How to Lay Out Horse Pens

If you plan to keep one or more horses at your home, it is important to lay out horse pens the right way. There are a number of factors to consider when laying out pens on your property, including the number of horses you own or board, the personalities of those horses and their need for shelter. By taking all of these factors into account, you will be able to provide a safe and comfortable home for the horses in your care.

Instructions

    • 1

      Determine how many horses you plan to keep on your property. If you will be keeping multiple horses, it is a good idea to plan for several separate turnout locations.

    • 2

      Make sure each turnout area is large enough. Each turnout area you create should be at least 100 feet long by 75 feet wide, especially if you plan to keep more than one horse in that area. If more than two horses will be housed in a single pen, double that size. A group of horses will quickly develop a pecking order, and it is important that the submissive horses are able to get away from the dominant ones.

    • 3

      Make sure each turnout area has some sort of shelter. Whether that shelter is a lean-to, a run-in shed or a barn, it is important that each horse can get out of the weather when necessary.

    • 4

      Be sure each turnout area has some sort of shade. The shade can be inside the run-in shed or under a tree, but it is important that each horse be able to get out of the direct sunlight when necessary.

    • 5

      Consider attaching each horse pen to a stall in a multi-stall barn. This will make it easier for you to turn the horses out each day. With this type of design you can simply open the stall door and allow each horse to go in and out at its leisure. If it is not possible to attach the pen directly to the stall, you will need to make sure each pen has its own feed bins and water buckets. To make it easier, you can choose feed bins that attach to fence posts and use bucket hangers to hold the water buckets.

    • 6

      Don't turn out stallions in a pasture adjacent to one containing mares. If your facility does house a stallion, you may want to leave an empty pasture or horse run between the stallion and the rest of your herd.