“Horses move about very little in stalls regardless of size/type and horses”
I have 6 stall cams and have watched countless hours of horses in their stalls. Be it a 10X10 or a 14X14 they pretty much just stand the vast majority of the time. Eat some hay, get a drink, look out the window, stall door from time to time.
Current barn for 17.1+ horse is more like 9x12. It is the biggest drawback to this facility. But given the pluses in comparison to other places, it was worth a shot. Most have runs off their stalls, but my guy lost his run privileges early on by trying to kill himself, so he either is in the paddock or in the stall. He spends half the time looking out the Dutch door to his run. He chooses to sleep in the far back corner. He takes up less than half of the stall when he lays down, most of the time. He has also been fine laying out flat in small show portable stalls.
The stalls have open bar tops with good air flow and visibility and he much prefers that to the all boarded in with no back window 12x12 he used to live in.
If i had my own farm, I’d give him a double stall for the days weather keeps them in all day. I’d still expect him to sleep in the corner. But I can’t afford my own place, so this is the best option. Of several comparable facilities, this one has some of the better turn out options, so he’s not cooped up all that much in comparison.
Agreed with another poster. I have video on all my stalls. Horses do indeed do very little in a stall except turn around a few times, eat, poop, drink water. If the horse is outside year round 8 to 10 hours a day a 10 x 10 is perfectly absolutely fine.
My horse is in a barn where because it is an ancient repurposed cow barn, stall sizes are based upon the upright post (post and beam construction, with real wood pegs) placement The post placement was planned according to weight bearing principals for the hay loft. So some stalls are 10x11, some are 11x11. two are 11x15.
It turns out that the biggest horse is in an 11x 11, and smallest is in an 11x15. It just happened that those stalls were available when that horse moved in, and once settled n they are not moved.
I have in the past seen a 17.2 horse in an 8x12 stall.
All horses have enjoyed there accommodations.
But all horses have been out a minimum of 10 hours a day, longer when weather and time of year permitted.
What is the current set-up for the horse in the seller’s barn? What the horse is used to will make a big difference about whether he’s okay with a 10x10 stall.
You should also think about what differences there may in turnout, hay fed, grain, etc.
I didn’t have any links, until you asked, because it’s never been something my horses ever had to worry about. They have always either run in/out or had 12x12 or bigger; except the 13.3H Arab’s stall was 12 x 10.
since you asked, it made me curious. I found this link which by a barn builder so it is not a scientific study by a person with the appropriate degree(s).
http://equinefacilitydesign.com/faci…orse-stall.htm
This IPad won’t let me copy the article but it is short and easy to understand, The writer does give a sort of formula as to why a 12 x 12 stall is appropriate for an approximate 1,000 pound horse.
At the end of the article, the writer also states a smaller stall is perfectly fine, provided use is minimal, such as bringing the horse in to eat, turning it back out, and the horse is able to turn around.
Yet another shocking thread here on COTH. No, no it is not ok for a 17 hand horse to be in a 10x10 stall.
The goal of horse keeping should be doing what is in the horse’s best comfort and health. Anyone who finds this too “labor intensive” and “expensive” has no business owning a horse.
It depends on the individual horse. I have had some 17 hand horses do just fine and lay down in a 10x10 and others who won’t lay down and not be happy at all.
Well then I suppose the Queen of England has no business owning horses - many of the carriage horses at the Royal Mews are kept in gasp standing stalls, and she certainly isn’t hurting for money.
My old TB was 16.3hh , size 80 blanket and my stalls are only 8 x 11.5 . Was not an ideal size, but he layed down without issues, the front are completely open though and they mostly lived outside. Once during a very muddy season with one more horse than I was supposed to have at the time, and the paddock was so nasty the horses truly had to be inside overnight… I ended up having to split my mares 8 x 24 stall for that 16.3hh TB gelding and my younger 16hh 1300lb gelding. But the silly younger gelding kept breaking the divider, these horses were bff’s so I just removed the decided. Not something I would ever recommend, anyways I came in to find both geldings in one end of the stall, frequently with the younger one laying down ! I also temporarily boarded a 17.2hh Belgian mare, she laid down in the 8 x 11.5 stalls as well.
I really think turnout time and the openness of the stalls makes all the difference!
There are a lot of bonus’ to using standing stalls. But part of that horse -keeping equation is that horses are used or turned out at least half the day for exercise. We have mostly standing stall here. I consider them a training tool to get well mannered horses, along with being extremely economical in time cleaning and savings on bedding use, even deeply bedded. Horses here average 17h, wear 84 inch blankets, full bodied animals. Not drafts or draft cross bulky bodied They lay down easily every day.
I would not like keeping them in the 10 X 10 stalls and them moving, turning, chance of being cast laying down and rolling. Our box stalls are 12 X 12, which is very adequate room fo them. I absolutely would choose standing stall over the 10 X 10, with the same amount of turnout time available. Our horses are out every day in fields, along with getting used, as exercise. Out for 12 to 14 hours or more a day unless severly cold or sheet ice footing. .
This has already been pointed out, but the majority of major show grounds (for all disciplines) have 10x10 stalls.
Serious competition horses spend most of the year shuttling from show ground to show ground. Ideal? No. But some huge, incredibly valuable horses still thrive in competition despite of spending much of their time in 10x10 stalls.
I would be more concerned if the OP didn’t already emphasize that the horse would be turned out all day.
I would only ever put a pony in a 10x10 personally. Ours are all in 12x20 with individual paddocks when they’re not out in pasture- we have happier horses and it’s much easier to clean!
How high is the ceiling? Is it a converted dairy barn with low ceilings, or a more typical pole barn? If your horse cares about feeling boxed in, a small stall with low ceilings could be a problem if he needs to have the door closed for some reason (grumpy horse in crossties outside his stall, barn cleaning, whatever). If the ceilings are high and if he can have a stall guard or dutch door, I’d try it if everything else seemed ok.
It’s not really shocking Dressagelvr. A lot of posters keep their horses in situations were some of us wouldn’t. It’s common to point to someone (like the Queen) that does something, and then that makes it acceptable.
There were comments about horses just standing in their stall, so what difference does it make how small it is. Well, most often if you look out to horses in the field, they are just standing as well. It’s what they do a good percentage of time.
If you are going to keep a horse in a stall, even part of the time, that stall should be reasonable large, deeply bedded, and with at the least a window and preferably a dutch door.
I find all of this funny … most temporary stalls and stabling at shows are 10x10 and people never know the difference…
as someone who worked for a major barn building company, 10x10 is much, much more common than you think … next time, take a measuring tape to your horse’s current accommodations and see what the results are.
OP, I would say it depends.
In my opinion, 10x10 is not ideal but if everything else about the care is if really good, it might not be a deal breaker to me.
When I think all day turnout, I think a least 10 hours and up to 14. You may want to clarify what all-day turnout means to the barn that you’re looking at. Also, how often will you be riding/exercising him? If he’s turned out daily for 12 hours and ridden or otherwise worked another hour or so per day, it may very well be fine.
On the other hand, if he’s a nervous sort, a small stall may be stressful to him. Really, it’s probably going to depend on your horse’s energy level, personality, and the amount of time he’ll be out of his still.
We had all our horses in 10x10’s when in VA and they were tiny, but the horses were fine. If he gets good turnout, don’t worry about it unless he starts pacing or cribbing or something. I wouldn’t want my 17H horse in one this small, but that is for you to decide as I don’t think he will be suffering or anything.
This is an interesting topic. At the previous barn I boarded at, my horse would come in at night and had a 12x12 stall. Despite being a newer barn (not an old dairy barn or the like), the design of the barn and loft created aisles that were dark, closed-off feeling, and not as well ventilated as I would have liked. My horse was never really relaxed and would often circle in the stall. She had day turnout (7a to 4p) and was also ridden in the evenings.
I recently moved her to a new barn; brand new construction. She is in a side aisle with sky lights throughout the ceiling for a lot of natural light. There are windows across from each stall, it is very well ventilated, with tall vaulted ceilings. Open concept, bright and airy. The stalls are 10x10. And you know what? She is 100% calm, happy, and is actually laying down to rest each night. She has a slow feeder hay net in her stall with hay at all times. She is turned out 6a to sundown - in summer this will be 8p or 9p; and is also ridden in evenings.
Given my horse’s personality and clear preference, I would pick the second barn (where we are currently) if I had to make the decision all over again. I believe there is more to consider than strictly stall size; but also the barn construction and design, and overall atmosphere of the barn.
This all depends on your horse. You’re always going to find people who are jumping on one bandwagon or the other, but only YOU know YOUR horse (or you will, as it seems you just bought him - congrats!)
In my experience with my 16.3 draftx, he’s been miserable in a STUNNING barn with a 12x15 stall, and completely happy in a backyard barn with 10x10 stalls. The environment made more of a difference than the stall size to his poor little brain. It depends less on the size of the stall, and more on the management system at the barn and overall atmosphere and schedule. If your horse gets very little turnout, then personally I would prefer a bigger stall. If they get regular turnout and excellent care, then he should do just fine. When you visit the barn, take a look around. How many horses look unhappy or stressed, inside or out?
Do what’s best for you and your horse, and if you move in and your horse is unhappy, then you learned something and can make a change.
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