Field shelters

[Goldenstar]

After several years of ground work I think I have finally nudged MrGS into thinking we should build a field shelter.
So what do you all have .
What's the flooring and what do you do about bedding and mucking out .
Do you have drinkers in them .
How do your horses use them .
We intend to have a hard standing in front what has worked for you as materials for hard standings .
Need to come with a sensible plan that looks organised and not to expensive to close the deal .
All ideas , what worked what did not gratefully recieved .

 

[Red-1]

Well done Mr GS for seeing the light re field shelters.

At my old place of work we had 24 ft x 12 ft shelters, open fronted. They had normal earth floors, and no water. They did really well actually. Once a year the floor was flattened where the blighters had been digging, and any big holes filled with hard core. I believe planning permission for the field would have been a problem for a permanent base.

At home the field shelter is in the garden, and so planning permission was not a problem. That one has block pave floor (cheaper than concrete for us) and that is topped with rubber mats. No water.

TBH the fields have water troughs, so I don't see the need for an extra water supply.

 

[Llanali]

The ones we had were on a base of scalpings, and then heavy rubber mats inside and a few bales of straw so that they weren't slippy. We skipped out the poo, but to be honest ours didn't pop much in them at all!

I didn't put water or hay in them, because I couldn't guarantee ours wouldn't have a barney and stop
One accessing water etc.

Current yard is on chalk soil and they have taken the top six inches of grass and soil off, replaced with some compacted chalk and grass mats (the ones with holes in!). This works well and was cheap, but probably only cheap if that's what your local soil is.

 

[Polos Mum]

mine used them more in summer to avoid flies, in winter they used the hedges rather than the shelter!! earth floor, skipped out when poo picking, water in the field so nothing separate, we did move it up and down so it wasn't in the same place every winter. so on metal skids (I also thought it helped avoid rotting as the frame wasn't in contact with the ground.

 

[Tiddlypom]

For flooring, we have rubber mats over a purpose laid concrete slab, which has a slight fall to front for drainage then shavings on top. The rubber gives good grip for a shod horse, which is reassuring if the horses decide to canter through the shelter.

I feed hay in the shelter, but water is outside.

Road planings outside for a distance of 20' or so.

Horses have free access to them, and use them all year round. They like to sleep in them (the nests are a giveaway), and generally shelter and chill out in them.

The fields get noticeably less cut up now we have the shelters, partly because I hay up inside, and partly because the horses are generally more settled and happy since we've had them.

 

[cauda equina]

I have 12 x24 mobile shelters, no base, just parked on grass and field mats in the doorways.
They are bedded down with hemp, skipped out daily and cleared out once a year.
The horses love them

 

[only_me]

Our field shelter is on soil/earth floor but very sheltered as have fir tees to the side which stops the rain from landing at the front of the shelter.
Inside we have straw, And droppings lifted out once a week as it appears to be used mainly by the donkeys - my horse apparently prefers natural shelter or standing in middle of field in bad weather so deep littered but at end of winter (shelter is in winter field) it gets a complete clear out ready for next winter.

No water inside the shelter, we have a barrel of water approx 20m away so it's available for all & prevents bullying.

I think it mainly depends on access to shelter & what type of natural shelter is beside it

 

[Gift Horse]

I put a picture of mine on this thread earlier today - I hope the link works.

http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/foru...ables-opening-onto-shared-turnout-areas/page3

It's two stables with the middle partition removed (26ft x 12) and both doors latched open but is used like a shelter; horses can access it whenever, concrete floor, deep shaving bed (deep littered), no water/drinkers inside - water trough outside, I don't feed hay inside. Crushed stone surface around the outside 12ft all round from a local quarry, paddock gates open off the stoned area. I only keep two horses here, they use the shelter all year.

 

[Goldenstar]

The building I am looking at is 45 by 17 and open fronted .
We have five big horses .
Do yours share nicely or is one left shivering outside while the others are lolling in the deep bed stuffing their faces.

 

[Gift Horse]

Mine share nicely but no food in there so no face stuffing. 16.2 & 16hh

 

[Enfys]

My shelter is 20' x 14' built on the side of a shipping container, floor is sandy soil. Bedded with straw. I only have 2 horses now but last year there were 5 and they all went in. I do not feed in the shelter.

 

[Goldenstar]

For flooring, we have rubber mats over a purpose laid concrete slab, which has a slight fall to front for drainage then shavings on top. The rubber gives good grip for a shod horse, which is reassuring if the horses decide to canter through the shelter.

I feed hay in the shelter, but water is outside.

Road planings outside for a distance of 20' or so.

Horses have free access to them, and use them all year round. They like to sleep in them (the nests are a giveaway), and generally shelter and chill out in them.

The fields get noticeably less cut up now we have the shelters, partly because I hay up inside, and partly because the horses are generally more settled and happy since we've had them.

This is pretty well what I hope to achieve horses clipped and in work but living out and coming in daily for work or overnight if they are going somewhere the next day.
Might I be better to go for two smaller shelters ?

 

[Cocorules]

I have 3 ponies. One either lets both the others in to the shelter or just one or neither depending on her mood. I have two large shelters and one small one with each shelter in a separate field. I try to make sure they have access to two shelters at a time i.e two different fields and that way they can all have access to a shelter.

I find that in the summer they all aim for the same shelter and just hang around until the boss one lets them in. The one at the bottom of the pecking order goes in the instant the others go out when she has not been allowed in before.

In winter it is no. 3 who loves her shelter. Mine live out and so are fed in the field. No. 3 will stand in her shelter in the rain and call to you to feed her there. I only put hay inside during torrential rain but when that happens two will share a shelter and the other one has hay in the other shelter.

I would definitely go for the largest shelter possible to keep a group happy. Mine use the shelters a lot despite having plenty of natural shelter I think they are so worthwhile.

 

[Gift Horse]

If I was building new I would have brick/block work. I am going to re-do mine soon - my gelding has form for kicking holes in kick boarded wood.

 

[Silmarillion]

Regarding size, I would always go for one big enough to have two doorways without compromising the actual shelter offered. I have a 24' x 12' for my two, with two front-facing doorways. I would never have one doorway for more than one horse, to prevent kicking matches if one got stuck inside. I had it happen, once - not nice.
Mine is mobile so it's on an earth floor, with grass mats on top. I don't feed or water inside it - if they're hungry they go outside to eat.
It's the best thing I've got for them - they love it! If I go up early in the morning they're both fast asleep in opposite corners

 

[Goldenstar]

Thanks every body , please keep all your thoughts coming .

 

[Jericho]

Regarding size, I would always go for one big enough to have two doorways without compromising the actual shelter offered. I have a 24' x 12' for my two, with two front-facing doorways. I would never have one doorway for more than one horse, to prevent kicking matches if one got stuck inside. I had it happen, once - not nice.
Mine is mobile so it's on an earth floor, with grass mats on top. I don't feed or water inside it - if they're hungry they go outside to eat.
It's the best thing I've got for them - they love it! If I go up early in the morning they're both fast asleep in opposite corners

This is exactly what I have. I don't put bedding in as they then use it as a toilet. Very gratifying to see them use it in all weathers just to have a quiet snooze

 

[Dry Rot]

South facing/away from prevailing wind.
Pea gravel floor mucked out occassionally with the tractor front loader.
Rainwater from the roof goes to a gutter and downpipe, then piped to the nearest ditch.
If the wind can get in, make sure it can also get out or you will have a hang glider waiting to take off.
Fit diagonal bracings into the construction or you could find it will collapse.
The first field shelter we have next to the round pen with gates organised and hung so we can shed off -- that has proved extremely useful.
Yes, we have a self fill water bowl as the shelter is gated to provide an emergency stable (which is very useful for housing weaned foals).
Feeding, if needed, is with hay nets.
Think hard about siting and access. Could it be used to help with loading?
We do bed down but the floor is well drained.
Apart from what is already on my web site, that is all I can think of at the moment. I've just started a new shelter, but it will be quite simple; three sides and a roof!

 

[Tiddlypom]

This is pretty well what I hope to achieve horses clipped and in work but living out and coming in daily for work or overnight if they are going somewhere the next day.
Might I be better to go for two smaller shelters ?

IMHO, two smaller field shelters would be more flexible. It allows juggling of personalties, and maybe sole use of one by a horse which needs to separated off for veterinary reasons.

The fully open front is definitely the safest option, as long as it is reasonably sheltered. Any horse should then be able to make a sharp exit if it feels threatened. My preference though is for twin entrances, as this is more snug.

For your amusement, here is a pic (of a pic) of our first field shelter, put up by Withington Hill Stables when we first moved here in 1986. It faced north, and we got caught out by the first snowfall in our new house! We had to improvise with items to hand to block out the blizzard, my lovely late cob is looking very indignant! We coped with just this 20' x12' building, which we soon converted to 2 small stables, for 20+ years. It was put direct onto grass, and when we eventually dismantled it, it had sunk over 6" into the ground!

The downside of having a just a single entrance to a shelter became evident soon after the pic was taken. We acquired the late chesnut git as a stroppy 10 month old colt, and my saintly cob got so fed up with him that he cornered him inside the shelter and kicked 7 bells out of him.

This is our newish 20'x12' field shelter, (from the same supplier) so same footprint as the original, but taller, and with twin entrances.

How will you collect rainwater off the roof? If you let it drain to ground, it will soon create a boggy mess. We have linked ours in the new shelters to the surface drains, there will be a significant volume of water coming off from a large shelter.

It'll need good lighting. Ours has mains lighting, as it's close to the stables, but there are very good off grid options available if mains isn't possible. CCTV is nice, too.. (Only got it in the 30' x12', though.)

 

[unicornystar]

I have had to improvise this year having got my field and used haras fencing to make makeshift shelters.........a bit rough and ready but they work....

However, having NOT shelled out the £1k ish I was going to on a lovely shelter built by a family member, they only tend to use the shelter in the summer it seems getting away from the flies......we have had torrential rain I have put hay in the shelter and no, happy to get drenched!!

It is making me seriously rethink whether to bother now?

I have a stable round the corner for adverse weather such as snow and lots of hedges but be aware they don't seem to use them much!!

We don't have drinkers in them as they can wander to the trough easily.
I don't use any bedding as you tend to find it just becomes a boggy mess and takes ages to dry, natural mud seems to stay dry enough and if it gets a little wet it drys out fast.
As I said above only use them in summer but do use them daily for the fly relief
I used paving slabs, rubber matting but shouldn't have bothered as they don't seem to make much mess
For what it is worth at cost price of materials for 12x12 stable, we were looking at £570 so for a shelter probably a similar price

 

[PorkChop]

I have an open fronted field shelter, it has a concrete floor inside and the same area again outside.

It is made of heavy corrugated sheeting and boarded inside up to chest height.

It is heavy duty bolted to the concrete with a small gap at the bottom of the sides so that the wind can escape!

Sloping corrugated roof, no guttering.

It doesn't have water and I wouldn't feed in it - it is merely there for shelter from the wind as we live in an exposed spot.

Tend to find that two horses go in it and one stands on the concrete in front of it, it really does shelter from the wind.

If I had the money I would put up another one, I have never used field shelters before as my fields were well sheltered with hedges, but very pleased I have one now.

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

I have 3 shelters, all have overhangs and guttering to at least the front, one has F & R guttering - thats the bigger 22 x 11 that was 2 old pony stables I moved and took the centre wall out & doors off back in the 90's.
The 2 fixed ones are north-east facing. This means they have the horses in the shade when its the hottest part of the day through the summer, both the fixed ones are also under trees and have overhangs, so are pretty cool and sheltered most of the year. These both have old tarmac scalpings set inside a heavy duty (council type) slabs that the base is on.
The mobile one usually is situated facing to the West, so again it provides a lot of shade, but also the evening sun at this time of the year.

I haven't had 1 yet not enjoy using them, mostly in the summer, but they do lie down in the 2 fixed ones as I have a good layer of shavings in them, the mobile is used mostly to get away from midges/flies in the summer.

If the weather is really bad (as in v v wet) then I do bring them in to dry feet out and rest the paddocks for a bit.

Happy shopping GS

 

[Goldenstar]

Sun shade in summer I had not thought of that the best way to face the shed for winter use is south not so good in summer .

 

[Enfys]

"Sun shade in summer I had not thought of that the best way to face the shed for winter use is south not so good in summer " Perhaps build an overhang off the other side? With a door in the back, would that be feasible, or would planners have a wobbly at that?

When we moved here we had nothing, so the container came first for storage, then last winter (we arrived in December of course ) my husband put up a lean to (left) attached to the container, it only had two walls - the end you see and the container wall, which made it safe for 5 horses to get in and out of. This summer we added another section, again 20' long but wider this time, there is an aisle which is a walk through which I prefer as it means horses have an escape route. This is actually used for storage, the horses just have access to the aisle.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Sun shade in summer I had not thought of that the best way to face the shed for winter use is south not so good in summer .

My big north facing shelter is brilliant in summer, the horses can be out in the open but still in the shade from the overhang, taking advantage of any breezes. They use it a lot as a dozing spot. My first pic, in the snow, shows the disadvantages of a north facing shelter, though .

The new 12'x 20' shelter I posted a pic of faces south. The sun comes right into it, so not so good for the very hot days. They have to go behind the infill or right to the back to be out of the sun. Great in the winter, though.

Depending on what horses I have, I can open a couple of gates and they can have free access to both shelters to suit themselves.