Newsdate: February 19, 2025 11:30 am
Location: CAMBRIDGESHIRE, Great Britain

A recent field study by a group of researchers at the Swedish National Equestrian Centre Strömsholm, Sweden, examined the benefits and downsides to horse housing in open barns compared to single boxes also known as stalls. Keeping horses in open barns has positive effects on social interaction and free movement, which may improve horse welfare. However, many horse owners fear that housing in open barns leads to more injuries.

An open barn housing horses at a riding stable.

Housing horses in open barns could improve their welfare in terms of social behaviour, moving freely and fewer colic, but can also impair welfare due to a higher risk of injuries from kicks and bites.
© 2010 by John Clark New window.

All horses in the study were Swedish Warmblood, and school horses used in an undergraduate programme in equine studies at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. The older horses (6–20 years) were trained to compete either in dressage (advanced M-level) or showjumping, while the younger horses (3–5 years) were being trained in both dressage and showjumping.

All horses were exercised 5–6 times a week. In the prospective study the horses' level of competition and discipline were 23 horses in dressage (advanced M-level), 26 in showjumping  and 13 young horses and the median age of the horses was 7.5 years for AOB and 8.0 years for BOX .

In the retrospective study the horses' level of competition and discipline were 31 horses in dressage (advanced M-level), 21 in showjumping and 13 young horses (novice and 1.0 m) and the median age of the horses was 9.5 years for AOB and 10.0 years for BOX. No respiratory diseases were detected.

Keeping horses in groups is becoming increasingly common, as it gives the horses more social contact and possibilities for increased movement.

Yngvesson et al found that horses kept in open barns had fewer respiratory problems and colic than those housed in tie-stall or single boxes, likely due to more outdoor time, more movement and free access to water day and night.

Horses showed increased locomotor activity in an open barn compared with single boxes. Group housing also had a positive effect on learning in young horses during training. However, some horse owners are concerned about the risk of injuries among horses when housed in larger groups.

Agonistic behaviour among domesticated horses can increase due to lack of space, restricted feeding and sub-optimal group composition, while agonistic behaviour is generally rare in free-ranging horses.

Severe injuries among horses as a result from being kicked by other horses have been reported,  but incidents of severe injuries in established groups of horses seem to be rare, indicating that a stabilised group composition is important.

Lameness not caused by trauma is a common diagnosis in equine veterinary practice. Studies have identified risk factors for lameness as surface in training areas, training regime and age.

Moving freely stimulates the hoof mechanism and thereby blood circulation, improving bone density. Holding horses in an open barn may therefore reduce the risk of lameness.

Housing horses in open barns could improve their welfare in terms of social behaviour, moving freely and fewer colic, but can also impair welfare due to a higher risk of injuries from kicks and bites. For horses used in riding schools, number of days lost from training due to injury is also an economic issue.

This study compared the prevalence of health events such as wounds, lameness and colic among horses housed in an open barn or in single boxes. Our research question was: Does housing horses in an active open barn system affect the frequency and categories of health events including wound, lameness and colic?

Conclusion

Lameness seemed to be less frequent in the AOB system compared to single boxes. Horses in AOB system had a higher prevalence of wounds from interaction with other horses, but this did not lead to more days lost from training.

Based on the results obtained in this study, we recommend horses to be group-housed when using correct management with limited regrouping of horses and sufficient available paddock area. Further studies over a longer period and in different AOB designs are needed to confirm this recommendation.

For complete details, see the full study HERE

An open access article - BEVA - Published in the Equine Veterinary Journal
Ely, Cambridgeshire,
CB7 5LQ