Winterizing Your Horse Barn: 3 Things to Remember

Horse Barns & Stables for Sale in TXWith winter in full swing, it’s essential to ensure your horse barn is ready to handle the cold, wet, and harsh elements of the season. While your horses need proper shelter year-round, winter requires additional preparation to keep them safe, healthy, and comfortable.

Follow these three important tips to winterize your horse barn effectively!

1) Inspect Your Barn for Repairs and Safety Issues

Checking the structural integrity of your barn should be first on your list for winter horse care. Identify necessary repairs and potential safety issues at the start of the season, before the weather gets bad, so they can be addressed. Ensure your doors, windows, roof, stall boards, eaves, gutters, and door latches are all in good condition.

2) Prioritize Proper Ventilation

The moisture that hangs around in the winter air combined with the heat pumping in your barn can seriously stifle your airflow. Poor ventilation can cause respiratory illness in your horses, bacteria growth, and structural damage from rotting, rust, and ruined insulation. Ensure your mechanical ventilation system is in good working order, and don’t forget to take advantage of natural insulation in your barn—windows, grilled or mesh stall partitions, etc.

Bonus Tip: If you notice condensation forming on your barn windows, you know your ventilation system isn’t up to par.

3) Stock Up on Essential Supplies

The other important aspect of winterizing your horse barn is to keep it filled with everything you need to ensure your horse is happy and healthy for up to two weeks at a time, in case of a weather emergency. Stockpile feed and keep it on hand, accounting for the extra calories your horses will need to continue burning energy to stay warm.

Have a reserve of horse blankets, stored water, and bedding for insulation and comfort. Don’t forget to store a couple of shovels and stall mats in your barn for snow, ice, and mud control when the weather starts to worsen.

There’s no need to worry about your horses in any season when you invest in a run-in shedshedrow barn, or aisle barn from Deer Creek Structures! Our Texas built horse shelters can be purchased pre-built or customized to fit your needs and are constructed to last for years.

Call us at (254)546-2276 to see which barns we have on the lot for you to take home today!