Horse Stall Essentials

Folks across Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio know the most important thing you need to get is a proper horse stall for your horses to rest in. Your horses will spend the majority of their time in the barn, so it’s important to ensure they’re comfortable. At Raber Storage Barns, we build high-quality horse barns that Midwestern equestrians can trust to house their horses safely. Our horse barns offer many add-ons and features you can add to make them more functional. Here are some of the essential items you need for your horse stalls. 

Structure Essentials 

First and foremost, your horse barn structure must be properly built to keep your horses safe while resting. Raber Storage Barns is dedicated to building a horse barn with high durability, expert protection for your horses, and will operate to your exact needs. Below are some essential structural features your horse barn should have that our team can include in your custom horse barn project. 

Lighting

Proper lighting is another important feature you need to consider for your horse barn to promote safety. The first way to add lighting is to maximize natural light in the space, whether with windows or skylights. Then you can add standard electric lighting so you can see at night, increasing safety for both you and your horses. We recommend having a light in each stall, in the tack room, and in the center aisle if you’re building one of our Monitor or Heritage barns. These barns can also provide extra natural lighting when the doors are open. For more information, check out our Horse Barn Lighting Options blog. 

Ventilation

Horses are prone to respiratory issues, so they need to have fresh air at all times. Having proper ventilation in your horse barn will increase fresh air in the stalls. Ventilation will reduce ammonia buildup in the barn so the horses remain healthy. Our team can install louvered vents and a cupola to provide good airflow. Windows and skylights also provide ventilation when open. For maximum fresh air, our Open Horse Barns provide continuous ventilation for improved air quality. 

Functional Features 

When your horse barn structure is sound, it will make operations easier within the barn. To work efficiently, here are some functional features we recommend adding to your horse barn design. 

Bedding

Bedding is a must in a horse barn to maintain cleanliness and comfort. With bedding, your horses will be less likely to get sores and will rest more easily. There are a few materials you can use for bedding: straw, wood shavings, or wood pellets, which you can choose from based on your horses’ needs. Straw is a natural bedding material, but needs to be replaced more often. Shavings are absorbent, comfortable, and add insulation to the space, but these can be dusty and bother a horse’s respiratory system. Pellets absorb moisture quickly, but aren’t as comfortable as the other options. No matter which option you choose, we recommend adding rubber mats underneath them for more comfort and to protect their joint health.

Tack Room

Tack rooms are vital for proper organization in your horse barn, for both supplies and extra feed. This is where you’ll store saddles, bridles, harnesses, brushes, and more to prevent your gear from cluttering the floor of the barn. Everything stored in this room should be kept dry, as the feed can go bad and the leather can deteriorate. Grain, hay, and supplements should be kept in rodent-proof containers, like plastic bins, as there’s less condensation to attract pests. Our deluxe horse barn styles come with a built-in tack room to keep your supplies dry and clean.