Location, location, location

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1 Planning your new stabl Words and photos: MaryAnne Leighton Over the thousands of years that mankind has cared for its horses by housing them in stables we have offered them accommodation that has ranged from the palatial to the very basic. It is the dream of many of us to build the perfect stable but before you even think of picking up a hammer it is important to plan thoroughly and it is equally as important to ensure your design will provide a safe, comfortable environment that will result in healthy and happy horses. Location, location, location Your new stables should be located on a welldrained flat piece of ground, close to your water main and electricity supply, in an area that is easily accessible in all weathers and does not flood and where flies, smell and noise do not disturb your neighbours. Decide what features you cannot live without then draw or select a plan with those features in mind. When you estimate the number of stables you think you need add a couple extra because in a few years you will almost certainly find you have accumulated more horses. In the meantime the additional stables can be used for storage of hay or can be offered for agistment. Consider how big your feed and tack rooms should be and where to place them and think about whether you need to include an office, telephone or toilet. Plan the location of waterproof light fittings, switches and power points and place them up high and make allowances for all electrical cables to be enclosed in conduit. Identify where you need taps, inside and out, and decide whether to include automatic waterers; if so allow for the necessary plumbing. Allow for a drainage apron of at least one metre wide along the front of the stable; ensure that roofing, gutters and downpipes are adequate to conduct stormwater away from the building and grade around the stables to prevent water pooling during heavy rain. Take into consideration the size and location of the yards and paddocks that will surround your stables, as well as your access driveway, manure pile and a parking area for your truck or float. Design everything for ease of cleaning and minimum of upkeep. Landscaping around your new stables makes them appealing to you, the owners, as well as visitors and adds to the value of your property. Before committing to a plan for your new stables, check with your local council for planning requirements in your local government area which may vary widely from neighbouring areas. Some councils do not permit horses to be kept at all while others define how and where you can build your stables and may limit your choice of site, design, building materials, drainage and effluent disposal. The keeping of all horses is regulated by the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act of 1979.

2 es Size does count For comfort and safety, the length of your stable walls should be at least one and a half times the length of your horse. Stables should be a minimum of 3.7 M x 3.7 M, although 3.7 m x 4.9 m is better if your horse spends a long time stabled. There should be enough room for your horse to turn around, lie down and get up easily without becoming cast. Horses generally stretch out diagonally across the stable to urinate and mares particularly need enough room to do this without their urine splashing against the walls. Floors Floors should be constructed of an impervious material which slopes towards the door for drainage, has no low spots to collect urine and should be yielding to help prevent leg fatigue and swelling. The fitness of a horse s legs and feet can be greatly affected by the type of floor chosen. Crusher dust over a layer of gravel has been a popular flooring for many years but it can be difficult to keep clean, it retains damp and odour and often needs to be levelled and repacked due to horses habit of digging holes in it. A 100 mm concrete slab is long lasting and easy to clean but it can be slippery, is hard and cold and requires deep bedding to avoid its inhabitants knocking skin off their elbows and hocks when lying down and getting back up. Rubber mats reduce leg fatigue and bedding costs, make cleaning easier and are comfortable for horses to stand and lie on. Mats can be laid over almost any base except sand which encourages them to slide out of position. Walls Walls must be strong enough to withstand damage if a horse kicks them. The total height of walls should be a minimum 2.75 metres; they should be solid to 1.2 metres high and this lower section should be lined with ply or rubber to prevent injury to the horse and damage to the walls themselves. Concrete block walls should have a waterproof damp course incorporated into them and should be reinforced with vertical steel rods and the cores filled with concrete. Avoid cracks and crevices in walls that provide breeding placed for pests.

3 A steep-pitched roof is cooler in summer and cross-ventilation is aided by wide gaps under the eaves and at the top of walls Doors Doors must be at least 1.2 metres wide, preferably 1.6 metres wide, to reduce the risk of a horse banging a shoulder or hip when entering or leaving. Hinged doors should open outwards and should be securely latched when open to prevent them slamming shut and causing injury. Sliding doors are a safer option and take up less space but they need a secure stop to prevent them opening too far and falling off the overhead track. There should be no sharp points or protrusions on door frames and latches should be sturdy with no sharp edges and placed so horses cannot undo them. Roofs Roof pitch is important for ventilation and for dispelling heat. A high pitch is cooler in summer whereas a low pitch holds heat inside. In hot areas the roof should be insulated and every stable should have guttering, downpipes and water tanks installed. Ceilings Ideally ceilings should be a minimum of three metres high, higher if you want to incorporate ceiling fans. Low ceilings inhibit air flow and can pose a danger of a horse striking its head. Ventilation Good ventilation is a must but horses cannot handle cold, damp drafts. A 500 kg horse releases eight litres of moisture into the air each day through respiration so if you have four horses in your stables you must dispose of 32 litres of water vapour each day, in addition to the moisture created by the evaporation of urine and manure. If this damp air is not removed it will contribute to respiratory ailments and the growth of bacteria and fungi. Without adequate ventilation there is also an increased chance that horses will inhale dust particles, possibly leading to respiratory infection. Cross-ventilation in your stables should be provided by leaving a space between the walls and the roof, by incorporating two doors on opposite walls of each stable or by adding windows. Windows should be at least 300 cm x 300 cm and located 1.8 metres from the floor. They can be open or covered with wire mesh, bars or metal or timber louvres but they should not allow rain to enter the stable. Bedding A healthy 500 kg horse produces 15 kilos of manure and about eleven litres of urine each day and it all has to go somewhere. A wet, smelly stable is unsightly and is detrimental to a horse s hooves and respiratory health. Stables should be cleaned daily and fresh bedding replaced where necessary. After picking out all the manure systematically turn over the bedding, looking for wet spots indicated by the strong smell of ammonia and by the bedding material being a darker colour. Remove all wet bedding and, if you have dirt or crusher dust floors, rake the damp spot to ensure that all the bedding that has been pressed into the floor is taken up. Thoroughly air the stable, pile the clean bedding against the walls and leave the damp spots to air for as long as you can, leaving the stable door open to encourage air flow. Hydrated lime (not dehydrated or quick lime) sprinkled on damp spots absorbs moisture, inhibits bacterial growth and neutralises ammonia but take care when using it as the dust can severely irritate human and equine airways. When the stable has dried, rake the fines, the smaller bits of shavings or straw, onto the limed areas first as these small particles are more absorbent than larger particles of bedding and will soak up any remaining moisture. Pull the clean bedding from the walls and spread it throughout the stable, adding new bedding as required. Even better, teach your horse to urinate outside his stable before he comes in for the night. Let there be light Allow as much natural light as possible into your stables through windows, clear sheets on the roof and grilles or mesh on the front of stables. A 60 watt globe is the minimum needed to light a stable at night and fluorescent tubes give general lighting without shadows in alleyways and feed and tack rooms. Water & feeders Clean water must be available to your horses at all times to avoid the possibility of colic. Water Cross ventilation is provided by windows and a wide gap between the top of the walls and the roof

4 An accessible bedding pile and gutters and downpipes that connect to large water tanks containers should be placed in a corner of the stable away from the feed bin to avoid contamination from spilled feed; they should not tip over, should be free of sharp edges and be scrubbed regularly. Automatic waterers should be placed at a height of 1.07 metres from floor level. Feeders should be raised to about 1.07 metres and placed in a corner opposite the water container. They should be smooth and free from sharp edges and protrusions, should resist tipping over and be easy to clean. Uneaten feed should be removed regularly. Tack Room & alleyway The tack room often becomes the centre of activity so make it as big as you can. It should be big enough to allow you to store all your tack without cramming it together and you should allow extra room to accommodate additional purchases. Ensure your alleyway is wide enough to drive a vehicle through, minimum 2.4 metres. Pest Control Control of flies and rodents can be aided by the use of proper, vermin-proof feed storage bins, prompt removal of spilled feed, daily cleaning of stables and yards and the proper disposal of waste. Stable walls and floors should be constructed so there are no cracks or crevices which can provide breeding places for pests clean any cracks or crevices, fill them and seal them. It is better for your horses health and the environment to use non-chemical means of fly control with fly traps and bug eaters but sometimes it may be necessary to use fly baits and surface sprays. To protect your horses, yourself, your pets and the environment please take safety precautions when using chemicals. Read labels and store chemicals out of the reach of children and pets and away from feed. Our feathered friends are wonderful if they stay outside where they belong but many birds love nesting in stables. However, birds can bring salmonella in their droppings, and they and their nests are almost always infested with mites and other external parasites. Screen entryways with shade cloth or chicken mesh and make all horizontal surfaces too wide for birds to perch comfortably. Use smooth vertical steel rods rather than weldmesh as dividers between stables and eliminate ledges and nooks that are particu-

5 Landscaping improves the look of your stables and increases the value of your property larly appealing for nesting and perching. If you design these features into your stables you will avoid the necessity of having to constantly clean bird droppings off walls, floors, feed bins and the backs of your horses. Happy horses Stables are not meant to be places of solitary confinement for horses. Through ignorance or neglect the care and housing of horses is sometimes substandard and this has disastrous consequences for horses. Lack of attention to hygiene results in odour and the breeding of flies and rodents and can result in complaints by neighbours to your local council. All stables should have plenty of natural light and ventilation and the horses who live there should be able to see and communicate with each other. Horses are herd animals and should not be kept in a stable without the company of another living being, preferably another horse which they can see and touch. Historically, horses are plainsdwelling, flight animals who, when threatened, seek open spaces in order to feel safe they do not seek the protection of a forest or dense stand of trees. The stables of domesticated horses represent an unsafe forested environment and horses can experience real stress when forcibly confined to four walls and a roof. Some horses never feel comfortable in a stable and others develop stable vices due to both the stress of confinement and as a replacement activity for grazing. Horses in nature graze for sixteen or more hours a day, a far cry from the two or three meals a day they are offered in the confinement of a stable so to provide a more natural environment for stabled horses, allow them time each day to run and play and graze. Stables are hard to move if you make a mistake so get it right at the planning stage and you and your horses will enjoy the benefits of your dream stables for years to come.