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| Give 'em shelter (Summer 2007) |
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Protect your equine from the elements with these simple shed designs
By Dean Houghton
Having retired from his job in California
a couple of years back, Fred
Ahl and his wife, Betty, moved to a
piece of prairie paradise near Ponder,
Texas. The ranchette already
offered a small stable, but the Ahls wanted
to get better use of the five-acre property by
dividing the pasture into smaller paddocks.
That, in turn, called for a paddock shelter
(sometimes called a run-in shed) for the family's
American Quarter Horse mare Lizzie and
Longhorn steer Gus. "The weather here can
change in a hurry, from 90 degrees and sunny
to 40 degrees and windy," Fred says. DIY shelter. In order to protect their stock
against sun and storms, the Ahls decided
to take a do-it-yourself approach. They researched
the options and chose a paddock
shelter kit from AmeriStall, a manufacturer located in nearby Sanger,
Texas. Fred provided his own yellow-pine
boards to make the 4-foot-high kick panel
at the base of the shed. The kit provided
the steel framing elements, 26-gauge colored
steel siding for the roof and walls, and the
trim sheets. With winter approaching, he decided
to order two 12x12-foot paddock shed
kits and get them up as quickly as possible.
"When I picked them up, it sure looked like
a lot of work," he recalls. "I thought I might
have bit off more than I could chew."
Good neighbor. The Ahls' next-door neighbor,
Vince Mascia, helped keep the project on
track with his labor and carpentry skills. "We
considered the first shed our experiment,"
he says. "We learned how to put it together,
and it was amazing how much easier we were
able to build the second shed." One thing the duo learned was that they needed to provide
a significant amount of "wiggle room" when
digging the holes for the posts that hold the
sheds in place. With a bit of room to maneuver,
the building can be squared up so that
the structural components fit precisely.
"It's easy to get in a hurry and start driving
screws," Mascia warns. "Take a little
more time with your square, level, and string
right at the start, and you’ll save time in the
end when everything fits together." Fred also
took his digital camera to the manufacturer's
headquarters and made photos of how such
details as trim pieces should fit together.
The extra time spent learning on the first
shed allowed the second one to go up easily in
just a few days. The do-it-yourself approach
paid off not only in saving money, Fred points
out, but also in being able to get the paddock
shelters in place when he wanted them. "There are times that construction crews are
running several weeks behind," he says. He
figures the do-it-yourself approach saved
about $1,200 in labor costs. These sheds may look simple, but having
enough volunteer labor to help out is a must,
Ahl points out. "It's a two-person job," he
says. "There are times during construction
that having three people would be ideal."
Steps for safety. The duo also took a number of safety precautions as they tackled the
project. With a 9-foot eave height, a sturdy
ladder is a must. They also predrilled holes
in the structural members where self-tapping
screws were installed. "It takes a lot
less pushing on the drill when you're up in
the air on a ladder," Mascia points out.
Ahl also emphasizes the need for safety
gear. "Safety first," he reminds. "You need
leather gloves and safety glasses. Even with
safety glasses, a chip got into my eye and
caused us to end early one day. And the metal
siding can be sharp, so you need gloves."
Horse owners with a desire to tackle
a summer project can find help on
a variety of topics in the Horse Facilities
Handbook. This new book
on building facilities to house, show,
breed, and raise horses is available from
the MidWest Plan Service, a consortium
of 12 land-grant universities along with the
U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The book features some easy-to-build
ideas such as the paddock shelter that converts
from summer shade to winter shed (see
drawing on opposite page.) Other plans are
more complex, as the handbook offers guidelines
on virtually every part of equine life
from arenas to training facilities, from emergency
management plans to manure management.
The handbook (MWPS-60) is available
for $35 plus shipping and handling by calling (800) 562-3618.
Helpful handbook. Bob Coleman, an Extension
horse specialist for the University of
Kentucky, is quick to recommend the horse
handbook as a resource. "I can tell you my
copy is getting dog-eared already," he says.
"It's a good reference book, whether you
have a lot of experience with horses or are
new to the field," he continues. "You can use
it to sit down and sort through things with your general contractor if you're doing site
planning and preparation for a new facility. Or
if you're just wanting to build a run-in shed,
you probably will be able to look through the
diagrams and material in the book and design
and build it yourself."
Included in the more than 230 pages of
the horse handbook are some topics often
overlooked by horse owners when they design
and build facilities. Chapters on site planning
include such things as environmental controls
and even offer tips on how much space to
allow for visitors who might need to park their
pickup and horse trailer. There also are in-depth
discussions of fencing options as well.
Chances to build. Meanwhile back at the
Ahls' Texas ranch, the shed project has been
a success. Betty is keeping a close watch
on Lizzie. The mare will raise a foal under
the protection of one of the shelters.
Fred and Vince have built not only the
sheds but also a friendship. They are now
partners in the sport of team roping, as the
guys travel together to practices and contests.
"I learned about horses from Fred, and
now he has me hooked on roping," Vince admits.
He recently bought his own roping horse
as he and Fred chase their dreams of catching
a Texas steer in record time.
And out back, Gus, the Ahls' 9-year-old
Texas Longhorn, feels right at home in the
paddock shed that he claims for his own. "He
spends his day in and around that shed,"
Betty says. "He just loves it back there."
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