How to Keep a Horse Contained

Keeping a Horse In a Pasture

• 1

  Keeping a horse in pasture is healthier for the horse than being confined to a stall, but keeping him inside the pasture is important for his safety! Your first step is to make sure you have a secure fence. The fence should be tight and high enough to keep your horse in (a minimum of four to five feet for average sized horses). The posts should be set in the ground and not lose.

• 2

  If you find weak spots in the fence, fix them immediately. Avoid using barbed wire for fencing as it can cut your horse and inflict severe injuries.

• 3

  Make sure the pasture has enough space for the horses you put in it. If the pasture is too crowded, horses may fight and break through or jump the fence in an attempt to get away from each other.

• 4

  Make sure the horses in the pasture get along. A very dominant horse may pick on a more submissive horse until he jumps the fence or runs through it.

• 5

  Make sure your horse has companionship. Horses are herd animals and do best when they have a buddy. A lonely horse may escape in search of companionship.

• 6

  Provide your horse with plenty of food and water. Hungry and thirsty horses may escape to look for food and water.

• 7

  Make sure nothing is scaring your horse. Roaming dog packs, other predators, mean children or adults or other scary or intimidating sights may cause your horse to flee and escape.

• 8

  If you've done all of the above and you still can't keep your horse in, you may need a higher fence or you may want to add a few strands of electric fence inside your fence line to keep your horse away from the fence.

• 9

  Check your fence lines every few weeks to insure that they are in good repair. Fix any problems as soon as you spot them.

Keeping a Horse in a Stall

• 10

  Sometimes its necessary to keep horses in stalls, but some horses get bored and become stall escape artists. To begin, make sure your horse isn't kept in alone. Keep other horses in where he can see, smell and hear them. This gives him companionship and helps alleviate boredom.

• 11

  Check the barn out to make sure there's nothing frightening him such as a mean or dominant horse next to him, dogs running through the barn aisle or other predators.

• 12

  Check the stall out to make sure there is nothing causing him pain - nails sticking out, sharp points on his feeder, etc.

• 13

  Make sure he has plenty of hay to give him something to do during the day. Horses are made to eat throughout the day.

• 14

  Make sure he gets out of his stall daily for exercise. If he's inside on stall rest because of an injury, provide him with "stall toys" to keep him busy.

• 15

  If he has a half door, put a stall guard up or bars up over the open half of the door so he can't stick his head out and unlatch the door.

• 16

  Always make sure the door is latched properly. If its let loose, he may be able to jiggle the latch by pushing on the door and get it open.

• 17

  If your horse still gets out, change the type of latch on the door to see if you can find one he cannot open.

• 18

  Add a clip to the door latch to make it more difficult to open.

• 19

  Move your horse to a stall with a window where he can see out or a stall with a run so he can get outside.