Barn Hacks – Part Six!

 

Barn Hacks – Part SIX are the answer to all of the universe’s questions. Not really. So it seems that there is no end in sight to our collective genius tips and tricks for making barn life awesome and easy and fun.

 

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93 Easy Barn Hacks – this article should have you covered in the barn hack department.

 

  • When you are braiding your horse, use a rubber band on your comb to mark the width of each braid. Your finished braids will all be perfect! Well, at least they will all be the same width. Be sure to thin your horse’s mane so it’s even from poll to withers, so your braids are equally dense, too.

 

mane-comb

Just a plain mane comb and a braid elastic. You can now perfectly measure your horse’s braids.

 

  • Use an empty feed bag to load a hay net. Place a flake or two in the feed bag, then slide the net over the feed bad. Flip over and remove the feed bag. If you have loose hay, this makes life much easier! You can also use empty feed bags for loads of other things. They are handy to slide in between tack trunks to use as trash bins, too.

 

  • Use a pair of socks with the toes cut open as lower leg protection for your horse. This can help keep bandages in place, keep the bugs away, or keep legs white before a show. Regular socks shouldn’t get wet, so keep an eye on the weather. If you use the Silver Whinny’s socks for horses, rain isn’t an issue.

 

 

socks-for-horses

Silver Whinnys – silver makes them awesome and helps with scratches, stomping, fly control, and more.

 

 

  • Use dryer sheets as rodent and fly repellents around the barn. I have heard that you can also get rid of static cling and electric shocks in your horse blankets by rubbing the underside of your blankets with a dryer sheet.

 

  • To keep shavings inside the stall, you can create a soft, hoof-friendly lip with a piece of stall mat. You can also use the bristle end of a push broom. Some horses like to pull at bristles, so this strip of mat might work better.

 

horse-stall-rice-hulls

This stall door opening has broom pieces across the threshold.

 

  • Use a tire rim as a hose holder to make the most awkward horse barn chore of rolling the hose up easier. Better yet, get some of those shrinking hoses that you have seen on TV ads – they are amazing and save so much time and hassle. After years of wrestling hoses, the shrinking ones are a huge game-changer.

 

  • Use a PVC tube with a closed end as a whip holder. You can close the end with a plumbing cap or some duct tape. Mount on a wall or post and drill a hole in the bottom for drainage if things are exposed to the elements.

 

  • Rub a bar of soap (Irish Spring is particularly potent) on all things that your horse chews or wants to chew or thinks about chewing. You will need to lather, rinse, and repeat as necessary.

 

soap-stop-wood-chewing

Yucky tasting.

 

  • Wear wet socks to help break in a new pair of boots. This helps to stretch out the leather a bit and conform to your leg and foot and ankle. An alternative is to dunk your boots in water (GASP!) but I would only try this on paddock boots. Spraying the inside of the boot with water might help, too, but not as effective as squishy soggy socks.

 

  • You can prevent blisters by using a body glide type of product like runners and hikers use. Use body glide stuff on your own blister prone areas, and on your horse if he gets rubs or sores. Girth areas are

 

  • Keep panty liners in your first aid kit for instant horse-size band-aids. These are not as bulky as diapers and can be easier to wrap on your horse. And because they come in all thicknesses, you can be prepared for anything.

 

  • Plain white vinegar is a great post shampoo rinse to get rid of all suds, add some shine, and repel some bugs. Some bugs are attracted to vinegar smells, so do some experimenting. Vinegar is also great for cleaning around the barn.

 

white-vinegar-for-horses

Vinegar has many uses at the barn!

 

  • Have some shatterproof mirrors around so your horse won’t get lonely in the trailer, his stall, or when you need to see just how bad your helmet hair really is. Shatterproof mirrors have been known to help the horse that weaves, too, as this vice is derived from stress, not boredom. The stress of not being able to see what your horse wants to see can be alleviated by a mirror, showing him an identical buddy to soothe his nerves.

 

 

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For more barn hacks:

 

PART ONE

PART TWO

PART THREE

PART FOUR

PART FIVE

PART SEVEN – DOLLAR STORE EDITION

PART EIGHT – WINTER EDITION

PART NINE – HORSE SHOW EDITION

PART TEN – COLD WEATHER BARN CHORE EDITION

PART ELEVEN

PART TWELVE

PART THIRTEEN – HARDWARE STORE EDITION