people, no kids, very low-key, plenty of pasture to ride and gallop in along with some trails, full size covered arena, individual tack “closets” instead of a communal tack room, etc, etc. She really liked the place, but one thing stood out to her: there were no run-in sheds anywhere. Pastured horses had trees for shelter, but there were several different paddocks and dry lots with 24/7 occupants with absolutely no shelter of any kind. Not even a single tree. :eek:

She told me she asked the owner if there were any paddocks with shelter in case her horse ever needed to be kept up, and the owner answered no. Reason given? Owner said she doesn’t like the looks of run-in sheds, and that the horses just stand in them all day during summer to escape flies and then poop everywhere and make a mess. For my friend this was a deal-breaker, and I agreed. If absolutely everything else about the barn was wonderful, would this be a deal-breaker for you?

[rustbreeches]

Yes. While in some cases, thick tree belts can be more than adequate shelter, I would not like to have horses out 24/7 with no shade or wind break. I see it frequently out here, but I don’t like it.

[Victorious]

Absolutely-If I was looking for pasture board. Plus the owner sounds…difficult. No thanks.

[danceronice]

If it were turnout with a stall overnight, it wouldn’t bother me. Pasture board with no shelter or trees only? I’d pass.

[Polydor]

In australia, we didn’t have shelters but we did have thick tree lines. Bosses found the opposite in that the horses never used them. But we are talking 20+acres ( average of 50 acres) of rolling hills and tall grassland and everyone lived out 24/7. And these were tb race horses. Never had an issue.

P.

[Emilia]

Yes, it would be a deal breaker and I would not want to board at the place, which is run mainly to the convenience of BO or BM (BO from your story sounds just like that).

[fordtraktor]

not acceptable for the horses not to have any shelter, to me. If they are out only part of the day they can deal as long as they have waterproof blankies in the rain, but I wouldn’t board there if they were out 24/7 in those paddocks.

[SAcres]

Absolutely not. If the BO is willing to sacrifice the health and happiness of the horses for sheer laziness and aesthetics, it makes me wonder what else happens behind the scenes at that barn.

I frequently see horses without shelters in the field when they’re stall boarded, but for pasture board it would be unacceptable. Dense tree line? Sure, I could see that, but no shelter is just cruel, especially in the heat of the summer with flies biting.

[peedin]

I would not pasture board at a place that has no run-ins (or as I call them, loafing sheds). My horse was boarded at a place for 25 years with no run-in, but he came into his stall at night.

[Pennywell_Bay]

I wouldn’t board there. Totally irrational since I spent THOUSANDS and had beautiful run outs in my farm in PA, the horses barely used them.

The one run-in shed and dry lot I have currently being occupied by my goats and my mini (who keeps escaping from the larger pasture). So I saved my money and didn’t spend it on sheds in the new farm. I have stalls for all of them, which they appreciate in the summer.

However, I drive through parts of VA, see the horses out in the fields in the blazing summer, happing munching on grass, droves of insects clouding them and curse my hot-house flowers.

[SnicklefritzG]

[QUOTE=Real Rush;8037792]
A friend of mine really likes the place she’s boarding at, but it’s in the opposite direction of home and work, so has been looking for a new place to move to that isn’t so out of the way and enable her to ride more often. She went and looked at one over the weekend, and last night was telling me about it. Sounds good: nice people, no kids, very low-key, plenty of pasture to ride and gallop in along with some trails, full size covered arena, individual tack “closets” instead of a communal tack room, etc, etc. She really liked the place, but one thing stood out to her: there were no run-in sheds anywhere. Pastured horses had trees for shelter, but there were several different paddocks and dry lots with 24/7 occupants with absolutely no shelter of any kind. Not even a single tree. :eek:

She told me she asked the owner if there were any paddocks with shelter in case her horse ever needed to be kept up, and the owner answered no. Reason given? Owner said she doesn’t like the looks of run-in sheds, and that the horses just stand in them all day during summer to escape flies and then poop everywhere and make a mess. For my friend this was a deal-breaker, and I agreed. If absolutely everything else about the barn was wonderful, would this be a deal-breaker for you?[/QUOTE]

So the BO is frustrated that the horses poop everywhere and make a mess? Good @#$%@#$ grief! These are horses, not visitors to Buckingham Palace. :lol:

If horses are going to be outside 24/7 there should be shelter somewhere. A barn owner who doesn’t provide shelter for horses turned out 24/7 is probably operating on the cheap.

I used to board at a place that, unbeknownst to me at the time, was not feeding horses any forage during the day when they were turned out. So if there was no grass, too bad! So for a good part of the fall and winter they were out from 7am until 4 or 5pm with nothing to eat. Not the end of the world, but a recipe for ulcers. When I found this out, the owner said “We can’t feed the horses during the day because they might fight”. Well, TWO vets I talked to thought the policy did not make sense. In addition, there are plenty of people that turn horses out and feed them in the same pasture. All you have to do is spread the hay piles and feed bins far enough apart so no one horse can crowd out the others.

the fact that the BO in that case didn’t do that told me two things: First, that they were operating on the cheap and didn’t want to provide hay. Second, they were just lazy.

Needless to say, I moved.

[SmartAlex]

That’s funny logic: horses use them so they can’t have them.
Snap decision: BO is a nutter. Steer clear.

[Pennywell_Bay]

Yes, I could live without one. But I would not board my horse out on field board with no runout.

[Libby2563]

If my horse were out 24/7 the lack of shelter would be a dealbreaker for me. My horses are in stalls during the day (summer) or night (winter) but I have a run-in, and they do go in there on very cold windy days or in freezing rain. (Also the mini donkey loves to roll in the dust in there because it never gets wet or freezes, and donkeys love to be dusty!) Otherwise they prefer to be outside. One horse has anhydrosis so I would never leave him out during a summer day, but I bet they would be in there for shade in summer too.

Sounds like the BO is too lazy to do the required upkeep…

[HPFarmette]

Owner said she doesn’t like the looks of run-in sheds, and that the horses just stand in them all day during summer to escape flies and then poop everywhere and make a mess.

Run, run run from this barn owner.

[peedin]

ETA: Apparently the barn owner would never think to, you know, clean the run-in sheds. I agree with the others, don’t board there.

[spotted_draft_x_fill]

Nope wouldn’t be a deal breaker. I’ve had my horses on a dry lot with no run in or anything and they were fine. A lot of the TB farms leave their horses out in the field 24/7 with no run ins or trees and they are fine. There wasn’t any more sweat or flies on them, than if they were in the field with the woods. My horses and quite a few I have worked with would never go into a run in if there was one available.

[trubandloki]

If the quote by the barn owner is accurate I would not board there because the barn owner sounds a little strange.

On the question of run in being a requirement I think it depends greatly on the climate which this barn is located in. If it is a place with out weather extremes I see no need for a shelters.

[maunder]

I prefer my horses to have a choice of in or out. I’ve seen boarding situations that have 24/7 turnout without any shelter and I don’t like it.

[Mango20]

I think the BO’s weird explanation would be more of a dealbreaker for me than the lack of sheds. Sounds nutty.