Trade Zone: Farm and Barn Maintenance
With spring’s arrival, now is the time to plan farm maintenance and improvements on fencing, pastures, and barns. The quality products and services mentioned below can improve efficiency, deliver value, and simply make life easier when working around horses. Prior to purchase, be sure to ask if any of the products qualify for discounts either under NTRA Advantage or equinesavings.com.
Facilities for Good Horsekeeping
The types of horses you are enclosing will dictate in part your choice of materials— whether you need a roomy paddock for mares and foals, a large pasture for a group of horses, a stallion paddock, or a fence for rambunctious yearlings.
Paddocks or pasture fence for mares and foals should be very safe and durable since foals are inquisitive and can easily get into trouble putting a foot or head through the fence. The best fence for foals has some give (so a foal won’t be injured if he crashes into it). It should have the bottom board, pole, or wire close to the ground to prevent a baby from rolling out of the pasture if he lies too close to the fence for a nap. An enclosure for weaning must be secure and hazard-free. A stallion paddock should be at least fivefeet high or taller (preferably six to seven feet).
If you have space, use double fencing between pastures, between a pasture and a roadway, or between stallion paddocks to help protect your horses and fences.
Double fences with a wide alley between them reduce risk of injury, horses escaping, or spread of disease. A double fence should be wide enough to prevent noseto-nose contact by horses and to allow access with a tractor and mower. The leader in turf and irrigation equipment, Toro® (www.toro.com) and its subsidiary Exmark (www.exmark.com) help customers maintain their pastures, paddocks, and other outdoor landscapes with environmentally responsible solutions. Customers value the company’s products for their quality and innovation.
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Sponsors:
FarmPaint.com (www.farmpaint.com)
Jeremy Cobb Stall Gates and Stall Fronts (765-309-2823)
Dandy Products (www.dandyproducts.net)
Penrod Lumber & Fence Construction Co. (www.penrodfence.com)
John Deere/NTRA Advantage (www.deere.com)/(www.ntraadvantage.com)
Sherwin Williams/NTRA Advantage (www.sherwin-williams.com)/(www.ntraadvantage.com)
The Pond Lady (www.thepondlady.com)
Equine Savings.com (www.equinesavings.com)
Linear Rubber Products, Inc. (www.rubbermats.com)
Quillin (www.quillin.com)
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