I can not believe my horse escaped her new stall!

[patandchickens]

I'd put a solid strong well-latched top door on that stall NOW, before she gets any more firmly trained to believe she can escape anytime as long as she tries hard enough. They can hurt themselves with marginal horseproofing and/or a very strong belief in their ability to get out.

Might be worth cleaning your geldings' sheaths if they haven't been recently and if it's something you're comfortable with doing -- sometimes a mare can get a nasty infection from being bred by a grotty gelding (and yes, a considerable number of geldings *can* breed mares, not get them pregnant obviously but enough that it's best to have them clean as possible).

Most mares will have heat cycles for most of the year, from late winter to well into the fall. Enjoy

Have fun,

Pat

 

[RockyToggRanch]

Pat, I was wondering if they were actually capable. I said to my daughter last weekend, I think I'd better clean the boys, just in case. I usually have the vet do it in the spring and then I fumble through a midseason attempt. I guess I'll put that on my list.

As far as my horse proofing goes. This is a new barn. I built the stalls strong and sturdy. I contacted the Amish builder of my shedrow barn for the same stall dividers and fronts so they would match. They're heavy iron pieces. Everyone I spoke to, including Dreamers previous owner, said it was overkill and I didn't need it. Well obviously I should go with my initial thought of "better safe than sorry". I've spent a small fortune on my dreamy little barn and safety has been my #1 concern. Those stall fronts are expensive, but worth the piece of mind.

My 2 older boys have never even thought about getting out and they have the same latches.

She's too smart.

Cindy