As a horse owner, you understand how crucial it is for your horses to have safe and comfortable housing. After all, they’re not just pets or investments⁠—they’re your companions, too.

And while you take the time and resources to provide them with the best food, conditioning, and veterinary care, at the end of the day, you’ll want to walk away knowing they’ll be as safe and comfortable as you are in your home.

At Sunset Valley Metalcraft, we have almost 50 years of experience serving the horse enthusiast community. Whether you’re building a horse stall or considering upgrading your current one, we can help! This blog will explore some beneficial stall upgrades for your horses.

Ready? Let’s get started!

Essential Horse Stall Upgrades

Let’s say you’re getting by with your current horse stall – it provides shelter from the elements and a place to keep your horse safe.

But a horse stall isn’t just a shelter for your horses; it’s their personal space. As much as you want your loved ones to live in a comfortable home, your four-legged companions deserve the same.

And on top of that, some upgrades make your life a lot easier too – from cleaning stalls to helping with vet bills by keeping your horse healthier.

Here’s a couple of upgrades to make life better for your horse and you:

Ventilation: Veterinarians and professional horse handlers recommend good ventilation for stabled horses to maintain respiratory health. After all, a horse stable should smell like fresh hay and clean horses rather than manure or ammonia.

In addition to the unpleasant smell, inadequate ventilation can also lead to respiratory issues for the horses, leading to expensive medical treatment or worse, death. Yet many horse owners still fail to provide adequate ventilation.

The simplest way to ventilate is to install quality doors and windows and open them at least once a day.

Your roof can also help with ventilation. Since hot air rises, ridge openings or cupolas built into the roof draw the hot air out of the building while open doors and windows circulate the air. Finally, fans and mechanical ventilation help effectively circulate the air.

Upgrade your lighting: Nobody likes stumbling about in the dark, especially horses since their eyes take longer than humans to adjust to low lighting conditions, which can cause anxiety.

Your stalls must be well-lit. Energy-efficient, bright, and long-lasting LED lighting is ideal for a bright, safe horse stall. In addition to safety, lighting can add beauty to the barn’s interior and exterior.

And if you’re wondering if there’s any specific light your horses could benefit from, there’s a company that makes specialized equine lighting that is claimed to be tuned to a horse’s eyes.

Add Grills or Windows to Stalls: Horses are social animals, so letting your horses interact with each other while they’re in their stalls is a great benefit. If you have multiple horses that like to socialize, adding grills in between stalls can help horses interact with each other safely. Windows allow your horses to breathe in fresh air and an opportunity to look outside daily.

Materials Used for Upgrading a Horse Stall

The safety and comfort of a horse stall can be attributed to the quality of its materials and construction.

A quality horse stall is designed for comfort and durability, using materials such as:

Pressure-treated wood is resistant to rot, infections, and moisture. It’s also relatively easy to work with, repair, or replace, which would be helpful when Buttercup kicks that wall panel in.

Wood also has sound-dampening properties that contribute to a quieter environment, and it is easier to attach accessories like feeders and waterers.

Insulation materials: Insulating a stall can help maintain a comfortable temperature for the horse, especially during the winter months. Materials like foam board or spray insulation can be installed and replaced quickly as needed.
Concrete Flooring: For those still with stone and dirt flooring, concrete is a massive leap in horse stall materials. Concrete makes washing the stall much easier by allowing you to hose the flooring down, and it does not get muddy. However, concrete is more demanding on your horse’s joints, so rubber floor mats are highly recommended.
PVC: PVC panels are a recent, modern upgrade to the world of animal pens. Lightweight, durable, and easy to clean, they are resistant to moisture and do not harbor bacteria or mold, making them a hygienic option. Installing PVC-based wall, ceiling, and other penning products makes life easier on mucking day by streamlining your cleaning tasks.
Rubber floor mats: Rubber mats provide cushioning, giving your horse relief. They also improve traction, making it safer for horses to move around. Place floor mats in the stall under bedding, and your horse will have a warm, comfortable spot to lay down.

Personalizing Your Horse Stall

Unless your horse is Mr Ed, you probably have no idea if it will benefit from decorating its horse stall. While the jury is still out on whether horses recognize that you’re spoiling them with a lovely horse stall, this in-depth article indicates that horses do, in a roundabout way, realize that they are being cared for by responding positively to certain stimuli and associating certain things with good emotions.

That said, here are a few things that you can do to make your horse’s life easier:

Automatic waterers: An automatic watering system will ensure that your horse always has access to fresh water. This can be a great time-saver when it comes to caring for your horses and ensures hydration too.

Feeders and hay racks: Nobody eats in their bathroom. Your horse deserves to eat clean food that isn’t surrounded by dirty bedding. A wall-mounted feeder keeps food off the ground, reducing waste and keeping the stall cleaner.
Toys for enrichment: Horse-safe toys and enrichment items like treat balls or hanging horse treats can keep your horse entertained and mentally stimulated when you’re not there.

A mirror: As horses are social animals, some horses can benefit from having a mirror in their stall, to reduce stress and provide a sense of companionship.
Safety features: You can make the stall safer for your horse and you by ensuring that all hardware and fixtures are horse-safe, and eliminating any sharp edges or protruding objects that could cause injury.
Nameplates: This one is really for you since horses can’t read. A custom nameplate serves a practical purpose by providing identification, and adds a personal touch to the stall.

A visually pleasing stable is something your guests can also enjoy. Some personal touches like photos and ribbons add personality to your horse’s home.

Upgrades and accessories to make cleaning your horse stall a breeze

How hard can it be to muck a stall? You walk in with a pitchfork and just start shoveling, right? It’s hard work, but there are a few items that can make the process more efficient and pleasant:

Muck buckets and manure carts: Let’s face it, no matter how much you love horses, this is not fun. Modern muck buckets are made of lightweight plastic, which makes them easy to clean. They are large enough to hold manure from one stall but are not too cumbersome to handle. Some even come with a detachable cart so you can just wheel it about, much like a smaller manure cart.
Muck boots: Since you’ll have to walk around a horse stall that can be wet or covered in dirty bedding and manure, it’s essential to have good footing while you work. Don’t skimp on quality muck boots⁠—a comfortable, waterproof pair will do wonders for your workflow and safety, and your feet will thank you. It’ll also save you from the embarrassment of slipping on horse manure!
Tool Organizers: If you keep your tools organized, your stall will be clutter-free, which reduces the risk of injury by keeping you and your horses from accidentally stepping or tripping on them.

Racks for manure forks, tack racks, collapsible saddle racks, and wall-mounted shelves help keep supplies off the ground and your stalls neat and organized. They also help you sort and eliminate any excess items you may not need that are just sitting about, taking up space.

In fact, this organizing process is known as the Five S’s, part of the Lean methodology pioneered by Toyota. While primarily used in manufacturing, it is very effective in keeping an organized workspace.

Conclusion

Building and maintaining a horse stall is hard work, but it doesn’t have to be an absolute grind.

Did our blog inspire you to upgrade your horse stall? At Sunset Valley Metalcraft, we do that! Our specialty is building quality horse stalls for you and your horse to enjoy, and we have many happy customers who love what we do.

More Information

We want to help our horse owners win, and one of the ways we do that is by helping to educate our customers. Here are a few more blogs that might be of interest to you:

Upgrading and Personalizing Your Horse Stall