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A Farm of My Own:  What do you love about your barn?  |
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HDA
True Blue Farmgirl
59 Posts
Heidi
Hood River
OR
USA
59 Posts |
 Posted - Jan 10 2010 : 6:12:58 PM
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Hello!
I just recently moved & had to leave behind my cute barn my husband built. The new property has no barn so as soon as the snow melts it is time for building again! I loved my old barn so much and my husband could essentially build the same thing, although the old barn had a goat stall & we are no longer keeping goats so we wouldn't need that part. However, I also thought maybe this is a good opportunity to make some changes and do something new.
I would be interested to know what you girls like best about your barn if you have one (big or small), any special features that work really well for you or you couldn't live without?
Our barn isn't going to be huge, we have chickens & a turkey so it will contain a chicken coop on one end for sure & room for storage & all my gardening supplies. I can't wait until we can get to work so I'm all ears for good ideas :) |
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Faransgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
895 Posts
Beth
Houston
Texas
USA
895 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2010 : 6:28:44 PM
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I don't know if you have horses but the part of my barn I love the most is the turn outs behind the stalls. So the horses can actually get outside even if they are stalled. We have turnouts down one side and no turnouts down the other. That way if they can go out they have the opportunity if they have a medical reason not to go out we can keep them in. Works really well. They are in the pasture most of the time but the turnouts are great if for some reason they have to stay in.
Farmgirl Sister 572
May the force of the horse be with you. |
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Hosanna
True Blue Farmgirl
466 Posts
Hosanna
Alton
Virginia
466 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2010 : 6:48:11 PM
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I love old barns first and foremost. BUT - I love everything about my horse barn. My Equine Classic stalls with sliding doors and swiveling feeders and water buckets mounted on little doors that swing out so you can fill them from outside the stall; my heated tack room and bathroom, the wood paneling throughout..... the only thing that I don't like about it is that I don't have a wash stall (yet), and I don't have an outdoor tie place for the horses. Blast.
www.happilyeverafterhosanna.blogspot.com
www.thewindofheaven.blogspot.com
www.CarolinaRoses.etsy.com |
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1badmamawolf
True Blue Farmgirl
2199 Posts
Teresa
"Bent Fence Farms"
Ca
USA
2199 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2010 : 7:03:29 PM
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Mine are either wind or solar powered, and it was one of our best ideas we put in several years back, also a toilet and sink. Don't have your end doors towards the prevaling wind. Bigger is always better. My main barn is the traditional style with the gable roof with a hay loft, which we enclosed and use for storage like an attic. Oh, and of course water spigets thru out, all 4 corners inside and out, plus in between. We also made it as weather tight as we could, due to wind and what can be some pretty misrable winters. A telephone out there is also a really good thing, just in case.
"Treat the earth well, it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children" |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Jan 10 2010 : 8:56:18 PM
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I really like the automatic waters at my horse barn. Now I know some people don't like them because you can't monitor water intake as closely, but these ones are easy to turn off and use buckets if you have concerns about the horse not drinking enough or if you need to get them used to something like apple juice for when you travel.
I also like the fact that the indoor arena has finished walls so the structural supports are closed off behind a wall- no interior fence to keep orses from getting hurt is needed. That is really nice. I also like having a heated indoor wash rack- winter time bathing is a chore but at least it can be done!
Oh and I like how there are spot lights above every stall so if you need to doctor in the middle of the night you can get good lighting.
One thing I really liked at a previous barn is they had web cams rigged in a couple stalls so they could put mares in those stalls if they were about to foal. With the better technology of today you could have it be a remote system that you can check on your computer!
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
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cajungal
True Blue Farmgirl
2349 Posts
Catherine Farmgirl Sister #76
Houston Area
Texas
2349 Posts |
Posted - Jan 11 2010 : 05:47:49 AM
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I love the bales of hay. Sitting on a stack of hay and pondering life is a frequent activity of mine. Listening to all the animals' quiet sounds are so calming during a hectic day. As my children have gotten older, they now join me for my "sit and think" sessions. We have had so many deep and meaningful conversations there....I guess it's like our own "psychiatrist couch".
I love my chicken coops. 4 separate cages holding about 20 chickens in each, line up along an open edge wall. I have full size doors to be able to walk in and clean, gather eggs, etc... I can access the feeding and watering containers from the outside. Best of all, mid-morning I can open the doors and they loudly run out for a day in the sun and 1/4 acre of grass.
something funny..... I was on the phone getting directions to a farmer's place to pick up some goats. She said, "We'll be on the left and it's easy to spot because the barn is bigger than our house" I laughed....isn't that how it should be?
Blessings
Catherine
One of the best compliments from one of my daughters: "Moma, you smell good...like dirt." |
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magnoliakathy
True Blue Farmgirl
453 Posts
Kathryn
Magnolia
Texas
USA
453 Posts |
Posted - Jan 11 2010 : 06:25:14 AM
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Electricty and running water, are what I like the most about my hen house. It is a 20'x32' enclosed pole barn, the only floor is in the milk room, cement pavers. I have it divided into 8'x8' and 8'x16' rooms as needed, all of my farm critters are housed there, so feeding and watering are a breeze, feed storage in metal trash cans in a section where I can keep the goats out, if I remember to latch the gate , with lots of room for hay bales, extra buckets and other farm implements. Last but not least, a small bench to sit on and listen to all of my babies get started for the day or settle in for the night, which ever the case may be.
When you free your mind your heart can fly. Farmgirl # 714, |
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countrymum
True Blue Farmgirl
97 Posts
Lorie
PA
USA
97 Posts |
Posted - Jan 11 2010 : 10:55:37 AM
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good question!
I would have to say the large work/potting bench my husband made, the sink and the composting toilet ( when i'm working i don't have to mess up the house to go to the bathroom.)
"Life is brief & very fragile. Do that which makes you happy."- Flavia |
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5 acre Farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
1007 Posts
~~~*Terri*~~~
WA.
USA
1007 Posts |
Posted - Jan 12 2010 : 1:58:04 PM
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My barn is small, that is what I like about it and right now, it is my DHs wood shop, that is even better, because no shoveling manure....
Farmgirl Sister #368
~~~**Terri**~~~
My blog is up again, please go and read....
http://thecontentedwoman.blogspot.com |
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Madgardener
True Blue Farmgirl
77 Posts
Janet
Oldsmar
Fl
USA
77 Posts |
Posted - Jan 17 2010 : 08:16:27 AM
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Our Barn is 100 yr. old and is made totally out of Chestnut wood, it was in sad repair when we bought our hobby farm 3 years ago, but we have been making repairs. The wood is very beautiful, and if it could tell stories I am sure it would have alot to say. I just love looking at it .
Madgardener #697 Phoenix Farm www.Phoenixfarm.biz
www.phoenixfarm.biz |
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Moodene
True Blue Farmgirl
353 Posts
Nadine
Devers
Texas
USA
353 Posts |
Posted - Jan 17 2010 : 7:37:46 PM
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MY barn was hit by Hurricane Ike and we had to tear it down. It was built my grandpa way back in the early 1940's..The barn slab is still there..my son is thinking about having another one built..
Love me like I am. farmgirl #801
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amomfly
True Blue Farmgirl
658 Posts
Angie
LaGrange
IN
USA
658 Posts |
Posted - Jan 19 2010 : 08:27:35 AM
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My barns are small.. but I love to smell the hay and my horse! I love to smell a horse!
I love to sit out there and listen to the animals too. And watching my chickens is great! They are funny!We have two chicken coops. One small one for Bantams and Auraucanas, then a bigger one for my wide variety of chickens. Then I have free rangers too!
I love to watch and be with all my animals! |
Edited by - amomfly on Jan 19 2010 08:33:03 AM |
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Leelee
Farmgirl in Training
38 Posts
Wraylee
Diamond
WA
USA
38 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2010 : 4:43:49 PM
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What I love about my barn is simple...the life in it. I love when the horses stand in the stall gently nickering to me for treats. I love that the farm cats sleep on the hay stack comfortably. I especially love when my two nephews find wonder in the barn, build swings from old twine and 2x4s, play games around the stack with each other and the dogs, and sit in the straw to talk about the secret things little boys tell each other.
One barn tip I have is seperating your tack area from hay storage. I can't count the number of times my good saddle pads have been thrown down in the hay!
Feeling down? Saddle up!
www.quiltcropandcabbage.blogspot.com |
Edited by - Leelee on Jan 20 2010 4:44:51 PM |
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5 acre Farmgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
1007 Posts
~~~*Terri*~~~
WA.
USA
1007 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2010 : 9:46:21 PM
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Its small and is not being used as a barn anymore, it is my DHs Wood shop.
Farmgirl Sister #368
~~~**Terri**~~~
My blog is up again, please go and read....
http://thecontentedwoman.blogspot.com |
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A Farm of My Own: What do you love about your barn? |
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What do you love about your barn?
