Building or Renovating a Small Barn for Your Horse by Jackie Clay

Author:Jackie Clay
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC
Published: 1999-03-25T16:00:00+00:00

Hay, Bedding, and Feed Storage

While planning the layout of your barn, you need to consider just where your hay/straw, bedding, and grain will be stored. While in some drier climates it’s possible to store hay bales outdoors, this practice is wasteful. Not only will some moisture find its way into and between the bales, causing probable mold and spoilage, but even minute condensation can create dusty, moldy hay as well. This mold and dust can cause many health problems in horses, frequently colic and heaves, an asthmalike condition. And no, covering the hay with plastic tarps won’t protect it from condensation, even though rain and snow may not penetrate. Fresh hay gives off some heat and moisture, and when it’s tightly covered and standing out in the sun, plastic tarps cause it to sweat. This moisture appears all through the hay and will soon produce that dusty, moldy, musty smell.

Having a two-story barn is the ideal situation, but if the structure you’re working with doesn’t lend itself to this, simply add another box stall specifically for hay and straw, shavings, and grain is as easy solution. If you need more space than this, you can add a “back porch” or shed room off its side, which can double your storage capability quite inexpensively. A simple addition can be made by extending the sloping roof down to a convenient height—6 feet (1.8 m) or so—and walling in from there.

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