Horse paddock / stall footing...?

Question

Hello all

I have recently moved my horse in from pasture into a paddock with a 3-sided stall attached. I want to excavate the dirt a bit and create a better base that will drain and provide great footing for him. I would also like to put rubber in, possibly covering the entire paddock area. From what I have read it seems like a good idea would be to dig down a few inches and dig a couple drainage canals and then fill with something like gravel or granite fines, then put mats on top of that. If anyone has any experience with this, please let me know what works and what does not.

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

POSSIBLY JUST MAKE SURE THE DRAIN DOSENT GET CLOGED

Answer 2

I do have experience with this.  I built a run-in, and put in drainage prior to it's construction.  We dug down 3 feet, and layered large rock, smaller rock, gravel, and then top layered it with ag lime.  You don't have to do it this way.  You can get by with less if you dig a french drain (channel) and incline the floor of your run in toward it.  Then you could put in a 6 inch to one foot depth of ag lime, or ag lime topped over gravel and fill the drain with gravel under ag lime.

I only have mats in the two ends of my run in that are enclosed on 3 sides (it is 36 feet wide by 16 feet deep...the middle 16 feet is open, and each end has 10 feet enclosed).  If the mats are exposed to rain, they become slippery and dangerous.  As long as he has an area that is matted so he can lie on it, that is enough.  My run-in opens to a dry lot, which can be opened or closed off to pasture.  Even in downpours, the drainage is excellent.  We extended the drainage to 4 feet in front of the shed, so no mud accumulates and rain just drains into the ground, and they do very well with this.

Answer 3

mats are a horrible idea, they are slick and dangerous, the bes thing to do is to make the side of the paddock with the three side a bit higher than the other side, and gently slope the entire thing. all of my paddocks are sloped 1 foot per hundred foot. meaning that if you measure 100 feet from the three side, the ground should be one foot lower, this will be fine and actually good for the horse, building natural muscles and natrually healing some injuries