Monday, January 6, 2014

Horse-Keeping in Winter

‘I am thankful for a cozy barn.’ ~ Me

I am so thankful for a cozy barn, and could go on and on about how awesome this Monitor Barn is for keeping horses safe, dry, and happy, and copious hay storage.

I hear arguments and announcements from horsemen proclaiming that GOD made horses. I am good with that, what is not addressed is the verifiable fact that humans have diddled with horses for millenniums, at least 12,000 years, give or take a millennium or four.

Humans have been busy making them taller, thinner, faster, shorter, hairier, stronger, wider, fatter, calmer, patterned, etc., that we have to step in and help them with their shortcomings that we bred for.

Another argument is their feet. When humans invented fencing, all bets were off with their hoof maintenance. Horses no longer range twenty-five miles a day in search of secure grazing areas. Herds of horses aren’t chased over rocky terrain outrunning panthers.

Humans have messed with them so much we owe it to them to provide a safe, dry environment with ample food and water. There is no law that says you have to have a horse, but lots of regulations on how to care for them.*

Getting out of the wind is the most important, followed closely by dry footing. No one likes to stand in ankle-deep mud, right? A horse blanket can be a wonderful addition in combating horse health issues, like rain rot or respiratory ailments.
A good wind-break can be anything that blocks the prevailing wind. Unfortunately where we are the wind can and does come from every direction, just wait long enough. The run-in shed is a good start in protection, but it needs to be shared, and ONE can decide not to share. This caused a problem with KC’s feet, standing in the mud while looking into a dry run-in shed. He corrected that drawback with ‘cattle carpet,’ Geo-textile fabric with stone dust on top, and a gutter/downspout system.

The barn has five stalls, each are 12 x 12, and individually wired with a light and electrical outlet for fans or electric water buckets, a must-have in the winter around here. Just last night I emptied the water buckets of the solid block ice.

Three stalls have a ‘Dutch Door’ and an aisle sliding door. Two stalls have a sliding aisle door only. With the doors closed, not even a Mountain Lion could gain access to the horses. A while ago we accidently trapped a Red-Tailed Hawk in the barn.

The barn was placed fairly close to the house; if you have a choice make sure yours is close, too. Getting back and forth in bad weather makes it a chore and a hazard. We put Cattle Carpet under the barn, most of the ‘dry paddock,’ and all of the gates to keep the mud and erosion to a minimum. Highly recommend this application to alleviate getting yourself or equipment stuck in the mud.

Another brilliant idea is keeping grain in a chest freezer. We have a freezer, it does actually work, but hadn’t used it in years. It was drafted into granary storage service. This keeps mice and other vermin to a minimum and feed free of contaminants. We’ve shared this idea with others, and keep passing it along. Sometimes you can find a Craigslist ad for a non-working freezer for FREE. Gaskets are easily replaced from Sears or the internet.


*Regulations vary state-to-state.

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