calling country d.i.yers

Can anyone advise me as to how difficult and expensive it would be to build a field shelter for two small ponies, it would not be their permanent home as they come in to stables at night but it would be handy for them to pop into during bad weather such as the huge storm we have just had, I might have to do a fair bit of the work myself so it would not have to be to tricky :-)

kate

Reply to
Kate Morgan
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Field shelter is one of those sheds minus its front, yes? Piece of cake. Decide what size you want it, make a frame for the back having the height and width you want, then two frames for the ends. Cover the frames with whatever boarding you like, or even corrugated metal. Then fix the three now-covered frames together and whack a roof on.

Steve

Reply to
shazzbat

I think you need to consider making sure such a structure does not blow away or blow over. With an open front it would be very prone to this. One way would be to thump some wooden stakes (as rot-proof as you can afford) into the ground about three foot deep and tight to the sides. Bolt them onto the sides at the bottom and saw off the tops.

Rob Graham

Reply to
robgraham

Build it from bales of hay the ponies will love you for it and is soooo easy to construct.

Jb

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Reply to
Jb

Interesting! How long will it last?

Rob

Reply to
robgraham

Great post, just inspired me to build my own house. Scrape out a trench, stack a few bricks on top of each other, leave a few holes for doors, and to let some light in, place some sticks on top of the bricks to hold the tiles, and then throw some tiles on the sticks, I should then be able to complete the inside tomorrow in the dry ;-)

Reply to
Harry Stottle

It's to keep the rain off a pony, what more do you want? BTW, I'm assuming the OP has the nous to put the back of it towards the prevailing wind direction.

Steve

Reply to
shazzbat

Yes, I hope so, but even then 'prevailing' doesn't mean 'always', and anyway a shed can get blown over even if it has doors.

Rob Graham

Reply to
robgraham

Does it need a floor? If not then a simple 4"x2" frame clad with somekind of exterior sheeting or planking is all you need. If the field is away from power prepare all the timbers at home, even making up complete frames pre drilled then just bolt them together in the field. It will of course need staking down securely to stop it blowing away, but a fence post at each corner driven well into the ground then bolted to the frame would do. If it is indeed just for two "small" ponies then a single slope "pent" roof would do, it could be a narrow deep structure with the roof sloping down to little higher than the ponies head at the back.

Perhaps use some OSB board on the inside to protect the cladding from being kicked off, even build it on old sleepers, add a towing point and move it around the field by dragging it with a tractor or 4X4.

Something like this perhaps.

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Mike

Reply to
Muddymike

My, albeit, limited experience of horses would lead me to conclude that any stucture should be sound and well built - these animals kick! My gut reaction would be to go all out, don't build something that will collapse after three kicks and a rainy day. If it were me, I'd opt for breeze block on a solid concrete floor that has a slight slope towards the door for drainage and then a simple 'shed-like' wood & felt roof.

However, someone did suggest bales of straw and I have seen that used to great effect and it lasts a long time. I guess you could also say it's more environmentally acceptable in a field too. Most sheep famers use straw bales to shelter lambing sheep from the harsh winds of early spring in remote places.

Ultimately I guess is down to your budget, if you own a horse, you're probably continuosly skint :-)

Ron

Reply to
Ron O'Brien

They actually suggested bales of hay - which is rather different, more expensive, and edible.

Rob

Reply to
robgraham

Yes, but to most none country folk they are the same thing :-)

Mike

Reply to
Muddymike

I bet the horses can tell. I hope any owner can too...

On the 2x4 someone suggested - horses will scratch themselves on anything convenient. It needs to be able to survive a horse with an itchy... ermm... tail. That won't be enough.

Andy

Reply to
Andy Champ

This has been a very helpful thread and I thank everyone for their suggestions and words of wisdom :-) many good ideas, the shelter on wheels would be one way of avoiding the planners telling me off. Ron is right saying that most horse owners are skint - but happy - so I have decided that the best and possibly cheapest solution would be to knock a hole in the back wall of the stables, they back on to the paddock and then fill the hole with a door so that the pones could wander in and out whenever they wished and we would all be happy. thanks again for helping me to make up my mind

kate

Reply to
Kate Morgan

Yep watch out for the planners Kate, depends where you are going to put it, get in touch if you need advice AJ

Reply to
AJH

Yep watch out for the planners Kate, depends where you are going to put it, get in touch if you need advice AJ

I will take care but I wouldn't need planning to put a door in an existing building would I ?

kate

Reply to
Kate Morgan

I was brought up on a farm, I suggested straw so the bloody great beasts wouldn't eat it, just keep them warm, not much point in building a shelter that ain't gonna be there in the morning :-)

Ron

Reply to
Ron O'Brien

Doubtful for agricultural purposes where the needs and welfare of the animals are important. That would certainly be the best and cheapest long term option, you will have to comply with building regs, but that should be straight forward.

Ron

Reply to
Ron O'Brien

If you lived in New Zealand you'd need a permit to *sneeze* outside an existing building :-\\

A L P

Reply to
A _L_ P

I thought life was very casual in NZ

kate

Reply to
Kate Morgan

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