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Checklist: Planning to Build Residential Horse Facilities

Are you ready to keep your horses at home?  Equestrians often discover the hard way just how arduous it can be.  Building successful residential horse facilities involves thoughtful consideration of many factors.  Financial stress may be one of them.  If finances are steady, then keep reading.

Ask Yourself a Few Things

First of all, ask yourself if you and your family are ready for more responsibility.  Do you have the time and motivation?  Who will care for your animals if you leave town?  Here are some of the regular tasks:

1. Exercising the horses
2. Feeding the horses
3. Mucking out the stalls and pastures
4. Maintaining the grounds
5. Fixing fences

Second, horse facilities take up space. Do you have the space?  In general, it takes about an acre of land per horse to do a good job.  Dedicated equine space should include:

1. Horse barn (preferred) or Run in shed
2. Turn out
3. Riding arena
4. Paddock

The third responsibility requires learning or knowledge.  Owners need an awareness to promote the health and well-being of their horses on a daily basis.  Professional handlers at boarding stables have a certain level of horse first aid training.

Equine first aid lessons are necessary.  Are you willing to kick your knowledge up a notch? Remember, it costs plenty to take the animals to the vet or bring a vet to your horses.

Horses can get themselves into trouble.  Maybe a horse runs into the fence or catches a virus.

1. Do you know how to stop bleeding?
2. Ready to soak a sore or infected hoof?
3. Could you administer a shot?
4. Do you know what to do if a horse chokes?

Still want to Bring the Horses Home?

After pondering the personal toughness required to board horses at home, you are ready.  Moving the dream and ardent desire to build horse facilities into reality will be fun.  Professional barn builders will provide the expertise to assist in many ways.

Some of the important conversations include site layout, horse barn design, and health.

1. Site layout:  Important factors help determine building orientation.  These include terrain, soil type, passive energy flow, etc.)
2. Horse barn design:  A functional Colorado barn makes it easier to manage horses.  Expect wide corridors, stalls, access points, tack room, feed storage, etc.
3. Health and ventilation:  Pole barn designs promote healthy ventilation.  They feature vaulted ceilings, wide spans, and insulation capabilities.

Barn Builders Central Colorado

We have the complete checklist for you.  Please contact Sapphire Construction, Inc. at (303) 619-7213 for information about building residential horse facilities. Electronic renditions assist in the design and pricing.