Hell no. Do you understand the cost of building a severe storm-proof run-in? Do you expect the same loss of your horse from a crappy run-in as you can claim for a cow?
I think this thread boils down to how much you value your horse. People don’t value their horses to the same extent. OP, you’ll have to consider how much you value your horse vs what they won’t do at your current barn. That’s all your choice.
No - turnout to me means quality time: hay, shelter and at least some space that is never ever muddy.
I value my horse(s) quite a bit. Not monetarily, but emotionally. They are VERY important to me.
While out on dry lot they have good quality hay in front of them 100%. The footing has been taken care of so even in this crazy rain season they are not sinking in mud. The fencing is safe (as safe as fencing can be, since we all know horses are trying to kill themselves).
The lack of shelter for a year was because what I had for shelter previously now was not working with the horses I had. I needed something different and that meant building, and building takes money.
And again, I would rather horses be out than in (depending on the horse, clearly).
While I’m also surprised at how many people are okay with horses out in severe weather shelter-less, I think it is more a reflection on locale than valuation of their animals. Many (but not all) of the posters saying they would be okay with it live in temperate climates where “severe” weather is less dramatic and uncommon.
Not to mention… the horses weren’t out in it for 3 days. It was a very brief period of time. They’re fine.
I think too many people bubble wrap their horses and then act surprised when the horse is uber sensitive in all the wrong ways.
Would be pretty unhappy, Have had similar scenarios at two previous barns.
Barn 1: I showed up and it was a cold (temps in the 40s) all-day rain and my horse was out. Most of the other horses were in - the barn didn’t have enough stalls for all the horses and there was no stall for my horse to go into, despite the fact that I was paying for stall board. At this barn, it was the final straw and I gave notice shortly thereafter.
Barn 2: all the horses were out, including mine, and I was otherwise happy with the care, so I wrote this day off and moved on from it.
(Thank you Rambo for keeping my horses dry in the worst conditions!)
In general I agree with the posters who would rather their horses out too much than too little.
I’m all about choices. I love being outside myself, even in the weather. The caveat being that I can come in when I’m ready to. I suppose one could call it anthropomorphizing but I’m not ok with a horse not having the option to get out of the rain, particularly when accompanied by fierce winter winds.
Another aspect is that our little herd likes to have a morning and/or afternoon nap. Where is that supposed to happen in inclement weather when they don’t have a soft dry spot to drop down on and snooze?
Anecdotal story:
Our horses are kept at home un-blanketed year round with large, hilly treed turnouts and run-ins if they so choose. Seems to me they mostly elect to be out but as per the poop piles those shelters do get used.
One cold rainy fall they were both sent to be boarded for a month in the local area so that we could get on with a project here. They spent their days out in a lovely pasture with some tree breaks…but no shelter, then in at night. I assumed they’d be fine as did the stable owner, considering they were naturally well insulated from years of outdoor living.
They appeared to like the place and settled in nicely. Two weeks in we had a stretch of bad weather and although pretty stoic about it they were miserable as hell, which being so familiar with their day to day vibe was not hard to pick up on.
We brought them home and the lesson I learned from that is yes, they are inclined to choose being outside for the most part but do count on having a spot to rest, dry off and hang out in when they’ve had enough. Some might argue that this is because they were accustomed to having a shelter and given time would grow used to not having one. I prefer not to second guess that scenario.
Yes it is. I was riding the other night while one of the barrel racers was lunging her young horse. She kept cracking her whip causing my horse to bolt or spook. I had to tell her to knock it off.
Believe me, I would move if I could, not only because the issues already discussed but also distance to my house and the availability of quality trainers. Most of the ones I would like to train with are all located an hour away. Most barns around here are full, only have an outdoor arena, or are out of my price bracket.
This is me. Even in severe thunderstorms/tornado warnings.
To me, the difference is them having the option to come in. I know last week when it was 40 and started to rain they both booked it to the run-in. They never stand in it in the rain in the summer because that’s when they get a break from the bugs. But they always have the choice. It was harder when I boarded at t place that didn’t have a run-in to make those calls (BO always asked us what we wanted if weather was iffy).
Man, if someone cracking a whip causes more than one or two spooks right at the start, I think a change in focus for the ride is in order. Time for some desensitizing!
I personally love when someone is in the arena doing semi-stupid stuff. I find it to be a perfect opportunity to teach my young ones to focus despite distractions, and to desensitize them to something new.
We have a couple people who rope - that’s always fun. 
That said, OP you sound very unhappy at this barn. Maybe it’s time to move on?
She was mostly doing the whip cracking right behind my horse. She was nice about being careful after that. I was having him stand and watch and realize that it wasn’t for him. With the size of the arena, it’s too small to get away from it and work around.
I’m not that unhappy but there are a few things that make for a difficult situation. Like I said above, I would move if I could find a place that wasn’t full with a waiting list and within my budget. And, a covered arena is a necessity in the rainy state.
My horses hate a cold rain and they do come thundering in when it is about 50 or less and raining. Even if we still have plenty of pasture, I will put morning hay under the lean-to if the weather is supposed to be yucky in case they come in.
It wouldn’t bother me unless the horse was running the fence in a panic, or blanketed inappropriately.
It would bother me more in the summer when it’s hot and the bugs are bad.
Maybe I’m biased since I’ve got a cribber that needs to be out 24/7 and who rarely uses his run-ins (they have two in their field), except when the bugs are bothering him.
My young mare doesn’t have a run-in in her field, but there is a windblock. She doesn’t come to the gate until dinner time even when the weather is bad, including today when we’ve got nasty freezing rain and snow squalls coming off the bay with 50mph winds. She’s got her bum to the wind eating hay with her friends. She can come in for the night and dry off.
I’m in Maine, where the weather can be pretty freakish.
Mine are at home, and are turned out every single morning, regardless of weather. (They have more clothes than Paris Hilton, which helps.) If it turns really miserable, though, or they’re standing by the gate looking like little sad-sacks, I do bring them back in once they’ve stretched their legs and the stalls are cleaned.
Turnout is great, sure, but I don’t see any reason to make a fetish out of it. If cats and chickens and every wild animal in the neighborhood has hunkered down out of the weather, leaving domestic horses outside makes very little sense to me.
100%. I don’t think I can improve on this answer at all, so I won’t even try!
It’s surprising the inadequate facilities that most barns seem to offer, and I’m referring to the basics: safe fencing, paddocks cleaned on a regular basis, shelter, clean fresh water, and something to eat or forage for throughout the day. You might get three out of five, but around here, it’s hard to find a place that checks ALL of those boxes.
I might spend an hour a week picking-out my mare’s paddock - even though she’s only responsible for 1/4 of the manure - because it’s the one thing our current place slacks off on. It drives me nuts, but in the end it’s worth it as she’s provided with those other four things that seem so hard to find elsewhere.
Just out of curiosity, how do we feel about wooden structures vs. a stand of trees for shelter? My mare has both and she seems to prefer hanging out under the trees vs. going in the built shelter. I mean, I’m glad she has both but the natural shelter seems to be her preference.
I like both. I worry about them standing under trees in the lightning though I’m not positive the barn is any safer. Mine like hanging out under the trees when it’s hot especially.
I think it can be difficult to predict if a given horse will like a given run in shelter situation so there is that too.
Here in Central Texas we can get unpredictable storms that are quite hairy. My biggest concern during those storms is hail. Rain and wind, and even lightning don’t bother me or the horses much, and they have both natural cover and a nice barn to get under if they choose to.
This past summer we had a hail storm catch us by surprise (supposed to be a mild thunderstorm!), and at first the horses took shelter on the west side of the pasture under some trees. But when it starting hailing harder they moved away from it until they came up against the perimeter fence on the south-east side. And there they stood, butts into the wind, until it was over.
They had passed the open gate that let them in the paddock where the barn is, moving from the trees to the fence line, and I wondered if they didn’t turn and head up to it because they would have had to face somewhat into the storm to get there. I think their first instinct was to protect their eyes, and couldn’t reason that with just a few seconds of discomfort they would be completely out of it.
I felt bad for them, seeing them hunched up against that fence - but it was small hail pellets, was over fairly quickly and none of them were hurt. No whelps came up, anyway. Had it been really large, damaging hail, I probably would have donned protective gear and forced them to the barn. Best case would have been to get them in the paddock with the barn before the storm hit, but we don’t always get that luxury.
About 20 or 30 years ago a tornado hit where my horses were kept. I didn’t realize it was a tornado and when all hell started breaking loose I did not have time to bring the horses in. I ran for the tack room and hid under the saddle racks. When it passed over the horses were steaming and had all kinds of dust covering them but were uninjured. Roofs of people’s houses were in the pasture along with other debris. The barn stood undamaged but some horses down the road were in a less sturdy barn and it came down on them and 2 horses died. It sounds like this storm was less severe but the storm worthiness of the structure is a big thing to consider.
One of my horses would like to be inside in a storm like you had - as long as her door was open so she could run out if her neurotic self thought it was necessary. Otherwise she would not like to be confined. The other two horses - well they would be thanking their lucky stars there were high and dry and out of the weather shut in their stalls. So you have to consider how the horse reacts to a storm. My preference would be for the horse to be inside considering the other factors.
Head down next to a sturdy object is standard hunker-down stance for riding out rainy and windy conditions. It’s not a “forlorn and unhappy” stance. It’s far more likely he “practically dragged” you to the barn due to lack of food and less likely that it was because of some rain.
I prefer mine out 24/7 regardless of weather. Shelter is, of course, important, but IMO good tree cover is adequate, shelter does not need to be man made. No shelter for one storm isn’t the end of the world. And I value my horse(s) plenty, what a silly statement.
Many people here in FL leave them out in hurricanes.
In severe thunderstorms at least half of mine often chose to ride it out in a clear open space, not under shelter.
Completely agree.
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