Boarding Stables

The first thing to consider with Horse Boarding would be, when choosing a Boarding Stable is this one the best for my horse first then I second. Does your horse need special attention, is he ok with other horses, or does he need to be kept by himself? He may be the king of the hill now but when he gets moved to another stable he may become the bottom of the totem pole.

What kind of feed and hay have you been feeding him? Is that the kind they feed at the stable you are looking at? Do you have all your shots up to date? Do you have a negative coggins?

These are just some of the questions you need to ask yourself when you are looking at a new Boarding Stable.

First Impressions and Quality of the Stable

When I go to a new facility the first thing I generally look at myself is the horses that are already there, are they healthy and content, how long they have been there? Look at the Pastures, are they on high land, when it rains for several days will the horses be in a swamp? Do the pastures have good grass growing and what kind is it?  Are the pastures big enough to handle more horses than what are actually on them? Check out the feed room is it clean? Do the pastures have adequate water troughs’ for the horses? What is their feeding schedule?

Hygiene

Check out the barn; is it clean, rat free, no feed bags piled up? Look at the feed and water troughs are they clean, do they clean them on a regular basic? Ask the question about how the horses are fed; do they all get feed out of their own buckets? Are the stalls neat and clean, do they clean them every day, do they smell fresh, not more like manure or ammonia.

Safety

Take a look at all the fencing, is all the fence put together well? Are the buildings and stalls all free of safety hazards? Do they have fire extinguishers on hand in all the areas, are there first aid kits available for people as well as for the horses? How are they setup to handle an emergency, can they?

Services available

Most Horse Boarding Facilities will have extra service available to you if you need them, the list would include shelter or stall boarding, deworming every sixty days usually mandatory, and a tack room usually with private lockers for personal tack. Other service available would most likely include blanketing, local hauling and scheduled routine care such as Blacksmith visits, Veterinarian visits and Immunization Schedules, some of these services could extend beyond your regular monthly services.

Available areas

If you want to be able to ride were you board your horse then most likely you would be looking for a Riding Stable as well as a Boarding Stable, would you like them to have a horse riding arena, do you want to go horseback riding at the facility.

Make sure it’s right for you

After you have checked out everything listed above then consider the prices and read the contract, make sure you understand all the items listed, ask for references and then make a fair decision about moving your Horse there.