How to Make Toys for Horses

Like any animals, horses need mental stimulation to keep from being bored. Boredom in horses can be caused by long periods of confinement or being kept alone. It can also lead to bad habits such as cribbing or biting. But you can minimize the bad behavior and increase your horse's mental stimulation by providing him with a few easily made toys.

Things You'll Need

  • Exercise ball
  • 55-gallon plastic barrel
  • Plastic pickle bucket
  • Rope
  • Sweet feed or other horse treat
  • Small bucket with tight-fitting lid
  • Children's hopping ball
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Instructions

    • 1

      Toss the exercise ball into the pasture with your horse. These come large enough to attract a horse's attention and are sturdy enough that they are difficult to puncture. Your horse will enjoy kicking it around.

    • 2

      Make a noise-making toy by putting a pickle bucket down in a 55-gallon plastic drum and reattaching the lid tightly. As your horse kicks this, it will cause the pickle bucket to rattle inside the larger drum. Your horse will enjoy making the noise.

    • 3

      Tie a rope around the handle of a children's hopping ball. Then tie the handle to the door of your horse's stall. As your horse gets bored, he will play with the ball rather than cribbing the walls of the stall.

    • 4

      Make a food trap toy by taking a bucket with a tight-fitting lid. Poke a number of small holes in the bucket and fill it with sweet feed. Then reattach the lid tightly. Your horse will keep occupied battering the bucket around as he tries to get at the food that trickles out the holes.