Replacing Panels Between Runs -- Advice Please

[twelvegates]

We moved into this place a little over a year ago. My husband, left to his own devices, decided to go cheap on the panels in the runs, and they are showing significant issues. (We have a 6 stall center aisle barn with three adjacent runs on each side.)

Most of the horses like to rub against the panels, which has caused the panels to become convex. One of the horses likes to kick at her neighbor, causing lots of irregularities in the panel rungs. Finally, some of the posts are leaning due to the rubbing.

I’m open to all suggestions, but doubt I’ll be able to convince the spouse to do anything but some type of new panel system. I’m particularly worried about the possibility of leg damage if a horse kicks through a barrier.

I’m considering something like this, attached to something like this. I don’t want the grid to extend over the top of the panel or below the bottom rung of the panel.

I think we are going to install hot wire along the top of whatever we use in the future.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

[Huntin_Pony]

Using panels of the quality that you linked (excellent) will not be inexpensive. And you still will have the issue of anchoring the panels so that the horses can’t move them. Why is your spouse opposed to setting posts? Are you renting?

[csaper58]

My first choice would be solid wood, 2 in. thick. Is there a saw mill any where near by? That is the cheapest place to get the lumber. Secure a U channels to posts and you can just drop the boards in. Hot wire on top to prevent chewing.

I googled Fort Collins Co and saw mill, looks like there are a couple.

[ReSomething]

We went with plywood. DH made a sandwich out of the panel and the old guy doesn’t mess with his side except to chew on it. Pony was actually climbing up the thing, we had to have something energized or solid and smooth.

[Bluey]

[QUOTE=twelvegates;8392344]
We moved into this place a little over a year ago. My husband, left to his own devices, decided to go cheap on the panels in the runs, and they are showing significant issues. (We have a 6 stall center aisle barn with three adjacent runs on each side.)

Most of the horses like to rub against the panels, which has caused the panels to become convex. One of the horses likes to kick at her neighbor, causing lots of irregularities in the panel rungs. Finally, some of the posts are leaning due to the rubbing.

I’m open to all suggestions, but doubt I’ll be able to convince the spouse to do anything but some type of new panel system. I’m particularly worried about the possibility of leg damage if a horse kicks through a barrier.

I’m considering something like this, attached to something like this. I don’t want the grid to extend over the top of the panel or below the bottom rung of the panel.

I think we are going to install hot wire along the top of whatever we use in the future.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.[/QUOTE]

TSC just started carrying those 2" x 4" panels in the SW recently, as they had so much demand for them for horse pens.

They work fine, but are best welded carefully to whatever you use, panels or pipe fencing.

They require maintenance, if a horse rubs or kicks hard enough, there will be stiff wires sticking out there somewhere and that is very dangerous.
You need to stay on top of it and check regularly for those.
I don’t know how they would work just wired to panels, the edges would be very sharp if a horse rubs on one.

Pipe panels are not ideal, but good quality ones seem to still be the best.
Many are going to wood, but wood outside, even treated wood, will weather and splinter and a horse rubbing on wood will get splinters and those cause abscesses.

There is no real perfect solution, but cheap panels are not a very good way to separate horses that will play or fight over them.

You can keep horses together as a herd and they will beat up on each other, or across fences and then they will have fence facilitated play aggression.
Either way, you have to manage best you can.

We had for years pipe pens with v-mesh wire for our stallion runs and those, other than the rare shoe pulled there, seemed to work without injuries.

I have seen places where they have individual runs that don’t have horses across fences.
I expect horses will find a way to get hurt any place.

Horses play hard and don’t use much good sense about staying safe.

[China_Doll]

I would use the panels you posted with out the wire grid.

[twelvegates]

[QUOTE=Huntin’ Pony;8392355]
Using panels of the quality that you linked (excellent) will not be inexpensive. And you still will have the issue of anchoring the panels so that the horses can’t move them. Why is your spouse opposed to setting posts? Are you renting?[/QUOTE]

He’s not opposed to setting posts, which he used to secure the first set of panels. But the current panels are too light for the horses.

[QUOTE=csaper58;8392358]My first choice would be solid wood, 2 in. thick. Is there a saw mill any where near by? That is the cheapest place to get the lumber. Secure a U channels to posts and you can just drop the boards in. Hot wire on top to prevent chewing.

I googled Fort Collins Co and saw mill, looks like there are a couple.[/QUOTE]

There is a mill within minutes of our home. Spouse thinks metal panels will be less upkeep in the future.

@ReSomething;8392363

We went with plywood. DH made a sandwich out of the panel and the old guy doesn’t mess with his side except to chew on it. Pony was actually climbing up the thing, we had to have something energized or solid and smooth.

I was thinking of something like this, particularly between Kicker Girl and her friend. How do they stand up to lots of snow?

[QUOTE=Bluey;8392401]TSC just started carrying those 2" x 4" panels in the SW recently, as they had so much demand for them for horse pens.

They work fine, but are best welded carefully to whatever you use, panels or pipe fencing.

They require maintenance, if a horse rubs or kicks hard enough, there will be stiff wires sticking out there somewhere and that is very dangerous.

You need to stay on top of it and check regularly for those.
I don’t know how they would work just wired to panels, the edges would be very sharp if a horse rubs on one.

Pipe panels are not ideal, but good quality ones seem to still be the best.

Many are going to wood, but wood outside, even treated wood, will weather and splinter and a horse rubbing on wood will get splinters and those cause abscesses.

There is no real perfect solution, but cheap panels are not a very good way to separate horses that will play or fight over them.

You can keep horses together as a herd and they will beat up on each other, or across fences and then they will have fence facilitated play aggression. Either way, you have to manage best you can.

We had for years pipe pens with v-mesh wire for our stallion runs and those, other than the rare shoe pulled there, seemed to work without injuries.

I have seen places where they have individual runs that don’t have horses across fences. I expect horses will find a way to get hurt any place.

Horses play hard and don’t use much good sense about staying safe.[/QUOTE]

All too true. I was thinking about V mesh over posts and a four board fence, but worry that a serious kick might puncture the mesh and possibly destroy a leg.

@China Doll;8392432

I would use the panels you posted with out the wire grid.

Thanks – I thought about this. I worry whether a horse that is intent on kicking will be more likely to harm herself if the rungs on the panel are closer together?

[ReSomething]

We’ve had the half sandwich out in the weather since WEG so that would be 5 winters, KY does not get a lot of snow and we never treated any of the wood. The initial quality of the ply is important, it has to be 3/4 exterior AC, and a layer of fence paint on the edge would be a good idea, keep the moisture from wicking into the ply.

DH really overdoes stuff sometimes, he literally encased the panel with 2x6 in three vertical lines, next to the bars, drilling out for the panel pipes and then ripping them and matching them up, I think he used a bandsaw, not sure, then there’s one on each end and two horizontal long bars going along the top and bottom, and then the pony’s side is plated with the plywood screwed into those 2x.
By the time he was done the panel weighed a ton and the old guy really didn’t mess with his side at all so we never plated it, and then the old guy happily beavered away at a few of the 2x6 on the top, and they look pretty bad on his side.

We never had a kicking problem though, the pony would chest the panel hard and lean on it, and paw at it, after a while started practicing playing at being a circus pony and began to climb on the low bars and collapsed them to the ground and actually broke one of the pipes so DH seized that together with some old rope, and then it was just too much and we had to come up with something better.

[OTTB2]

I think this is being very overthought. Sink fence posts into the ground and use something like Rolled Woven Wire fence meat for horses e.g. no climb. Then run a well charged hot wire on the top. Simple and cheaper than all those metal panels.

[Haybert]

I agree with something hot. I board where they use panels (I call them gates) and some look like spaghetti where horses don’t get along.

[twelvegates]

Thanks for the input. I appreciate each reply.

Hot wire looks like a necessity.

OTTB_ - Our posts were set 4 feet into the ground, with concrete, and the rubbing against the fence has moved them way out of vertical.

Haybert – yes, “spaghetti” is the perfect description for some of the panels!

[ToTheNines]

I have pipe fencing – pipe posts on 10’ centers and a pipe top rail. My original fencing was installed about 20 years ago, and had 2x4 welded mesh fence wire.

In the paddocks, where the horses are across the fence from each other, it did not take long for them to kick at the wire mesh enough to force me to replace it. My choice at that time was what we call “bull panel” here in Texas. It is similar to the panels you linked to from Tractor Supply. It was spot welded to the pipe fence posts and top rail. That has held up quite well.

For a while, to keep them from fighting over the fence, I had an electric top tension wire. That thing ended up terrifying me. I have heard so many stories of accidents with tension wire. I took it off.

I have thought about this a lot, and I think the pipe fencing, with the pipe top rail, and the bull panel welded to it is a good solution.

[ReSomething]

The only problem I would see with TotheNines solution is that the quality of pipe panels and the cattle panels has gotten so poor.

Myself I see that the panels we have purchased in the last 7 years have been all over the map in terms of thickness even when they say “heavy duty”. There is no standard at all, no gauge that they come in, just cheap Chinese pipes that vary from one batch to another even if the company is reputable. Some companies still have a good name and perhaps OP is near one of the better ones.

[ToTheNines]

The pipe fencing is not panels. It is the pipe fencing you see a lot in Texas, made from oil field pipes. They are very very heavy and thick! The pipe is cut into pieces, with the fence posts pieces set into the ground on 10’ centers, cut off at the top with a “saddle” to receive the top rail, and the top rail is welded on. That stuff is not going anywhere!

The panels that are welded to them are what we call “bull panels” here. They are very sturdy.

Not sure if that is done in other parts of the country, and I suppose its cost depends on availability of the pipe.

Here is a picture of the pipe fencing, but with the lighter mesh wire. The bull panel is used in the smaller paddcocks.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1258161388576&l=5863b56421

[Boo]

Where i board we have the panels without the mesh on the outside runs. They definitely move a bit (also in heavy sand). There are rubber mats along each fence ground so we don’t have trenches formed.

I know of 2 accidents related to them here. One was youngster who spooked and went over it badly (6ft high). He bent the top bar badly in the process and broke his pelvis and had to be euthansed. Given the circumstances 100% sure in this case any fencing would have caused the same injury.

The other was a firey little mare thought it a good idea to “kick” her neighbour and got her hinds looped through. The properyt owners were there thankfully and due to the pressure she had on the panels they couldn’t undo them. They went to get the hacksaw/angle grinder etc to cut the steel and she managed to get herself out while they were gone. Bit muscle sore but could have been alot worse.

Personally i’d happily have the portable panels but i’d line them with heavy rubber. I wouldn’t go the mesh route. I’ve seen a tb colt double barrel in a yard and get a hind shoe stuck in it well above his heads height. He was very sore when we were able to pull his shoe to free him and i don’t know if he ever fully recovered.

[twelvegates]

Thanks again for the input.

I’m afraid of the possible damage to a horse’s leg with a kick to the wrong area in a panel covered with mesh. Very afraid.

I’ve seem degloving injuries when a horse kicked through a rounded pipe panel alone, without the mesh.

I did find some very heavy gauge panels this weekend. They were so heavy that my husband and I could not stand them up! They were $150 per panel, but I think that is lots cheaper than a vet bill. The rungs on the bottom were closer together.

I hear what you are saying about the “bull panel” but I’m afraid that what is available to me is the cheap stuff. I went to four different places to look at what was available, and none of it persuaded me that a determined horse couldn’t hurt herself.

Maybe I should just put them all on Prozac?

[Bluey]

These type pens is what some here are going to.

One cutting horse breeder told me that helped, no more chewed manes and tails thru pipe panels.

I know someone that has those for a good 20 years now and they look like new.
I don’t think a horse would kick thru those, but sure would hang a shoe there, as they may with V-woven mesh:

[twelvegates]

[QUOTE=Bluey;8397694]
These type pens is what some here are going to.

One cutting horse breeder told me that helped, no more chewed manes and tails thru pipe panels.

I know someone that has those for a good 20 years now and they look like new.
I don’t think a horse would kick thru those, but sure would hang a shoe there, as they may with V-woven mesh:[/QUOTE]

Thanks Bluey. Pictures always help my feeble mind!

[moving_to_dc]

You definitely need to talk to an EXPERIENCED welder before you purchase cattle-hog-sheep-horse-bull panels with the plan to weld them to regular old commercially produced pipe panels.

Most pipe panels out there are not thick enough to weld to. Oil pipe fences can definitely be welded without issue, but pipe panels just disintegrate at the welds.

I would suggest looking around in your area for oil pipe and someone to make oil pipe fences. They are extremely common all over TX - OK - KS - CO. We had oil pipe fenced paddocks attached to our barn in OKC. The paddocks survived a F5 tornado with winds at 320mph at our location… Weren’t even bent up. Every other building & fence was GONE. Oil pipe is kick ass stuff!

[twelvegates]

moving to dc – yes, I see that stuff on CL all the time!