How to Choose a Horse Barn

Most articles you might read will talk about the usual things to look for in a barn such as cost, hygiene, quality of feed, safety and a few other caveats.  These are all well and good things to know, however, there is so much more to picking a barn than just items in a checklist.

When you are choosing a barn, you are choosing a home for your horse and a second home for you. Choosing a barn you will be happy with in the long run will be a combination of barn culture, training quality, facilities and business operations.  

This post will speak to hunter jumper riders in the U.S. This is the world that I have been a very small part of for almost 20 years now.

First Things First

It is a good thing to remember that institutional publications (those magazines you get from horse organizations and the glossy ones that you get in the mail or on newsstands) are in the business of promoting their advertisers’ products.  Something happened to the independence and integrity of the press around 2007 when the economy started to take a downturn.  Advertisers realized that they could dictate the topics and recommendations in editorial content because print publications were desperate for the revenue.

This happened throughout the print publication world, not just equestrian magazines.  This sea change was also noticeable on cable TV and websites.   In a previous life, I dealt with advertising agencies. Once they figured out they could get editorial coverage in exchange for a multi-insertion contract, the quality and objectivity of the articles went downhill.

I mention this because when reading other articles on choosing a barn, my “spidey senses” went off.  These articles wouldn’t give you the whole story.  They only promoted the industry, the trainers and the suppliers and never delved into the nitty gritty.  When you want to be square and honest with your readers, you can’t leave out some of the problems we all face daily at barns all across the country.  Only by knowing what can go wrong can you be prepared to ask the right questions and be on the lookout for these things when you are searching for a new barn.

All that being said, let’s talk about barn culture.

It’s a Cultural Thing

The town you live in has a culture.  Your neighborhood has a culture. Every barn has a culture.  A culture is defined as the customs of a place or institution or group.  At a barn, it is the customary way things are done.  A culture can be nurturing.  It can be rigid.  It can also be toxic, competitive, or collegial.  It can be naive and unassuming.  There are many ways to describe a barn culture.

When you are selecting a barn, the culture of the barn is very important.  If you are the competitive type, then a barn full of pleasure riders will drive you crazy.  Likewise, a barn that is full of beginner riders that just take lessons doesn’t marry well with one or two owners on full board.  You have to look for a cultural fit when selecting a barn.

For better or for worse, the culture of a barn is typically established by the trainer.  If the trainer is highly competitive, then the barn culture will be that way as well.

Similarly, a low key atmosphere is what you will usually find at barns where they don’t go to shows, people have one horse and might do self-service, or part time riders who pleasure ride on weekends.  The pressure to perform is just not there, or needed.

Mixing cultures doesn’t work well at a barn.  I have had multiple situations where other trainers have brought clients into barns where I boarded my horse.  Three worked out well.  Two didn’t work…at all.

My first experience with mixing cultures was when the trainer/owner at my second barn needed to fill 12 stalls.  He found another trainer whose clients were beginners, were self-service, and never went to horse shows.  They clogged up the ring watching our lessons to try and pick up lesson tips from our trainer.  No problem with one or two doing that, but a half dozen at a time is just hard to ride around.

Since they were self serve, no one felt it was their job to sweep the aisle.  It was just unhealthy and unattractive.  They would be at the barn for as many as four hours a day turning their horse out, grooming it, tacking it up, riding, untacking, bathing, grooming and mucking out their stalls.  When you have that many people there for hours, things get overcrowded in a hurry.

I think the biggest negative about the experience was that instead of their riders observing and improving, our group declined. When you have two trainers with different standards, things are just going to drift towards the mean.

My second, third and fourth experiences with mixing cultures actually worked out well.  Stalls were filled. Everyone got along well because all of us had the same goals for our training and our horses, and we all competed on the same show circuit.  The same standards of training and horse care were applied throughout the barn and everyone was pretty much at the same riding level, same competition level, and horsemanship level.  All horses were on full board, all riders were experienced.

Ah, what about the fifth experience you might ask?  Disaster is too strong a word. Let’s just call it a clash of cultures.  Absolute beginners vs. good riders.  Lack of horsemanship skills.  No sense of ring etiquette.  Use the barn as a country club instead of a place of business.  Everyone is on a different business model so you don’t know who is on self serve, partial board, full board, and some hybrid they have worked out with the trainer.  And finally, probably the most difficult to work around – this particular trainer’s business model involves selling lesson plans.  So the lessons go on all day, every day, with four or five riders/spectators in the ring at once waiting for their turn or just finishing their turn.

None of this may ever happen at your barn or your potential barn.  But I tell this story to help you watch out for culture clashes when selecting a barn.  A nice homogeneous group that is at your same level (or the level you aspire to) with similar goals is what you are looking for.  The more diversity, the more potential for problems.

Quality of Training

The responsibility for training quality lies with the trainer and/or owner that runs the barn where you might potentially board.  If the facility is wonderful but the training quality is sub-par, then your horse will be happy, but you will be miserable.

We all have goals for our riding.  Some more ambitious than others.  But they are our goals, nonetheless.  We want to reach our goals in a reasonable amount of time.  If we own a horse, we need to know that those goals are achievable with this partner.  How to reach those goals will be a combination of a rider’s efforts and the trainer’s skills both as an instructor and in the saddle.

There are just some riders that are born with talent and are able to reach their lofty goals quickly and (it looks like) effortlessly.  Then there are the rest of us that have to work really, really hard for every small advancement we make.  A good trainer will break down those small advancements into a lesson plan for you and your horse that will inch you ever towards your goals.

And while effort and talent will get you so far, your horse will have to do his or her part to help you along.  And that is where the trainer comes into the picture.  It is the trainer’s responsibility to prepare the horse so that you can successfully execute what you have learned with this horse without having to deal with behavior, soundness or other issues.

Most trainers and barns have a favored veterinarian that they use exclusively.  Same with their farrier.  It doesn’t hurt to ask around about the veterinarian and farrier that a prospective barn and trainer use to make sure that you will get the best care for your horse from them.

Trainers come with barns and you need quality training wherever you go in order to reach your goals.  If you are not progressing at a satisfactory rate, then you will end up leaving that facility sooner or later.  When selecting a barn, you have to be fairly confident that the trainer can help you reach your goals.

Facilities

I want my horse to have a large, well-lit, clean and safe stall.  Other things such as self-waterers, windows, padding, stall guards, fly systems, and individual fans are nice to have, but not make-or-break options to have.  There should be a safe source of heat in the winter so that your horse doesn’t have to grow a thick coat to stay warm if you are in a colder climate.

A spacious indoor riding area with good footing is a must.  It must be heated in the winter because footing can freeze if not kept warm enough.  Frozen footing is un-rideable.  While you are on a barn visit, check out the insulation.  The roof of a riding arena should be insulated to keep the barn warm and not waste energy.  An uninsulated barn is an excuse to keep the temperature near freezing which isn’t good for the footing or your comfort.

In warm climates ventilation is quite important in a barn or covered arena.  You want to have a healthy air quality for horse and rider and warm, moist air that is stagnant is not good for either of you.  Just because it is a barn doesn’t mean that it isn’t susceptible to mold, mildew and fungi.

The ring should be dragged a few times a day if there is a lot of traffic.  The ring should be well lit and have enough jumps and standards to create different courses to practice on.  For safety reasons, the ring should have more than one means of egress for horse and rider.

Footing should be level and have a good base layer such as limestone and the footing layer of sand or composite.  I cannot stress the importance of quality footing enough.  Un-level footing can cause soundness issues.  Too soft or too hard footing can lead to injury.  This is true for both indoor and outdoor riding rings.

New riding arenas take a while to break in, just like a pair of boots.  The sand or composite will take some time to settle.  New rings are often too deep until they have been rolled over and over again.  Riding will help settle the footing components somewhat but nothing replaces time and good surface preparation.

Business Operations

There are many facets involved in running a successful horse and rider training operation.  Selecting a good trainer, a good horse and finding a nice looking barn will matter little if the trainer cannot operate their business well.

Good money management is a necessity – for both rider and operator.  You cannot survive long in this business as either if you don’t know where the money goes.

As a trainer, you need to collect monthly board to pay for stalls, grooms, feed and bedding, utilities, and supplies.  If you own the property, there is building maintenance, equipment maintenance, grounds maintenance and property taxes.

All of these cost money and  as a business owner, you are entitled to make a profit on your time and your assets.  It is just how a good business is run.

How do trainers make their money?  There seem to be quite a few business models out there and I’ll touch upon a few that I’ve come across.

The first is the all-inclusive pricing model.  The trainer may or may not own their own facility.  You pay one fixed price each month which includes horse boarding, full or partial service grooming, feed, bedding, supplies and a certain number of lessons each week.  The type of items that are not included are medications and special services such as treadmill use, Theraplate or Magnawave.  These are not typically included because their use varies by horse.  You need to pay for your own tack trunk, horse blankets and shoeing separate from this fee.  After all the expenses are tallied up for the month, the trainer should clear a profit from all the boarders’ fees.

With this model, trainers can supplement their income with show fees, clinics, schooling shows, horse sales, horse transportation and specialized training services.  Show fees are necessary to make a decent living for most trainers as the margin on board fees is usually pretty thin.  If you are at a show barn, the trainer needs you to attend as many shows as you can afford in order to make more money for themselves.

A second type of business model is referred to as an a la carte barn where you are billed a specific fee for every service you specify for your horse.  This might include things like blanketing, medication administration, and special diets as well as stall, feed, bedding, grooming and stall mucking.  You need standing wraps for your horse after jumping?  That will be on your bill.

Some people prefer this model as they can control their expenses better and do some of the work themselves to save money.  A la carte barns are as common as full service barns.  Which one you choose from the two ends of the service spectrum depends on your budget and the amount of time you have to devote to horse care.

In between the all-inclusive and a la carte are a variety of hybrid business models.  Each trainer and barn will have its own menu of services offered and some are included and some are a la carte.  It is very important that you are clear about what you want for your horse and what it will cost whichever model the trainer and barn have employed.

Most barns have a price list and many now have contracts that go into great detail regarding responsibilities, rules and fees.  Some barns now take credit cards, still others want a check to pay monthly board and fees.

Just because we all love our horses and this equestrian world we have become a part of doesn’t mean that it isn’t a business and occupation for your barn and trainer.  It is your job to take good care of your horse at the best of your ability and in a way you can afford and it is the job of the trainer and barn to provide you and your horse with the best service they can.  When you realize that this is a business relationship, and not just a friendship, then it is easy to understand why things are done a certain way, why they cost what they cost.  The trainer and barn operations must make a profit or they won’t be around very long and you will be searching for a new home for you and your horse.

The Bottom Line

The horse world is a small one.  It seems that everyone knows everyone and many people probably know who you are, even though you might not think so.

If you are looking for a new barn, please be discreet.  Your current trainer doesn’t need to find out that you have been looking at other barns from one of their trainer friends.  This only leads to hurt feelings and a poor reputation.  Be businesslike about your search and try to find times to visit prospective barns when people aren’t around who might gossip.  Common sense and good manners should guide you as you begin your search.

Finding a new barn is not a one weekend activity.  There are so many moving parts to this decision that you should take your time and exhaust your options.

You want to be proactive, not reactive.  If you are unhappy where you are now, be proactive and methodical in checking out several good candidates.  Don’t jump to a new barn you haven’t thoroughly checked out because something upset you or your horse where you are now.  They have a name for that – barn hopping.  It usually never ends well.  Barn hoppers get a bad reputation and they end up hopping somewhere else fairly quickly because they didn’t do their due diligence by fully vetting a barn and trainer operation.

Finally, your sixth sense will serve you well when you are looking for a new barn.  If something seems off or not fully transparent, then your gut should tell you to look elsewhere.  Horses are instinctual creatures.  We humans also have instincts and if yours are sounding an alarm, then it is best to listen to those alarm bells.