I really blew it this time, too fussy for my own g

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Marty

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I'm tatteling on myself. Most everyone knows that Jerry only has some Saturdays and Sunday to work on the new barn so his time is very precious. We went way off schedule too because there were weekends that all it did was rain, or snow so of course we are very behind.

So here we are down to the end getting ready to order materials to build the stalls and because of ME, we stopped construction. We have just lost two precious days of building because I cannot make up my mind.

I wanted to be the boss, so now I'm the boss and I don't have any answers.

We cannot agree on what to use for stall dividers.

We have gone back and forth now for months changing MY mind.

We have discussed steel bars of various widths and lengths. We are set up here in Jerry's shop to build and weld them any way I want.

J: So how about vertical steel bars?

M: No I don't want vertical bars, because then it makes me think that my horses are jailed.

J: I can make them horizontal then

M: No, I don't want horizontal bars, because I don't know why. I just don't like bars of any kind now.

J: How about the steel?

M: Nope, I decided I don't like steel anymore either.

Enter the wood.

M: Nope, no pine, they'll eat it. Nope, don't want drywall beading around the top either. Forget the pine.

J: Let's talk about oak planks. They won't eat it.

M: Yes they will.

J: No they won't.

M: Let's put them horizontally. Horizontally is cute.

J: No, vertically.

M: Wood is treated with arsnic.

J: No it's not anymore, they passed a law.

M: Yes it is. Show me the law. What is it treated with now then?

J: I don't know.

J: How tall should they walls be?

M 34".

J: Too short.

M: No.

J: 40"

M: No.

M: I want them to be able to get their heads over to touch eachother. They want to touch.

J: No, you don't. They'll bother eachother all the time.

M: So.....? There's no difference since they touch eachother out in the field every day, right?

M: Ok, so just forget the oak wood planks then.

J: Ok so let's talk about solid walls of plywood.

M: Let's not.

J: Thought you didn't want Holly to foal in the old barn

M: I don't

J: So why can't you make up your mind?

M: Sleep deprevation I guess

J: When you make up your mind what you want and how you want it let me know next weekend. You blew this one Honey. I'm going to the races.

M: I'm going to die.

J: Don't give me that face

M: It's the only one I got

J: Aint' working bye bye
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M:
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J:
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M: Holly's going to have a foal in that nasty old barn and they aren't going to like you!

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Marty, Marty, Marty!!

Oak planks--the ones we buy here, aren't treated with anything, they're just oak planks. Our stall dividers are spruce lumber--ordinary spruce 2x6's for most, the one big box stall is done in rough cut spruce lumber, which is a bit thicker--that stall was set up for a Thoroughbred stallion, so it's built strong. The lumber is not treated; the barn is close to 30 years old and the stall dividers are still as strong as ever--no problem with rotting.

Good choice to not have bars--little feet slide through bars & can get stuck, or stepped on by the horse in the next stall.....how about wooden stall dividers at just the right height that the horses can see over them to see each other, but high enough that they cannot fasten their teeth onto the top edge to chew on the boards? The dividers then will probably be too high for them to actually touch, or scratch with, each other, but does that really matter? They will be happy as long as they can see the other horses--after all, they'll be outside for part of the day & can visit & scratch with each other out there.

Your foaling stall needs to be high enough to give Holly some privacy when she has her new baby. Our mares don't like the other horses being too close when their babies are quite new--if our mares were in stalls where the other horses could reach over, they'd be quite upset, and would be constantly herding the new baby away from the other horse--sometimes they really get pushing baby around, and I'm afraid the baby will end up being stepped on, or knocked over--I like our mares to be on their own, in a safe, quiet place where they don't even think they are being threatened. A stall with low walls simply wouldn't work for this.
 
At a mini trainer's barn I visited, the stall dividers were horizontal wood planks, but it was neat because you could slide them in and out as needed, so you could make the wall between two stalls as low or as high as you wanted, and change it at any time by just adding or removing a plank.
 
Your foaling stall needs to be high enough to give Holly some privacy when she has her new baby. Our mares don't like the other horses being too close when their babies are quite new
We solved this with what was supposed to be a temporary solution but it's worked well enough that I left it up. Our foaling stalls are long runs, partially under cover. I hung a large tarp over the divider in the stall portion of the run and stapled it to the wood. It gives them complete privacy in a good sized stall, but if I'm so inclined I can take it down once baby is settled in and mom has relaxed. And surprisingly, no one has tried to chew on it or pull it down.

Jan
 
barnbum said:
Put all tolerable options on 3x5 cards.  Run upstairs and throw them out the window.  The ones that land face up, run 'em upstairs again and continue until you have one last card, then do it.
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Kim said:
At a mini trainer's barn I visited, the stall dividers were horizontal wood planks, but it was neat because you could slide them in and out as needed, so you could make the wall between two stalls as low or as high as you wanted, and change it at any time by just adding or removing a plank.
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this is what my barn is like,

the horses that aren't nice to others have very hight walls,

the nice ones have walls to their withers,

& our big horses have it so that the wall goes to their chest & then bars going vertical(sp) up to the roof, so that they can see but not touch

& if a mare goes in foal, we just take out one wall, & then she has lots of space!

all oak wood, & it works great, i can get some pictures if you want
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Oh Marty I know exactly what you are going through. We are having a hard time on the doors(thanks to a recent post I have finally decided on my doors). I hope you are able to make a decision that you are sure of soon.

In our stalls we used the oak boards and then we are putting black bars at the top so the horses will be able to see each other.
 
I know this post sounds like I am being terrible but I don't want to make a mistake that my horse's will end up paying for. I have waited for a new barn all my life and this one is the last one, and forever. Once it's done, Jerry will not go back and re-do a thing, so a bad decision on my part is not an option.

Jerry doesn't care what he has to build. It's all the same to him and as far as cost is concerend it's all in the same ball park. All materials are easily optainable as well.

The idea of the foaling stall with higher sides Minimor was also a debate and now that you for bringing that up too. Those stalls will be bigger and sides will be higher and also Jerry did want to make the channels for removable planks too.

As far as Sonny and Nick's stall, they are both going to be different and solid and higher too. Well Sonny's..... will probably have the security of Fort Knox.
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Those 3 X 5 cards though are getting rather tempting.
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Marty,

In the barn that we built ourselves we used horizontal wood planks in channels. Then we put metal grills on top so the horses could see out. The grills are criss-cross so you don't HAVE to make up your mind over horizonatal or vertical!
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Also the sides of the foaling stalls should be a little higher that the others because some mares want their privacey. We have one mare who wants to KILL any horse who she can see stalled next door whenever she has just had a baby.

Just some thoughts.

MA
 
Marty,

Everyone has given you some nice ideas here. I going to add one more. I have oak stalls that are solid but the boards in every other stall wall can be removed.

If I ever want a full size horse or a larger stall for a mare that is ready to foal, all I have to do is remove the pins from the top board and the other ones come out.

I have never actually needed to remove them yet but I have the option. I have had not problem with the oak stalls. We even put a clear coat of weatherproof stuff on the stalls (doesn't harm the horses).

Hope you make a decision soon for your own sake, Jerry's, and your mare.

Good luck,

Freida
 
My walls are 40". They do not need to touch each other after bedtime. Holly will bite someone for reaching over to see the baby. Wood walls are cool and comfie and safe. You can always put a 2'x2' window in a wall so they can see each other just put the hardware cloth over it and frame. I like swinging doors. Opening out. C'mon Marty, I'm with Jerry on this one...."git er dun!!!!" I just took bars out of my barn. Hate em.
 
Marty,

My photo isn't the best because it was taken a couple of years ago at the barn we built. We've since moved, so I can't run out and take pictures, unfortunately.

Hopefully you can see the boarded sides to the stall and the metal channels. Behind the mare is the grill I posted about before. All they are - are metal goat or hog panels cut to fit and either drilled or welded into a channel that sits on the top divider board/plank. There is also a metal channel on the top of the metal grill which is easier to view in the photo, I think. Jerry might be able to figure it out

We made our sliding stall doors the same way.

Our stalls were still going strong after 15 years and we even housed some full sized horses in them. Each stall measured 12 x 12.

MA

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Mounting "u" channels vertically, then "dropping" planks into them, so that one or all could be easily removed(to either completely remove a wall, or adjust the height, is an idea that has been around for awhile, and can work well; however, IF you want to mount some sort of metal grillwork/mesh, etc., above it, that might negate the benefits of building your stall dividing walls that way.

I'd go with some sort of solid planks-oak shouldn't HAVE to be treated in any way-and, if the planks sit right on top of each other, there shouldn't be a "chewing" issue! I would make the walls at LEAST 40" high, even 48"-and yes, make the one(s)between the foaling stall and any other stall high enough that they CAN'T see each other, for all the reasons already mentioned! I had an old friend who was also a vet of years' experience tell me once that it was best that that stall walls WEREN'T too snug(when I was bemoaning the fact that the rough lumber planks (all a full 2", and widths from about 8-10"), that my stalls are made of-each is BOLTED through a couple of pipe uprights, making it possible to remove/replace any/all easily-had shrunk as they aged, making some small-1/2" or so-spaces between them)-because the ventilation was much better(mine is a fully insulated metal building, and pretty snug!). These little spaces allow the horses to "peek" through and be able to tell there indeed a neighbor next door, and so have actually been a benefit in that respect(my stalls were built BEFORE I had minis, so were built for full-sized, at @ 12'x 12'.) If using the "u"channels and dropping planks in horizontally, you might consider inserting some sort of 'spacer' at about "peek through"height for the horses to allow them to be able to see through-it is possible to have such a small space without it increasing their potential to be able to get ahold of the edge of the wood to chew, if you are careful.

I would definitely recommend sliding stall doors-nothing to project out into the aisle/into the stall, ever! You could build them with plywood below, a grill above, if you want them to see through the door. When I began keeping only minis in the barn, I simply removed a plank from the front wall, allowing me to see "in" easily, and them to see "out"-yes, I did have to put metal edging along the other plank, to prevent chewing, when I did that-but it was a simple task(my lumber is just pine.)Using "u" channels, you could easily make the stall fronts-that is, the walls fronting on the aisle), a bit lower, so they can see what is going on in the barn, and across the aisle, more easily-and you can see them, same way!

Sorry, I have no photos(and have NO idea how to post one here, even if I did, unfortunately!) Good luck, and keep us posted!
 
when we first did our stalls we used wood. Ughhh it was horrible. They were chewing etc. Also for the foaling stall i always pressure wash it after every foaling to remove bacteria and thats hard to do on wood.

My hubby is a manager for a building supply company. He brought home that wall board that is made for commercial bathrooms. Its got a slight ribbed texture on it. We redid all the stalls and wow. They dont chew on it or even look at it. And the best thing is its so easy to clean. NOTHING sticks to it. Its made for easy clean up in resturant bathrooms etc. Doesnt look fancy but we love it.

We also totally enclosed the foaling stall. We found the first couple days that mares really want their privacy and dont want other horses looking at their foal.
 

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