Wait - are we PADLOCKING stalls now?!

[Amber_M]

I’ve been riding for 22 years and have stabled at just about every kind of barn. Giant ones in CA. Tiny ones in someone’s backyard.

I just moved my horse to a new facility and walking the rows, no less than 10 horses are 100% locked in their stalls. This scared the absolute sh!t out of me for several reasons… 1 - Southern California loves to catch on fire and 2- did I really move somewhere that horse theft is an actual issue?!

Some are straight up Masterlock padlocks, some are bike chains, but I’ve never seen anything like it before.

[alibi_18]

Move out.
This is not normal.

How come you hadn’t seen this? You hadn’t visit?

[GoodTimes]

During the California wildfires last year it was reported that at one barn that burned the horses were padlocked in their stalls so they couldn’t get them out in time.

I would never lock a horse in a stall. I’d question the BO/BM and see what’s up.

[Simkie]

Very well could be non paying boarder and they’re working through it. Were they all owned by the same person?

That’s pretty much the only time I’ve seen horses padlocked in–when they’re being held against a large outstanding board bill.

[BigMama1]

That’s crazy and definitely worth questioning. I’ve only seen padlocks out on tack
stalls in cases where the boarders haventnpaid their bills. But never on a horse stall. That’s ridiculously unsafe.

[Macimage]

[edit to remove bad link mistakenly taking us to eBay shoes!]

[Amber_M]

@alibi_18

Move out.
This is not normal.

How come you hadn’t seen this? You hadn’t visit?

This is a 150 stall barn. I only noticed because I was hand walking my horse for about an hour yesterday and was poking around bored. It’s definitely not the norm.

I met one of the women with bike locks, and she seemed totally normal and was lunging her horses last night. Granted, they’ve got signs up re: allergies and only being fed very specific diets. I’m wondering if this is a “nobody takes my horse out but me” thing?

Edit - I’m remembering that there is another very nice Arab gelding (stallion maybe? Couldn’t tell) that was padlocked, his owner has been out there twice since I’ve gotten there. I don’t think they’re locking horses away from their owners for board issues.

[Milocalwinnings]

I would for sure be asking the BO what the deal is.

[Raincityrider]

In decades of boarding across multiple states and in different “levels” of facilities I have never seen horses locked in stalls. Even in areas where horse theft was a problem it wasn’t the norm. The single exception was a boarder who had a reputation for getting quite behind on board, working out a payment plan and promptly moving the horse under cover of darkness. The horse was locked in the stall when not handled. For those of you who fear the worst, the owner relinquished the horse to the stable after a week or two and in the end he was sold to another boarder, received a huge upgrade and lived happily ever after. Sometimes dreams do come true. :winkgrin: Horses locked in stalls would scare the bajabbers out of me. Fire, cast, colic, flood, injury… any manner of calamity I would rather allow access than count on my ability to be there.

[Salty]

I would move. They used to padlock the stalls at the fairgrounds near here. Had a barn fire, & all the horses died. Horrific.

[alibi_18]

@Amber_M

This is a 150 stall barn. I only noticed because I was hand walking my horse for about an hour yesterday and was poking around bored. It’s definitely not the norm.

I met one of the women with bike locks, and she seemed totally normal and was lunging her horses last night. Granted, they’ve got signs up re: allergies and only being fed very specific diets. I’m wondering if this is a “nobody takes my horse out but me” thing?

Edit - I’m remembering that there is another very nice Arab gelding (stallion maybe? Couldn’t tell) that was padlocked, his owner has been out there twice since I’ve gotten there. I don’t think they’re locking horses away from their owners for board issues.

If it’s at owner’s discretion… then there is not much you can do.
If people are so afraid that someone would take their horse… I’d want to know how often it happened…(someone unauthorized taking someone’s horse)

If it’s some boarding practices by the BO…then I would really question my stay there.

I « understand » the unpaying boarders thing, but I don’t. This is just ridiculously dangerous.

Ask BO/BM and other horses owners.

I would, to make me (and my horse) feel safer.

[Amber_M]

I’m heading back over in about an hour to do another round of eyedrops on my mare, and if the office is open I’ll let you guys know alllllll the details

My money is on there being some opinion that these horses are far too valuable to leave “out in the open”, as they all seemed to be on the more high-maitenence side, if that makes sense?

I also will be asking where they keep the bolt cutters.

[alibi_18]

@Amber_M

I’m heading back over in about an hour to do another round of eyedrops on my mare, and if the office is open I’ll let you guys know alllllll the details

My money is on there being some opinion that these horses are far too valuable to leave “out in the open”, as they all seemed to be on the more high-maitenence side, if that makes sense?

I also will be asking where they keep the bolt cutters.

ahahah, but then you will sound like a horse thief!

[Amber_M]

@alibi_18

ahahah, but then you will sound like a horse thief!

LOL! I’ve only been here since Friday night and already my horse got shaving in her eye and needed a vet out, then last night while I was out there late applying said eyedrops the horse next to me goes from (seemingly) sleeping to total thrash colic. She was a mounted patrol police horse, thankfully her owner had all of her info on the stall and she gave me permission to hand walk until she got there.

I don’t EVER want to handle someone else’s horse, especially if they really want their horse to never leave it’s stall. BUT - if it’s a life or death deal, I think some rules go out the window. I’m a former FEI dressage groom that had to handle stallions and just about the most nasty performance horses ever. There isn’t much that an animal can do to scare me off of trying to save it. So if the barn is burning down, and I know where bolt cutters are, I’m cutting it out. You can worry about suing me when the fire is out.

[DarkBayUnicorn]

@Amber_M

You can worry about suing me when the fire is out.

^^ YUP.

[OverandOnward]

If the owners who are padlocking their horses in their stalls think that is the only way to keep unauthorized persons from handling them … is there a problem that could affect your horse, as well?

Personally, if I thought that might be a problem, I’d move before I resorted to locking a horse in a stall.

What do the owners think will happen in case of fire, or severe colic, or copious bleeding, or any type of emergency? It would be interesting to hear what they have to say. There is no planning when an emergency will occur, that’s what makes it an ‘emergency’.

Plus, if the locks are not standard (bicycle lock here, master combination lock there), that indicates that barn management probably does not have a way to open the locks. If they do have keys and/or codes, in an urgent situation it is not going to be quick or easy to find and use them all. Why would anyone put their horse of any value, but especially high-maintenance, at so much risk?

[retiredhorse]

I’ve seen empty stalls padlocked, but not ones with horses in them :eek:(especially in fire prone areas).

I think a real horse thief would have their own bolt cutters! :lol:

[Chall]

I’ve seen it when boarder owed over a month’s rent.
And the BO turned out horses whose owners didn’t visit. (Turned out= free time in the arena).

[Sansena]

Sorry. No reason in the world would have me staying at a barn where horses are padlocked into their stalls.

If it’s the owners who hold this opinion, it speaks to a level of ignorance & crazy that will end in unnecessary drama.
If it’s there’s someone who randomly appears and rides horses without owner’s permission, I’m out.
If there’s a history of horse theft… ? duh.
If they’re afraid the horses will break out… again… duh… there’s escape proof hardware that does not require a padlock.
If there’s an unpaid board bill… you double lock the GATES and put up cameras and motion lights, not just slap a padlock on stall doors. Oh, and you might hire night security or sleep in the barn if it’s that important to you. (I can hear the screaming protests now)

I don’t care what the rationale is. This is unacceptable, dangerous, speaks to crazy/ paranoid/ ignorant/ lazy thinking. Period. No explanations or excuses. Full stop. Get.OUT.

[Nezzy]

I don’t like that one bit. i don’t understand why anyone would allow such a thing…