'Open stables'?

coblets

Well-Known Member
Joined
29 July 2018
Messages
260
Visit site
Not sure of the correct terminology, but can anyone explain to me why have the below type of stables, instead of having a door? And why they seem to be common in Sweden but not here in the UK?

1a1b9aa6_fd29_40c3_a30a_0eb363ba2397_d0cf81d037.jpg
 

Antw23uk

Well-Known Member
Joined
3 October 2012
Messages
4,058
Location
Behind you
Visit site
This reminds me of my riding school growing up (in the UK)

The horses came in, in the morning and spent the day between lessons in a stall tied up, nice and simple, hassle free and economic on space. I always remember a big draught horse (he looked like a drum horse but i forget his name) would lie down in his and have a snooze.
 

Roxylola

Well-Known Member
Joined
15 March 2016
Messages
5,248
Visit site
Theyre stalls not stables as we think of them now traditionally called a loose box, these be used for a horse to come in for a short(ish) period for instance riding school ponies might stand in them between lessons through the day then go out at the end of the day. They're tied up rather than loose as they would be in a stable (loose box)
 
Last edited:

blitznbobs

Well-Known Member
Joined
19 June 2010
Messages
6,248
Location
Cheshire
Visit site
Theyre stalls not stables, they'd be used for a horse to come in for a short(ish) period for instance riding school ponies might stand in them between lessons through the day then go out at the end of the day. They're tied up rather than loose as they would be in a stable.
They are a form of stables … stables are just a place where a horse lives… the two types are stalls and loose boxes.
 

Errin Paddywack

Well-Known Member
Joined
20 June 2019
Messages
6,153
Location
West Midlands
Visit site
We had them at the RS I worked at. Very useful for horses that are in work giving rides. Some were stabled in them overnight in the winter at weekends. They had room to lie down and had a manger and a hayrack. Previously it had been a canal side pub and the stalls were for the barge horses.
 

Sussexbythesea

Well-Known Member
Joined
2 July 2009
Messages
7,764
Visit site
A riding school I went to back in the 1970's had stalls like that. The horse's movement is restricted as they are attached to a rope and block.

My 72yr old sharer was telling me about this. She said the horses could lie down with the weighted ropes the block meant the rope wasn’t loose to get tangled in. Although knowing horses I’m sure some managed it!
 

Pinkvboots

Well-Known Member
Joined
25 August 2010
Messages
21,373
Location
Hertfordshire
Visit site
They are stalls so the horses are attached on a bobble a weighted rope or chain normally so they can't turn around, it saves space and they are really easy and quick to muck out, I worked for someone who had driving horses and they were all in stalls they were mainly stallions its quite an old fashioned way of keeping them now.
 

Kaylum

Well-Known Member
Joined
29 May 2010
Messages
5,317
Visit site
Stalls riding schools still use them. Easy to tack up in them. They arent weighed down just tied up with normal lead ropes and have access to hay and water. Bridles and saddles taken off and rugs put on if needed. They are turned out during non working hours.
 

Arzada

Well-Known Member
Joined
10 April 2012
Messages
2,379
Visit site
I went to a riding school where the horses lived in stalls all through the winter months apart from coming out for lessons 6 days a week and on their day off they were taken to the indoor school for a 30 minute loose fling around. While they had hay in their stalls they didn't have water. This was offered to them a few times a day or they were led out to a trough on the yard.
 

teapot

Well-Known Member
Joined
16 December 2005
Messages
35,296
Visit site
Stalls, and more common in the UK than you'd think, especially when it means not having to pay business rates on 12 by 14 stables ;)
 

Marnie

Well-Known Member
Joined
6 August 2006
Messages
1,902
Visit site
When I went to pony club camp many years ago we used stalls. They worked pretty well although my horse used to regularly untie himself and go wandering around the horse lines and into the marquee where we were sleeping once. It didn't matter how well you tied him up, he managed to get loose, we had to put a bar behind him in the end.
 

Birker2020

Well-Known Member
Joined
18 January 2021
Messages
8,957
Location
West Mids
Visit site
They are stalls so the horses are attached on a bobble a weighted rope or chain normally so they can't turn around, it saves space and they are really easy and quick to muck out, I worked for someone who had driving horses and they were all in stalls they were mainly stallions its quite an old fashioned way of keeping them now.
This is how they were kept in the 'olden days' in stalls. My Grandad who was a mounted policeman in Aston, Birmingham and his father who was with the Fire Brigade, again in Birmingham were both were responsible for the welfare of horses who were housed like this.

As Pinkvboots says the horses headcollars are attached to a long rope which passes through a ring high up on the wall with a weight at the bottom of the rope. The horse is able to lie down or move back/forwards comfortably and the slack is always taken up by the weight. Its a brilliant idea and is great to keep a number of horses in a small space.

This idea is featured in picture format in the BHS Manual of Horsemanship which I owned as a child!

Here is a thread about the same on this forum from 2013 https://forums.horseandhound.co.uk/threads/tie-up-logs-from-way-back.617093/

I suggested that we use the principle for wash box stalls that the owner wanted installed in the wash box as we had a high enough brick wall that we could have used. But we have two stalls with cross ties instead which look more professional.
 

Birker2020

Well-Known Member
Joined
18 January 2021
Messages
8,957
Location
West Mids
Visit site
Gosh imagine the money you'd save on shavings and wastage as the pooh would all be in the same area. Very economic.

The only disadvantage is horses that pulled back and broke their ropes. And having to wear a headcollar all the time which could rub.

Should think the chances of getting caught up in it would be minimal.
 

Birker2020

Well-Known Member
Joined
18 January 2021
Messages
8,957
Location
West Mids
Visit site
Awful way to keep horses IMO not able to stretch legs at all which they can at least do in a limited way in a loose box & no opportunity to look over the door to break the monotony ?
I agree, but in the type of environments that people keep these horses i.e Army, police etc I don't expect that that is top of their priorities.

I was being flippant about mucking out but you can see how this style of housing isn't labour intensive and therefore very economical.
 

teapot

Well-Known Member
Joined
16 December 2005
Messages
35,296
Visit site
So you don't pay business rates on stalls?

What are the 12 by 14 stables?

No, has to be 'loose box/stabling' by definition to pay business rates on.

12ft by 14ft is a standard loose box size in the UK - imagine the cost of 30 of those rates wise, compared to stalls...


Gosh imagine the money you'd save on shavings and wastage as the pooh would all be in the same area. Very economic.

The only disadvantage is horses that pulled back and broke their ropes. And having to wear a headcollar all the time which could rub.

Should think the chances of getting caught up in it would be minimal.

If you're really clever you build them so there are gaps under the partitions big enough to be able to sweep everything from end to end


Worked on a yard that had them - only horses that had issues were ones fresh over from Ireland. Put a chain or lunge line across, leave them loose so they could face out, and they'd soon settle!
 

Willowbankstables

Well-Known Member
Joined
25 July 2021
Messages
66
Visit site
This reminds me of my riding school growing up (in the UK)

The horses came in, in the morning and spent the day between lessons in a stall tied up, nice and simple, hassle free and economic on space. I always remember a big draught horse (he looked like a drum horse but i forget his name) would lie down in his and have a snooze.
Same! The riding school I went to growing up had stalls. They lived out in the field 24/7 all week and were only brought into the stalls on a Saturday and Sunday for the rides.
 

rabatsa

Far from the madding crowd
Joined
18 September 2007
Messages
11,959
Location
Yorkshire
Visit site
They are very common and practical in working situations. They are also common in other countries. I worked a summer season in Spain in my younger years and all the horses there were stalled, even the stallions and racehorses. The loose boxes were for the broodmares with foals.
 

teddypops

Well-Known Member
Joined
9 March 2008
Messages
2,428
Visit site
Stalls riding schools still use them. Easy to tack up in them. They arent weighed down just tied up with normal lead ropes and have access to hay and water. Bridles and saddles taken off and rugs put on if needed. They are turned out during non working hours.
The rope usually has a block on the end so weighs the rope down so it’s never loose enough for the horse to get tangled but they can move around and reach feed, hay and water. I’ve not seen any in stalls tied up normally as that would mean they couldn’t move much at all. Maybe they are only in them for short periods of time.
 

The Fuzzy Furry

Getting old disgracefully
Joined
24 November 2010
Messages
28,454
Location
Pootling around......
Visit site
View attachment 77457

the royal mews at Buckingham palace
Had one of mine in there, went to do a display in the little indoor arena.

Tweseldown used to have 2 long blocks of stalls, we had birch slip rails to keep our ponies in, in the 70s, was still the same in the 90s when my daughter did camp there.
 

Pinkvboots

Well-Known Member
Joined
25 August 2010
Messages
21,373
Location
Hertfordshire
Visit site
They are so easy to muck out especially mares as the wee and poo is all at the back, but even with male horses the wee is a bit further in, but if the drainage is good most of it stays at the back, ours were on a slight slope with a shallow gulley behind, we disinfected that bit every day and the stables had the beds thrown up in a corner once a week and disinfected so they were really clean.
 

PapaverFollis

Well-Known Member
Joined
13 November 2012
Messages
9,544
Visit site
My croft buildings have two stalls in. The partition between them has a whalebone as an upright. I'll see if I can find a picture. There are some HUGE horse shoes laying about the place... I think they had Clydies in there! ? Hardworking horses though, probably got more movement overall than many living in loose boxes these days.
 

laura_nash

Well-Known Member
Joined
17 July 2008
Messages
2,364
Location
Ireland
towercottage.weebly.com
We had stalls at a trekking centre in Wales I worked at, I expect they still do.

The horses lived out on 40+ acres and were called / herded in to a big field near the yard each morning. Any that were needed that day were then grabbed and popped into the stalls for the day. Very easy to hay up, muck out and hose down and the horses and ponies all seemed pretty happy in them. They'd usually be doing a good 4-5 hrs of work though, so would only be in them a few hours, and they would have haylage to munch on.

They only stayed in them overnight in extreme weather, maybe twice a year at the most. They had a few looseboxes for anything that was ill.
 
Top