Healthy Habitats for Your Horse

There are many benefits to keeping horses on your own property, but there are also responsibilities, and one of the biggest is barn maintenance. Whether your barn is old or new, there are products on the market that can help ease the burden.
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There are many benefits to keeping horses on your own property, but there are also responsibilities, and one of the biggest is barn maintenance. Whether your barn is old or new, there are products on the market that can help ease the burden. And if your barn is too old to cut it, there are ways to augment what you have or replace it.

Stalls

Stall flooring is a big maintenance issue, particularly if the floor is made of dirt. "Many horses paw and pace in their stalls, which can cause uneven areas in the flooring," says Alejandra Abella, project director for Equestrian Services, LLC, a consulting, planning, and design firm specializing in equestrian facilities and amenities that’s based in Charlottesville, Va., and Silver Spring, Md. "This can lead to leg fatigue and injury. Rubber mats are a good choice and can help prevent holes and uneven surfaces."

Mats have come a long way since the days of reusing old escalator and conveyor belting. The pioneering thick black stall mats cut down on the abuse to dirt floors, but they were a chore to lift, tended to move out of position, and didn’t allow urine to drain. Stall Skins do everything that those old heavy mats do, yet they are lighter (about 12 pounds) and made of polypropylene, a permeable material that allows urine to drain through to keep bedding drier

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Written by:

Sharon Biggs Waller is a freelance writer for equine ­science and human interest publications. Her work has appeared in several publications and on several websites, and she is a classical dressage instructor.

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