# Strong Wood For Building Stalls...?



## SRCM16 (Oct 7, 2011)

Morning bump.


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## churumbeque (Dec 20, 2009)

2"x6" are strong and standard material for stalls.. They also need a support in the middle of the wall. Are you using plywood or something?


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## SRCM16 (Oct 7, 2011)

churumbeque said:


> 2"x6" are strong and standard material for stalls.. They also need a support in the middle of the wall. Are you using plywood or something?


There is plywood, but its under the 2x6's because someone said it would help prevent from holes.


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## Red Gate Farm (Aug 28, 2011)

What about kicking chains on her back legs to teach her to stop kicking? I've never had a kicker and cannot imagine a horse going through a 2x6 and plywood. Perhaps the trick isn't to reinforce the stall more, but to train the mare to stop kicking?


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## churumbeque (Dec 20, 2009)

Red Gate Farm said:


> I've never had a kicker and cannot imagine a horse going through a 2x6 and plywood. Perhaps the trick isn't to reinforce the stall more, but to train the mare to stop kicking?


My guess is that it isn't installed correctly or it should be strong enough. The boards should be tight against each horizontially other with no gaps and into vertical channels on the rear and front with extra support in the middle.
Horse Stalls 
something like these


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## churumbeque (Dec 20, 2009)

churumbeque said:


> My guess is that it isn't installed correctly or it should be strong enough. The boards should be tight against each horizontially other with no gaps and into vertical channels on the rear and front with extra support in the middle.
> Horse Stalls
> something like these


Horse stall kits for support post stall kit construction by Country Manufacturing.
this is more detailed and shows the stiffener for strrength


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## SRCM16 (Oct 7, 2011)

Red Gate Farm said:


> What about kicking chains on her back legs to teach her to stop kicking? I've never had a kicker and cannot imagine a horse going through a 2x6 and plywood. Perhaps the trick isn't to reinforce the stall more, but to train the mare to stop kicking?


IMO kicking chains/hobbles are abuse, I don't care what other people say. Sorry but thats my two cents.

Also I know someone that used hobbles to stop a kicking horse and it did something to its leg so it can no longer be ridden.



churumbeque said:


> My guess is that it isn't installed correctly or it should be strong enough. The boards should be tight against each horizontially other with no gaps and into vertical channels on the rear and front with extra support in the middle.
> Horse Stalls
> something like these


That could explain it. The person that I had building it never built a horse barn before so he was just going on what he's seen, and I think the boards aren't tight against each other. Thank you, I'll look at them tonight when I get home.


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## Darrin (Jul 11, 2011)

You have to be careful not to make your wall to stiff, you want it to flex but not give. Reinforce it to much and your mare might as well be kicking a concrete wall and get injured. Have you considered hanging stall mats on the wall? Those will cushion the blow and prevent her from going through the wall.

Personally I wont have that type of horse on my property and would sell her but that's me. Dad taught me with cows to cull out the obnoxious, difficult and ones that refuse to stay in the fence line for a more harmonious herd. The theory works well with horses too.


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## mls (Nov 28, 2006)

SRCM16 said:


> IMO kicking chains/hobbles are abuse, I don't care what other people say. Sorry but thats my two cents.
> 
> Also I know someone that used hobbles to stop a kicking horse and it did something to its leg so it can no longer be ridden.


My two cents - 

It's not abuse - a smart horse is learns it is only hurting itself.

The hobbles didn't hurt the horse, the fact that it was kicking did.

Kicking through wood is bad enough but kicking through tin is worse.


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## amp23 (Jan 6, 2011)

You should be trying to fix the problem of her kicking, not only reinforcing the wall to keep her from kicking through it. Do you know why exactly she kicks? I also would not tolerate having a kicker and I don't think hobbles are abuse at all.


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## SRCM16 (Oct 7, 2011)

Darrin said:


> You have to be careful not to make your wall to stiff, you want it to flex but not give. Reinforce it to much and your mare might as well be kicking a concrete wall and get injured. Have you considered hanging stall mats on the wall? Those will cushion the blow and prevent her from going through the wall.
> 
> Personally I wont have that type of horse on my property and would sell her but that's me. Dad taught me with cows to cull out the obnoxious, difficult and ones that refuse to stay in the fence line for a more harmonious herd. The theory works well with horses too.


That's a good idea, and I've seen a few stables like that too! Don't know why I didn't think of that.  Thank you. LOL.

Going to the tack shop on the way home to order some mats! 

I would, but she's a my state barrel horse. The one thing I won't take is cribbing. If I go to look at a horse and their stall is all cribbed to death then I'll go look at another. 



mls said:


> My two cents -
> 
> It's not abuse - a smart horse is learns it is only hurting itself.
> 
> ...


Well hun that's your opinion; we all have one. 
She isn't kicking through tin.
The horse wouldn't have gotten hurt and unable to ride if the hobbles hadn't been used so I don't see how you think that. 



amp23 said:


> You should be trying to fix the problem of her kicking, not only reinforcing the wall to keep her from kicking through it. Do you know why exactly she kicks? I also would not tolerate having a kicker and I don't think hobbles are abuse at all.


She kicks because she is bored, and I said that in the very first post.
And like I said its my opinion, and how I feel towards hobbling.


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## churumbeque (Dec 20, 2009)

amp23 said:


> You should be trying to fix the problem of her kicking, not only reinforcing the wall to keep her from kicking through it. Do you know why exactly she kicks? I also would not tolerate having a kicker and I don't think hobbles are abuse at all.


Depending on the construction that may very well be the issue. Who knows it could be put together with twine for all we know and chewed through or rotted from water damage. If it were properly constructed I don't think this would even be a concern.


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## churumbeque (Dec 20, 2009)

Ok I just looked in her album and the stalls I saw would be a problem for many horses. They are not constructed well and are the issue. Calm horses that like their buddy may be ok but not for an Alpha mare. My horse would lean on them and get through to the buddy's food.


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## SRCM16 (Oct 7, 2011)

churumbeque said:


> Ok I just looked in her album and the stalls I saw would be a problem for many horses. They are not constructed well and are the issue. Calm horses that like their buddy may be ok but not for an Alpha mare. My horse would lean on them and get through to the buddy's food.


That was from the old place I lived at, not my new place.


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## SRCM16 (Oct 7, 2011)

Also, I talked to the owner of the barn and I'm moving her to a different stall that has individual turn out and all I have to do is fix the old stall she was in. Good deal, I think since usually I'd have to pay extra for that kind of stall.


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

2 x 6 horizontal boards should be strong enough. They need to be on the inside of her stall, or she might kick them outside of her stall. The reinforcing 2 x 4's should be vertical and placed about 2' apart. It sounds like a lot of wood, but you won't have to build it twice. I get extra leftover wood at Lowe's on Mondays, after the suburbanites have bought their wood over the weekend, had it cut there, but they don't want to store the extra pieces, so they LEAVE THEM. Believe it or not, Lowe's THROWS IT AWAY, if somebody like me doesn't buy it at a discount, which is currently $1/piece. ;D
*I think your mare is displaying food aggression*, so I have a few things to check that might help. =D
*First*, is her hay/grain fed on the wall adjacent to another horse? If so, could you move it away from all other stall walls so that she doesn't think she needs to compete for it? 
*Second*, put some treats in ONLY her grain--my personal preferance is carrots bc I think that they are most digestable, but ANY treat that she prefers would do. Feed her this for maybe, every day _for a full month_, then gradually reduce and stop the treats. This will form a habit for her, and she needs a good amount of time to readjust. She'll feel "special" and relieved that she will no longer have to guard her food.
I know a LOT about this bc I've kept/fed/grained my horses outside (inside, too, for the past decade) for over 26 years and they compete for food, even if they'll full!! Even now, I am graining my 3 horses under the fence with buckets, and they're placed according to how far apart they need to be to keep all of them happy. The only horse who could use a few extra pounds is my herd leader, and he always gets first dibs.


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## myhorsesonador (Jun 21, 2009)

SRCM16 said:


> Also, I talked to the owner of the barn and I'm moving her to a different stall that has individual turn out and all I have to do is fix the old stall she was in. Good deal, I think since usually I'd have to pay extra for that kind of stall.


So your boarding this horse? You don't own the barn? If I was your BO I would have kicked you out. 

Why is night turnout not an option? 

Your horse is distressed. You need to get her to stop, not mae things harder to break. You think hobbles are abuse, what do you think she is doing to herself? I think shes abusing her self. She going to end up hurt. You will no longer have a sounds barrel horse if she keeps that up.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

If being in a stall is so problematic for her, then why not leave her outside? She's feeling trapped. If she doesn't like the horse in the next stall or is afraid, she can't get away from it. Because of this she may be wanting to drive it away. Because she is so stressed you might consider whether she's developing ulcers over this.


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## amp23 (Jan 6, 2011)

I have never heard of a horse kicking solely out of boredom, that's why I asked again why exactly she kicks. Others have given you good advice and their thoughts on things, and I think you should consider the possibility that there is more to it than just her being bored.


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## SRCM16 (Oct 7, 2011)

And I've taken their advice into consideration. But she isn't fed on the same side as another horse (that would just be stupid and asking for trouble). Her stall wall goes up 3ft or so from the stall so she can't see the other horse, unless its across the isle way. She has been moved to a new stall where she can move around a lot more (it has individual turn out). None of the horses at the barn are allowed out at night because of the possibility of them getting loose and the owner is the only one there so if all 13+ horses got loose she'd be the only one to catch them. 

Also she is bored because all she does in the stall after finishing her night hay is stand around. I don't know about you but that would make me bored too. Also if you had read the original post then you'd have noticed that I said she also doesn't like being stalled. Some horses are like that. I know a draft that will kick his stall door down so that he can get outside because he's never been stalled his entire life, and doesn't like it.

I don't like hobbling and will never do it no matter what anyone says; its my opinion no one is going to change that so people might as well give up on trying to convince me to hobble my mare 'cause it ain't gonna happen.


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## amp23 (Jan 6, 2011)

Well hopefully her being in a different stall with more space and an individual turn out will help. My horse hates being stalled and can't be stalled overnight or all day because he will find things to mess up (used to turn over his huge water buckets overnight and play with them) so I'd hate to be in your situation. Have you gotten mats yet to try putting on the walls? I could see that working well- I wouldn't have thought of it until someone posted it on here.


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## SRCM16 (Oct 7, 2011)

I know, she's a lil hellfire. LOL. Besides the kicking in the stall at night thing she's the best horse I've ever owned, everyone loves her. I run her 2D/1D, but she can also be ridden by kids in 4D/3D. 

One of the 3y/o's at the barn does that! He's even used it as a pillow once! Can't imagine that is too comfortable. LOL.


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## amp23 (Jan 6, 2011)

See I had even used a rope to hold it tight in place in the corner of his stall and he still found ways to turn it over during the night.. The BO probably thought I just never gave him water :/ sometimes horses do things that don't make much sense..


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## SRCM16 (Oct 7, 2011)

Its like no... he's just special. :rofl: My friends horse dunks his hay in his water no matter what. She's tried spraying it down a lot, or a little and he just likes dunking it himself.


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## amp23 (Jan 6, 2011)

I work with a Belgian mare that's the same way... Sucks cleaning out her water bucket because it's all hay and her slober :/


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## Darrin (Jul 11, 2011)

SRCM16 said:


> Its like no... he's just special. :rofl: My friends horse dunks his hay in his water no matter what. She's tried spraying it down a lot, or a little and he just likes dunking it himself.


Parents had a horse like that. No matter how far away in the pasture they put his hay he would carry it to the water tank one mouthful at a time.


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