Stabling at DAD

[Schiffon]

We'll be taking a mare and foal to DAD for the first time and in the past have heard of problems with the quality of stabling. I'd like to hear some specifics and if there is anything I should be prepared to bring with me to customize the stall to make it safe and comfy.

Also, is there room for a tack trunk or hay in front of the stall?

Thanks!

[not again]

Stalls are small and aisles are narrow. Better to get a tack stall and bring a cot too because there are usually incidences during the night. We never leave the horses alone.

[acottongim]

Hey!! I went a couple of years ago and am actually going again this year (yeah, there will be more than one TK owner there!! LOL). I think a lot depends on the barn you get assigned. I was lucky that the barn I went in was newer. The aisles was around 12 foot wiide so there isn't a TON of room to put stuff out in front. That being said, for one horse, in hand, I did have a smaller tack trunk and my feed bag sitting on top of my hay bales. Some of the older barns though are more narrow. Take a hammer to pull out nails in the stall and inspect your stall before you put your horse in (but I do that at all shows).

Look forward to seeing you there!

[Tiki]

The stalls are slowly being completely rebuilt, so it depends on where you are stabled what you will run into.

[LD1129]

Only a section at a time has been rebuilt and it usually goes to Hilltop/Hassler/Iron spring and other big name farms that bring 5-10 horses or more. Most of the barn isles are tiny so I would suggest a tack stall! Last year things in the isle just got trampled because there was barely enough room to get horses in and out.

[Schiffon]

Thanks for the tips! I will get a tack stall. Luckily I can split with a friend since $45 per calendar day including the day of arrival is painful when all I really need it for is feed and a teeny tack box.


Anissa, I look forward to meeting you too. Please come by. Will Tate be there?

[Maryanne Nicpon]

You may want to consider a tack stall on both sides of your horse. It'll cost more, but your horse won't be exposed to anyone else. The stall walls are not solid, and have large gaps between the boards, so contact is definitely going to happen. I had a young horse contract strangles at Devon a few years ago. I would not leave anything in the aisle because the aisles are very narrow and it also may "disappear". Put it in a tack stall with a lock. Oh, plan to store your stuff up off of the ground because if it rains hard, many of the barns flood and have standing water in them. For a prestigous show like Devon, the stabling is a disgrace.

[acottongim]

Lea Ann - yes I'm bringing Tate. We are only doing the in hand stuff but since I moved him to CAN that is the only show I could get him to for his third scores to be elig for any year end stuff... so off to DAD we go LOL. I'll def come and find you!!

The rain is always a problem - we had a hurricane (or the remanents of one) when I was there. Nice right? I leave FL to go to DAD to get hit by a hurricane LOL. That was in 2004. The barn I was in did not flood but it was one of the newer barns and again, I was lucky. Everything else (including the roads into DAD) were flooded.

I forgot about the slats - yes, they are fairly open to each other.

The other thing to be prepared for is the parking. Getting into the show grounds, and then getting out is tight. Be ready to unpack quickly and you will want to unpack everything as it is a distance to where the trailers park - there is no "running back to the trailer" for something forgotten. What I couldn't leave at the barn I left in the car and/or carried with me back and forth to the hotel.

[ise@ssl]

LD1129 - Perhaps you are unaware that Hilltop Farm actually PAID for the renovation of the first barn with the new stalls and hardware which started the fund raising program for other people to donate money to help rebuild all the stalls.

[LD1129]

LD1129 - Perhaps you are unaware that Hilltop Farm actually PAID for the renovation of the first barn with the new stalls and hardware which started the fund raising program for other people to donate money to help rebuild all the stalls.

Oh wow I did not know that. Very cool, I always figured it was because they brought so many horses there every year since forever. But that is nice that they helped with renovations.

[Fairview Horse Center]

I have been showing at Devon for 15 years, often stabling up to 8 + most with foals along with their moms, and never had an injury or illness. We have always been in the older barns, with narrow aisles. It is definitely better to have a tack stall, but we have done it in the past without.

We always check for nails or any needed repairs (a board down, or a latch not working properly) when we first arrive. The Devon maintenance crew has always been quick to respond, even though we are on the other side of the showgrounds from their base. The stalls are used for other shows, and often people put nails in them to hang their stuff on. Bring tools to remove them.

The main barn that floods IS the Hilltop barn, and they are WELCOME to them. :yes: ;) Scott was waist deep several years ago, trying to unclog a drain near those barns. :eek:

The older barns are built to be open and airy. Better air flow means LESS disease passed around. The newer barns are more closed in, so hotter for sure. My barn is provably the one that is next to be done, and quite frankly, I will be sorry to see it.

The unloading can be a problem, especially up the aisle we are stabled in. It seems like there is always someone that parks their trailer, and leaves for an hour or so, and no one can get past until they are found, and move their rig. :mad: :mad: Plan to have the tools you need (hammer, buckets) to quickly be able to get your horses unloaded, and then unload everything else, and PLEASE move your rig. Even so, before you even park, try to find a spot that people can still squeeze by. There IS actually enough room to pass in that narrow first aisle. PLEASE consider others. THEY have had a long drive too!

[YankeeLawyer]

The unloading can be a problem, especially up the aisle we are stabled in. It seems like there is always someone that parks their trailer, and leaves for an hour or so, and no one can get past until they are found, and move their rig. :mad: :mad: Plan to have the tools you need (hammer, buckets) to quickly be able to get your horses unloaded, and then unload everything else, and PLEASE move your rig. Even so, before you even park, try to find a spot that people can still squeeze by. There IS actually enough room to pass of that narrow first aisle. PLEASE consider others. THEY have had a long drive too!

It is the parking / unloading / loading at Devon that I find most stressful.

[mistyjewell]

Just thought I'd add... that I believe that Iron Springs does not have a new section (or did not last time I checked) They always have the row barn nearest the warm-up area, and they bring their own gates and everything there, but as of last year, that section had not been re-done, and I know several people with only 1-2 horses that had stalls in the new barns. A lot of it also depends on managing where stallions and open mares are etc. It's far from perfect, and we all know that, but I think Lori (and her staff) do really try to make as many people as happy as they can be with the situation.

I'd suggest, if possible, to bring a disinfectant for the walls/floor prior to bedding down, hammer to pull out any left behind nails, nails of your own (try and remember to take them out when you leave!) and possibly some plywood if the bottom boards have too big of a gap, you may be able to cover it. (again, remove when you leave)

I'll ditto the loading/unloading issue. It's always scary, and I think I hate trailer parking even more! lol.