HIT active stabling and

[rachel_s]

So I'm in Austria for Christmas with the family and behind us is a livery yard with an interesting yard/ stable set up. It appears they use HIT Active Stabling http://aktivstall.de/en/concept/ which seems to be popular in Germany.

Anyhow, I lurk in the horse world but it got me thinking that the UK ( don't know enough about other countries) is still using the predominately same style/ design of stables that were around when I was a kid - and that was traditional then. i guess I'm curious why stable design has remained pretty similar to Victorian age - when we know far more about how to keep horses, yet haven't really updated stable/yard design.


The horses in the yard look pretty healthy and happy - I don't want to take photos as I don't know the owners and don't have their permission.

No idea about the odd and in the title

 

[Spottyappy]

I would say it's similar to the track system some people use.
Look at this site, http://www.rockleyfarm.co.uk
I think it is a hard system to fully adopt in the UK as essentially you need a lot of land. Those I have seen use it with minimal acres generally end up with trashed land, alternative ugh it does depend on the number of horses using it, type of soil etc.
I would not want to use the system all year round unless I had ten or more acres for my horses. I currently have four acres with two or three horses and would not use the system year round.

 

[be positive]

It is similar to what I plan when I move, I will only have my horses on limited, probably, land so will have an open barn, hard standing areas and some form of track to link the fields.
It would not work in the average livery yard on a DIY basis or for what we would want from a full livery, however content the horses seem having a mixed herd of fit horses all belonging to different owners is likely to end up with injuries unless there were numerous barns/ yards which would take up a huge area and cost a fortune to set up.
It is ideal for youngstock, brood mares, retired horses or private yards but not likely to be cost effective for livery yards.

 

[benz]

I agree it seems like a track system which some yards in U.K. have. I like having the traditional stables and field turnout - it is a convenient and useful way to keep horses. Our horses seem to enjoy going in and I would not be able to do my job very well without stables, as long as horses getting plenty of proper turnout I wouldn't change to another system. I think these track systems are useful for winter situations where fields get too muddy but I imagine they are expensive to start up and time consuming to maintain. I'm sure they have their place but I'm not convinced they are the holy grail of horse keeping, horses for courses as they say

 

[ester]

I would say it's similar to the track system some people use.
Look at this site, http://www.rockleyfarm.co.uk
I think it is a hard system to fully adopt in the UK as essentially you need a lot of land. Those I have seen use it with minimal acres generally end up with trashed land, alternative ugh it does depend on the number of horses using it, type of soil etc.
I would not want to use the system all year round unless I had ten or more acres for my horses. I currently have four acres with two or three horses and would not use the system year round.

It depends how much set up you want to do though, my old trimmer decided to overhaul her wet, prone to flooding field - on the somerset levels near glastonbury (probs about 2/2.5 acres actual grazing 4 ponies (1 shettie) and put a figure of 8 hardcore track in on about half, I think it has been a revelation for her and the horses, none of which need masses of grazing. The middles are still grass for the summer and there is a paddock beyond it still.

This looks a bit like a cross between track and equicentral.