If your horse is cribbing, weaving, or wood chewing, he may be signaling that he’s bored. These boredom-based behaviors are common in horses, especially when horses are on stall rest or are on individual turnout.
Fortunately, there are many ways that you can help keep your horse entertained. Creating equine enrichment in your barn and paddocks can help prevent your horse’s boredom and may reduce unwanted behaviors like weaving.
Design Horse Stalls for Interaction
Providing equine enrichment starts with your horse stall design. When you plan your barn, think about how to create stalls to give your horse maximum interaction with his surroundings. Horse stalls that feature open designs such as grilled or mesh partitions, rather than solid lumber walls, give your horses a better view of their surroundings and may help reduce their feelings of isolation.
Our European stall fronts are an example of an enrichment-friendly stall design. The low-swooping nature of our stall doors allow your horse to put his head out into the aisle and interact with his surroundings. Plus, our stall fronts are all custom built to order – allowing you to seamlessly customize with multiple mesh designs, grilled designs, and more. This way, you can customize the stalls to work best for your horses and your facility.
Barn windows also provide horses with views of what’s going on outside the barn. With options like window yokes and fixed and hinged grills, you can choose windows that maximize your horse’s entertainment and that look beautiful, too. Let's not forget that the barn windows - paired with window yokes and grills - can ensure your design is equally functional for your barn. You can explore the various designs and customizations that are available in our Barn Windows in this helpful post.
If your barn is already built and you’re not ready for a complete stall renovation, simply changing up your horse stall gates can give your horse more enrichment. Our horse stall gates are available in a Full-Size and Half Size, both of which have a yoke style opening for more socialization. These gentle yokes ride up to comfortably yoke your horse near his chest and shoulders. Additionally, our Stall Gates help promote ventilation and offer unobstructed visibility, making your horse’s stall an overall healthier environment compared to using a solid stall door.
Plan & Create Stall Runs
Run-out stalls can also give your horse valuable enrichment, allowing him to move around and interact with horses in the adjoining runs. Our Dutch doors come pre-hung, so they’re easy to install, and they can be opened from either inside or outside. Our exterior barn doors can also be built as sliding – perfect for colder climates with snow that may build up. Our exterior barn Dutch doors are custom built so they can work with your existing barn or can be the ideal way to customize your new barn.
Providing your horse with a run-out stall helps encourage regular movement, which is not only good for his mind, but also good for his body. You can also place his feed in multiple locations within the run and stall to encourage him to move and make the area more interesting. You can read more about our recommendations for Stall Runs in this previous blog post.
Use Stall and Paddock Toys
You can also use toys to add enrichment to your horse’s stall and paddock. Toys can be a valuable tool when your horse must be restricted to his stall or a small turnout, such as when he’s recovering from an injury.
There are many toys available for sale, including rugged balls of all sizes, hanging toys that incorporate lickable treats, and treat dispensers that your horse can push around to be rewarded with a snack. You may need to try out a few different styles of toys before you determine what your horse likes best. To keep things interesting, try to rotate the toys periodically; keeping the toys new and exciting can help to hold your horse’s interest.
If you decide to use a treat-dispensing toy, look for treats that are relatively healthy, especially if your horse is the determined type. Small, no-sugar training treats can be ideal, or you can use treat dispenser toys to deliver your horse’s meals.
Install Slow Feeders
Since meals provide entertainment and enjoyment, find ways to make those meals last as long as possible. Slow feeders can help to prolong meals for greater enrichment. Additionally, since these feeders slow your horse’s intake, they have the added benefit of supporting healthier digestion.
When you choose a slow feeder, think about your horse’s safety. Hay nets can be effective, but they need to always be hung high enough so that your horse can’t get a leg caught in them once they’re empty. There are plenty of other feeder styles to choose from, too, including options like the Porta-Grazer and the Savvy Feeder, both of which can be used in a stall or in your horse’s turnout.
Maximize Turnout
One of the best ways to provide equine enrichment is to maximize your horse’s turnout time. If possible, turn your horse out with a buddy, since playing and mutual grooming provide important socialization.
Look for ways to maximize your horse’s turnout space to keep turnout time interesting and engaging. If you have access to more land, try to create extra paddocks and fields so you can rotate your horse in and out of different areas. Paddock rotation can help to preserve grazing quality, reduce your horse’s intestinal parasite risk, and gives your horse a change of setting.
You might also consider using the Paddock Paradise system. This management practice is based on the environments in which wild horses live. For example, by running a line of electric fence within your paddock, you can create a sort of track that encourages horses to move throughout the day. Feeding hay at various points along the track prompts horses to roam and eat in a more natural manner. It also provides enrichment.
Get Started on Equine Enrichment Today
If you’re ready to implement changes that can maximize your horse’s enrichment, we’re ready to help. Contact us today with any questions or if you would like to speak with our expert design staff. We’re happy to help you choose products, like stall fronts and Dutch doors, to maximize enrichment and help keep your horse happier.
Whether you’re building a new barn or want to improve your existing barn, you can reach us at (855) 957-8255 or email us at sales@americanstalls.com. We look forward to helping you create an environment that promotes your horse’s physical and mental wellness.
