My mother and I will be bringing horses home to our new property in the next few months. We have a nice small barn in the middle of one of the pastures, but I question how much those two stalls would be used. I figure for the mental and physical well being of the horses that they should be out as often as possible, but what are some people’s reasons for putting their horses in stalls? Do you keep your horses out 24/7 or are they stalled part time?
You put them in stalls for the following reasons:
Need to keep lots of horses on a small property with no pasture
Need to keep horse clean for a show
Need to keep horse locked up to treat an injury
Otherwise if you have pasture the best thing is 24/7 turnout with free access to a shelter.
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I figured as much. The barn I ride at keeps horses in sporadically throughout the day which I never really understood so I plan on just leaving mine out unless there is very inclimate weather, or for the above reasons.
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At big barns turnout schedules are influenced by
Staffing (need to bring them in and out when barn help is there)
Sharing turnout space
Feeding times
Use patterns, maybe lesson horses come back to their stalls or owners expect horse in stall not field when they arrive to ride
Vet farrier or other appointments
Weather
In other words a big barn is not set up to consider only the welfare of the horse.
Turning out 20 horses takes at least an hour as does turning them in and can be a bit dangerous. Usually you want it done during daylight hours. Its quite typical for the main barn help to turn in at the of their shift, say 4 pm in winter, and someone else do night checks and feeds hours later.
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I have 5 horses and they only come in for feedings or if vet/farrier is coming or something medical is going on. Even in bad weather, they have the option of two run in sheds and are blanketed when necessary. Very rarely is any horse stalled for longer than an hour.
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To add to scribblers list: not every barn out there has enough pasture to support the number of horses living there. Horses are hard on fields and will turn grass into dirt and mud pretty quickly. So often horses have limited turnout so they don’t trash the field. A sacrifice area is idea, but not always possible for every horse in a boarding environment.
There are also horses who cannot have free access to grass. These horses may be stalled if a dry lot isn’t available or muzzling isn’t an option.
A sacrifice area is very useful to prevent overgrazing, destruction of the field in wet conditions and for horses that cannot tolerate free access to grazing.
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Ideally I would keep my mare out 24/7 with access to a shelter so she can get away from the elements if needed.
Realistically, she is boarded at a big barn and gets as much turn out as possible during the day, but is stalled at night, for the reasons previously mentioned. She is lucky to have a big grassy paddock with a couple friends and a shelter.
Also, in the summer, her stall is cooler and provides a relief from the bugs (and the foot stomping that they create).
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I will also say your location will also dictate how much time a horse is “in”. Here, I have 2 stalls, 2 horses, 2 pastures…and a fantastic mud-free sacrifice area. My horses are out 24/7 with stall access at night and overhang/shelter access during the day and are quite frequently confined to the 60x80ish sacrifice area due to wet pastures, excessively windy weather or cold…or heat. I cannot allow horses out on my waterlogged pastures a few months of the year. You might consider that. Also, I confine horses to limit calorie intake or to monitor who is eating what.
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Yes the next thread you start OP should be about pasture management which is it’s own area of expertise! Depending on climate and size of your acreage and number of horses, you may need to rotate fields or keep the horses in a dry lot at certain times of the year.
That does not mean keeping them in a stall! It just means having a “sacrifice area” or a gravel pen or arena where they can live if they need to be off the grass for a while.
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As much turnout as possible–weather and health permitting makes sense. If you’re feeding grain, it might be worthwhile bringing them in for feeding–to ensure both horses are actually get the feed they’re supposed to get. When horses are fed in pastures, sometimes one horse will end up eating a decent share of the other’s feed! If they get used to coming in for feeding, catching them will also be quick as they’ll likely be waiting at the gate.
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One other factor to consider: if their nutritional needs are greatly different, you may need to separate them for feeding. A stall is a simple way to do that, but separate paddocks work, too.
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I keep mine in if I am hunting the next morning but mainly if it is raining. Helps keep the shoes on. We can be really wet and it affects their hooves.
I am really a proponent of turn out as much as possible and do a lot to make sure our pastures are not overloaded, that they are not overgrazed and stay thick with grass. My horses have an overhang over the stalls where they can get out of the rain or sun and I hand hay nets there when it is drizzling or if it is really hot. We have a fan with a timer there too and rubber mats for them. They can take shelter there. But I want them out, moving, grazing and don’t have too many horses for my pasture health.
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My gelding has been pasture boarded since I bought him in 2001. He spends a half hour or so in a stall eating grain and then heads back out. It’s been a very long time since he was in one overnight. He had a weird cut just above the coronary band that was healing okay, but we had a weather cycle that went mud, frozen mud, mud… BO suggested a stall overnight and he lost it totally. Screaming. Pounding on the door… Mixing the hay with the bedding. He was nuts. Put him in the indoor to run around. A foot occasionally hit the ground. .Back to the stall. The next time I opened the door he headed straight for the arena again. Everybody was shocked. He never acts like that. I put him back out with his blanket, his run in, the woodsy area and his buddies. He’s a horse, designed to live outside. .
They come in, get eyeballed and feet picked, and fed. Usually they get ridden. Sometimes they get fed again. Fly spray and back out again. Inside for six hours, outside for 18 hours. They are in the shade for the hottest part of the day. In winter, they are in during the warmest part of the day so you can unblanket if needed, and blanket again before they go back out. It’s usually cold enough when they are out that they can stay blanketed and clean all winter. Most of mine never get blanketed.
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I really think it depends on the horse.
My previous mare LOVED her stall for naps - she hated 24/7 turnout, I tried. HATED, she wanted her own sheltered space for a chunk of the day, even though she was basically raised in a 24/7 open paddock situation.
My current gelding LOVES 24/7 turnout with his own field, with a nice shelter he shares with one other horse. He really doesn’t like being in stalls although he was raised in one (12 hr stall, 12 hr turnout). He’s inside for inclement weather.
These two horses have really driven home that “one size does not fit all”.
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This is what I was going to say, as well. Know thy horses. Some horses don’t like living outside (ask me how I know!) or they don’t thrive on 24/7 turnout, or it’s a pain to manage, or all three issues…
It’s also a pain to ensure everyone gets the amount of feed they need because the dominant horses will drive the submissive ones away. I tried 24/7 turnout with my TBs—one hated it and lost weight, and I had to tie all three while they ate so that no food theft was occurring.
Oh, forgot to mention that a lot of horses will claim the run-in shed for themselves and keep the others out.
Totally agree with others about it depending on the animal. Some like 24hr turnout, some don’t.
I have my 4 ponies at home and they come in every night through the week. The issue I have is hay consumption. 2 of my large ponies are bigger (in the belly area) and my 2 mediums are young (3 and 4) and are on the skinnier side. I only have 1 sacrifice paddock and one grass paddock (winter and summer turnouts). So they are always turned out together. I can’t feed free choice hay as my larges would be even bigger! So I have to limit to a bale through the day and I know my medium ponies are much slower eaters and they like to play mid day so they miss out on some hay. They are usually eating from 5am-12pm. Then I give 4 more flakes around 5pm and then bring them into their stalls for evening feed at 8pm. In the summer they eat grass from 6am-8pm.
When they come into their stalls at night (8pm - 5am) they all get their grain and allotted hay. I can give my younger ones more hay and even second cut hay while I can limit my 2 larger older ponies hay, and make sure they don’t get second cut hay. This works best for me and my guys (though the large ponies may not think that!!).
In the summer my guys hate the bugs around dusk and run around like crazy if I don’t bring them in before the sun goes down. So I think they actually enjoy coming in to a cool barn with fans.
There’s nothing wrong with 24hr turnout though. If it works best for you and your horses, I say go for it!
I also secretly love mucking stalls…
I will add to the list - In for safe alone time with shelter.
Not all horses allow for easy access to shelter when in a herd situation so if you want your horse to have down time away from the over bearing lead mare then you have to put them in. In can be a smaller paddock attached to the stall, it does not necessarily mean being closed into a stall in the barn.
Like above, this horse taught me a lot about managing horses that if you read the “always” posts here you would never think about.
In other words, another case of knowing your horses and what they need.
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I built the World’s Fanciest Run-In for my 3. :rolleyes:
3-stall barn with Dutch doors at the back of stalls that open to the sacrifice paddock - barn forms one end of the sacrifice fenceline. Paddock opens to large & small pastures on either side.
Pastures can be closed off, but I leave them open.
Doors from stalls are open 24/7/365, horses come in & separate themselves into their stalls for feeding.
Rotten little mini finishes his grain in his stall, then goes in with the horse to share hay.
He has hay in his stall, but Sharing is Caring, he thinks. :yes:
Horse is a Saint. Has never - in their 3yrs together - done more than flatten his ears.
Like I said: Saint
Mini can also share a stall with the Hackney Pony, but NOT when food is present.
Sometimes I find all 3 in the same - 12X12 - stall.
They are stalled (separately) only when farrier or vet comes.
This is my 3rd set of geldings living this way in 15yrs.
YMMV, as you know - or will come to know - what works best for your horses.
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only reason to bring in…seperate feeding, suspicion of illness not eating drinking enough, injury. otherwise leave the doors open and let them go in and out.
