# Help design my horse property!



## Chicknshrimp (Oct 30, 2014)

We bought 21 acres of land in NM and will be moving there this summer (YAY!!!). We'll be living in a mobile home until we build but are building the barn and pasture right away... you know, the important stuff 

We will eventually be housing ~3 horses, 3-5 milk goats, chickens, and 2 LGDs. We are building a barn thats at least 40x60 with a small paddock and holding pens and are devoting the rest of the meadow to pasture land. 

Below are the pics, the land is a 21 acre triangle with 2 hills and a meadow between the hills. Any help with ideas or suggestions on layout, fencing type, etc. would be much appreciated!


Yellow = property line, fenced with barbed wire
Red = top of hills
Blue X = our home site (is recessed into hill and sits above meadow)
Orange = pasture and barn location 
Triangle point = North


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## Chicknshrimp (Oct 30, 2014)

Also forgot to mention that the meadow is flat and smooth with red clay soil but the treed portion of the lot is covered in limestone, slate, and mossy boulders. 

I wanted to include some of the treed area in the pasture for shade and shelter (will also have barn and run-in). Are the rocky/boulder areas dangerous to horses? I don't want them slipping/tripping/falling etc. Should I include it or leave it out?

Thanks!


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## WildAtHeart (Jul 17, 2013)

Congratulations! How exciting =) one of the best things about the barn where I currently board is this: everything is connected. By this I mean that all the pastures lead to an alleyway which is directly connected to the barn. So you don't have to halter each horse just open the gates and away they go. This is great because at my barn the horses are out in a big field during the day and in smaller fields at night. So you just have to open the gates and they go back to their "home".
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## RBuchele10 (Aug 19, 2014)

How exciting! The opportunity to do it the way you want it the first time! 

Is the barn at the top of the hill? It looks like it is, which is what your going to want. You'll want any rainwater to drain away from the barn instead of into it! I do like that you are planning on fencing in the barn - it keeps a runaway from getting out into the road or on your neighbors property. You may also want to position your barn so that you can take advantage of any crosswind or breeze. I'd imagine it gets pretty hot in NM during the day? 

You may also want to consider storing your hay and bedding in a different shed - dry grass and shavings are excellent at helping spread a fire.
**Make sure you have large & multiple access points to the barn in case of emergency/fire. A great article on barn fire prevention is: Novobraceâ„¢ | Tendonitis, Desmitis and soft tissue injury treatment for horses – Barn Fire Prevention

As for including part of the trees, I'd say go for it. I had a herd of 20 horses that had areas to roam in and out of and they loved it. It keeps them occupied, relaxed, etc. They were never messing with the fence lines or pushing on gates and always had something to do. Also the change in footing and hills made for great exercise when they weren't being ridden.

If you're concerned about larger rocks, I would just be sure to walk the pasture space and look for noticeable hazards - deep holes that need filled, old fence wires, ponds or dangerous spots that you can fence around. Horses will do their best to avoid getting themselves trapped or walk on questionable footing based on their prey mentality, but we all know (far too well) that horses can get themselves hurt standing in their 12x12 stall! So, use your discretion when your fencing off the space. 

I would say make sure you have a highly visible fence, especially in the wooded areas, as the shadows and sunlight can make it hard for the horse to see a fence that doesn't have much visual weight...

Have you thought about what you will do with manure? With such a large amount of space you may be able to spread it on your fields so you can avoid the hassle of hauling it away or you can look into composting it for area farmers! Here's a great article on ways to manage manure: Masters in Manure | Stable Management


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## Dphoto45 (Jul 27, 2014)

How exciting for you! I'd love to imagine how I'd put my own place together. I agree, I'd like a place where the fences and gates are such that I can open one and the horses can run through without a halter.


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

It looks like you are placing your home and barn into a 'dry wash' area, that if it rains, that will flood. I would include trees. I would move the barn and house up to higher ground. 
Also i would wait for the rainy weather first, see what happens to the ground you want to build on. If you are not familiar with clay, you will need footings for every bearing wall in the house.
If you are doing septic, the 100' run of leach line is not enough, clay will not absorb the effluence. You need to double or triple that leach line. be sure to keep your leach line away from the water well , as far as you can. You will also need to gravel the drive way , clay just turns into a slippery sticky mess when wet, and is hard as concrete when dry. 
Good luck.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

In Canada we are getting away from leach lines and going with peat moss systems instead. The barn should be an easy walk from the house as water lines will serve both. Carrying buckets to thirsty animals soon palls and hoses freeze. Bury the lines 8' deep for trouble free use.


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## STT GUY (Apr 23, 2014)

Saddlebag said:


> In Canada we are getting away from leach lines and going with peat moss systems instead. The barn should be an easy walk from the house as water lines will serve both. Carrying buckets to thirsty animals soon palls and hoses freeze. Bury the lines 8' deep for trouble free use.


EIGHT FEET!!!! Frost line "down here" is waaaaaay shallower thanup in the great white north where you live!


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## Chicknshrimp (Oct 30, 2014)

Thanks everyone, you have all been super helpful, this is exactly the kind of info I was looking for! :happydance:


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## EponaLynn (Jul 16, 2013)

Congratulations. 

I just wanted to suggest you investigate what the possibility of flooding at the property is, and have some sort of drainage system set up if there is that possibility.

In AZ, a lower piece of land with two hills or mountains on either side could be subject to some major flooding at times during monsoon season.

If you're not from the desert you may not already know this.


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## EponaLynn (Jul 16, 2013)

stevenson said:


> It looks like you are placing your home and barn into a 'dry wash' area, that if it rains, that will flood. I would include trees. I would move the barn and house up to higher ground.
> Also i would wait for the rainy weather first, see what happens to the ground you want to build on. If you are not familiar with clay, you will need footings for every bearing wall in the house.
> If you are doing septic, the 100' run of leach line is not enough, clay will not absorb the effluence. You need to double or triple that leach line. be sure to keep your leach line away from the water well , as far as you can. You will also need to gravel the drive way , clay just turns into a slippery sticky mess when wet, and is hard as concrete when dry.
> Good luck.


Oops, I just noticed this post after I made mine, great minds think alike !


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## Chicknshrimp (Oct 30, 2014)

EponaLynn said:


> Oops, I just noticed this post after I made mine, great minds think alike !


You two are both right, the meadow is a dry wash, and does have a little flooding during the rainy season (the two rains per year lol). The flooding comes from the east and is limited to an area that is basically a small creek bed through the meadow. 

The house will be recessed into the north hill and sits 20 ft above the meadow so it will be fine hopefully, its hard to tell that from the pictures though. I was told that we can divert the water from the meadow with pipes when we build... I hope that's true, otherwise the water will wash right by the barn.


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## Phly (Nov 14, 2012)

What type of fence are you planning on?


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

i would move the barn. It is very expensive and hard to divert water. 
i would not rely on just a couple of rains a year either. 
In these arid regions a sudden rain storm , as little as one inch of rain can turn into a flash flood or dirt/mud slide. 
Also goats will eat trees and some horses will also munch them.


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

^^^ this. Do not place anything you want dry in the path of water. A good 1" rain over 1 acre produces 27,000 gallons of water to deal with.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## EponaLynn (Jul 16, 2013)

PaintHorseMares said:


> ^^^ this. Do not place anything you want dry in the path of water. A good 1" rain over 1 acre produces 27,000 gallons of water to deal with.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


 Agreed and a fluke heavy rain can take out a house or barn. It happened in Sedona.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

STT GUY : Our frost depth is maybe 3' but if animals (dogs, deer, people) walk across a buried water line, even within 3' of it, it drives the frost deeper. "Ounce of Prevention"....


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