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Stall Door Placement and Design

Of course. But a private, home barn is likely to be utilized by the farm owner. I’m simply saying that it may be an unnecessary expense. That’s why I asked the OP why she wanted feed doors in the stall.

I much prefer stepping into the stall and placing hay/feed where I want it - not, for example, on a pile of manure, if there was one just below the feeding door. Or, I can slide the stall door open 8" and put 2 flakes of hay on the floor.

There are a lot of cool features that anyone could buy, but maybe not really all that awesome in practice. I had wall mounted feed troughs for about 3 days before I had them taken out. Somehow they managed to get pooped in and were a huge PITA to clean in comparison to feed pans. It seemed like a good idea at first. Maybe they were mounted too low, but in the end feed pans were much easier.

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Some low-budget options: Many stall fronts just have a small square opening to reach through and dump grain. No moving parts to worry about. Doesn’t work for hay, but it hasn’t been a big deal at the barns I know (except getting boarder to train the bargy horse to stand back when the door is opened!
It seemed the less expensive hinged doors sagged rather quickly and then didnt latch properly, so I would make sure any of those doors are sturdy with great hinges. In a barn with interior hinged stall doors on both sides, it was a hassle sometimes in a busy barn with several open doors, and the always seemed to open opposite the direction you were leading and not stay flat against the stall!
My current BO likes the horses to be able to stick their heads out so she took the sliding doors off and uses those metal yoke doors that she hung in the doorway to swing in. As a boarder, I dislike some of the horses threatening as you walk your horse by and some boarders don’t like their horses chewing on or removing whatever they reach outside the stall. May not be an issue in your private barn. BTW, my horse was unhappy with the open plan and had to have his sliding door re-installed!

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Those are very nice!

I don’t like the drop down doors, too dangerous as you say!!

I’m thinking of making a small portion of the stall fronts solid, maybe three ft in one corner. And having that solid section be the little feed doors. That way I can close it while horses eat and minimize food getting dribbled all down the stall fronts.

Random internet picture of the stalls with mesh. I think I would have the bottom half as wood all the way round though

Egads! Three injuries how very scary. So glad your horse wasn’t in those stalls.

I don’t personally care for sliders either. But for this little set up I think they are a more practical choice.

I love the Euro fronts too! Just as surely as I build stalls with low fronts I’ll end up with some sort of Houdini horse that needs a traditional box! Lol

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They have lovely products and aluminum is a great material.

Thanks for the info and review!

I have one horse currently. Max capacity of this barn will be three.

The feed doors are really for (1*) my peace of mind if someone else needs to feed the horses. And also possibly if I had some grouchy horse that wants to squish people at dinner time. I’d have corner feeders under the feed doors to use for those scenarios.

(2) I want something that allows me to control the horses’ ability to put their heads into the aisle. I want the option for the horse to put his head in the aisle AND I want the option to lock a horse in the stall with zero openings to get their head out.

I thought feed doors might solve 1 and 2.

If I’m building the stalls myself I think the extra costs will be worth the peace of mind and flexibility.

*eta additional info

I worked at a farm that had yoke doors and one horse pulled his head back in too quickly and whacked his head very hard. Very unpleasant. Perhaps that door was set too high or something but I’ve disliked that style since then.

Some horses are not good with the more open fronts, as you know from experience. I’d like to find an arrangement where I can have the option of letting a horse put his head out and also the option to shut that horse in. Make sense?

I’m thinking of doing that with the little feed doors. Another poster pointed out how they might interfere with a sliding door. I’ll have to think and plan carefully.

Too right you are about hardware! Not a good place to economize! I imagine that holds true for sliding and swinging doors!

My stall doors are mesh screens that swing INTO the stall not into the aisle. I’ve had this set up for 10 years and I love them. (See Lucas Equine Equipment–there are less expensive options.)

I had several long conversations when designing my barn with my vet and he hates sliding doors–says in his med/large practice he has to put down or recommend permanent retirement to about one horse a year who managed to lay down and get a foot under the sliding door. The damage comes when the horse is trying to get his foot back in the stall.

I have the doors set about 16" off the ground with a V for the neck. Anything that can get under them can get back into the stall while heads can come over the door but not too far out into the aisle. The best part is that if the horse is standing at the door they must move out of the way–something they learn very quickly. For alpha horses this is great because “he who moves his feet first in not dominant” and you get to remind them very subtly every time you walk in the stall who is in charge.

They are set in the center of the stall wall and can be folded back all the way against the interior wall. Exterior full wooden dutch doors are set directly opposite for outside access.

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Welp. That’s terrifying.

I rode at a barn built for racehorses that had similar in swing yolk gates. They also had Dutch doors over the gates. They worked well. The clearance over the gates was significant, no lintel. I could conceivably use a similar set up, but I would want the extra of the Dutch doors that could be shut to close up a stall if need be.

I’ve dealt with horses that are intent on trying to fling themselves over any opening they can get their head through. Certainly it’s not most horses, but I want to be prepared.

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Any time horses have a place to stick their head into the aisle, sooner or later they bang with their front legs, especially their knees and that is not good on them.
They tend to learn that when anxious about horses being moved or at meal times.
That pushing and banging on is especially hard if that opening is in a door.

Sticking heads in aisles has little benefit to the many disadvantages.
It makes for those beautiful pictures and owners happy to see their horse’s head sticking out, looking at them.
That is worth for many, but still maybe not for general horse management for most.

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This is why I need the option to control this feature. Many horses do better locked in. Otherwise they open doors, throw things on the floor, bang the door down, bite people in the aisle, they get nervous etc.

My current horse is a doll and can have his head out. He won’t even knock the fly spray bottle off his blanket bar. Always friendly etc. And he hates not being able to look in the aisle. So I want the option.

Oh, I do think most horses like to have that option.
I was just counting the possible management disadvantages.

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I hear you!

I can’t even imagine how that happens. My sliding doors go all the way to the floor. Don’t they in all barns? I mean, there must be a 1/4" or so clearance but that’s all.

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I totally had the same response to that comment! My sliding doors just barely skim the mats in the aisle–nothing is getting under there.

Maybe some barns don’t have the sliding doors installed correctly with the various pieces that prevent them from swinging out? So a horse is screwing around, swings the bottom of the door out, and gets a leg underneath? That would be ugly.

But shouldn’t the response be to install the right stuff to prevent the swing…?

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Ah yes, I can see how that would be bad. But they are pretty cheap! Like $10.

image

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As a boarder one of my favorite setups had sliding doors to the aisle with bars on top. For horses that would behave they would open the door and put a stall guard across. Those horses could stick their heads out and were cooler in the summer but they still could be easily closed in when needed. That BO only used the guards when a person was in the barn to avoid “Houdinis”.

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Right?! Don’t forget this piece (also cheap!)

image

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There are internet pictures from horses kicking the walls and getting feet stuck in all kinds of places.
Sliding doors are just less supported than hinged ones, but if hit right, a horse may just get it’s hoof hung any one place.
I have never heard of one hung on a swinging door, but it could happen.
I have also heard of it happen with sliding doors, but don’t know if the door was at fault or was not shut properly.

I have seen plenty of internet pictures just like this one, from stalls with low fronts or open windows for horses to stick heads out:

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VIP info. Thanks for sharing!