[OTTBcooper]

We have a foal due in about 6 weeks (unplanned - long story short, mare was leased to a friend and their pony stud got into her field). I have absolutely zero experience with babies so I am trying to make the best of our small farm. I brought her home with a mini companion and we have added round pen panels to the front of our barn (12x12 stall with overhang) so that there is a 24x30 area section off the front of her stall (half of it is covered by an overhang). The barn is inside the pasture, which is surrounded by 3-board fencing.

I want to "foal-proof" the round pen panels so the baby doesn't slip through the bottom, and was thinking of using this.

Anyone done this before? What did you use to fasten it (zip ties, metal ties, etc)? Is 48in high enough or should I go 60? Did you use something else that worked better/was cheaper?

Any advice greatly appreciated - the anxiety is starting to set in!

[4cornersfarm]

We adopted a burro through the BLM and she was pregnant. We had her turned out (with a run-in stall) in round pen panels. What we ended up doing was using plastic snow fence with small holes like this:

http://www.acehardware.com/product/i...83&cagpspn=pla

We just attached it to the round pen with baling twine. Super cheap, super fast, no issues with the burro baby escaping. It doesn't last long, for some reason it just fractures in the cold. (Weird for snow fence!) But, babies grow so you don't need it for long. Our neighbor uses the old fashioned wood snow fence to keep his babies in his electric fence, but I don't think that's safe, as it has wires holding the wood slats.

http://www.trafficsafetywarehouse.co...FU-d4AodJSUAxg

[OTTBcooper]

What a great idea! I knew posting here would be beneficial Given that I won't need it long and would like for it to be somewhat temporary, this is a much more economical idea (and will be a lot easier to take down... and probably won't damage the panels the way that wire might). Thank you so much!

That wooden fence looks like a little hoof could easily get caught!

[OTTBcooper]

We adopted a burro through the BLM and she was pregnant.

PS - how awesome! I've always wanted to do this. And you got a little baby too

[4cornersfarm]

PS - how awesome! I've always wanted to do this. And you got a little baby too

He's adorable, even now that he is 12 years old. He was born on Thanksgiving day. Not a total surprise, we kind of thought she was pregnant, and she was waxing, etc. But Thanksgiving! We named him Tom.

[ngilland]

We have used 4x8 sheets of plywood, ripped in half so that you had a 2x8 sheet. We placed it at the bottom, drilled holes every few feet, and attached it to the bottom of the panel with wire.

[Nancy!]

We used full sheets of plywood on panels to make "temporary" stalls when we first got our barn built. We used u shaped bolts to hold the plywood on by drilling in a few sections so that the bolt went over the pipe. Worked very well.

Nancy!

[SuckerForHorses]

We have used 4x8 sheets of plywood, ripped in half so that you had a 2x8 sheet. We placed it at the bottom, drilled holes every few feet, and attached it to the bottom of the panel with wire.

We did this, only we used heavy duty zip ties to secure the plywood to the rails.

We didn't cut the sheets in half either, so the plywood went up 4 feet which prevented pawing feet from going through.

I used this setup for stalls in a temporary building before I had my barn. I used the panels to create 3, 12x12 stalls in a row.

[TFF]

I went to try a horse once at a breeding farm and they had a round pen for foaling where they had attached rubber conveyor belt material around the bottom. Ensured that little hooves wouldn't get stuck anywhere, kept bedding in, and kept other animals (dogs, coyotes, and such) out!

They attached it by punching holes in it (either with a hole punch or just using a sharp object) and zip tying it to the panels. It's the best foal fencing I've seen in a while.

[OTTBcooper]

I went to try a horse once at a breeding farm and they had a round pen for foaling where they had attached rubber conveyor belt material around the bottom. Ensured that little hooves wouldn't get stuck anywhere, kept bedding in, and kept other animals (dogs, coyotes, and such) out!

They attached it by punching holes in it (either with a hole punch or just using a sharp object) and zip tying it to the panels. It's the best foal fencing I've seen in a while.

Wow - this does sound very effective and safe! Any idea where they found that type of material?

[OTTBcooper]

We did this, only we used heavy duty zip ties to secure the plywood to the rails.

We didn't cut the sheets in half either, so the plywood went up 4 feet which prevented pawing feet from going through.

I used this setup for stalls in a temporary building before I had my barn. I used the panels to create 3, 12x12 stalls in a row.

Great idea! I have actually debated turning the 12' panels into stalls once the foal is weaned and we won't need the "turnout" section off the barn anymore.

[rmh_rider]

I have a Priefert round pen.

Mine is brown, 90', and a premier. Had it for about 8 years now. Love it. No horse/foal has ever been hurt. This one is made a bit different than other rp's.

http://www.priefert.com/ProductGroup...ound-pens-390/

[OTTBcooper]

I have a Priefert round pen.

Mine is brown, 90', and a premier. Had it for about 8 years now. Love it. No horse/foal has ever been hurt. This one is made a bit different than other rp's.

http://www.priefert.com/ProductGroup...ound-pens-390/

Interesting! I haven't completely checked out the website yet, but it looks similar to other round pen panels. Is it just a different material?

[TFF]

Wow - this does sound very effective and safe! Any idea where they found that type of material?

I've tried looking for some thin rubber rolls online, but haven't had much success. The place I went to had smooth rubber and it was very thin...almost like a rubberized tarp. this is the closest I've found but too expensive in my opinion!

http://www.floormatcompany.com/compo...-mats-p-7.aspx

[OTTBcooper]

I've tried looking for some thin rubber rolls online, but haven't had much success. The place I went to had smooth rubber and it was very thin...almost like a rubberized tarp. this is the closest I've found but too expensive in my opinion!

http://www.floormatcompany.com/compo...-mats-p-7.aspx

Thank you So appreciate it!

[rmh_rider]

Interesting! I haven't completely checked out the website yet, but it looks similar to other round pen panels. Is it just a different material?

If you look at the tops of the panels, no rearing horse can get it's foot or leg caught in it. They are close together at the top. Also the panels have more than a few rails. The bottom of the panels have the same type - not sure what you want to call it - dog leg?? looking thing. This also means no horse can get its foot caught in between the panel edges. The come together more like a square and not oval like other rp panels which come to a V. These are smooth on the inside and outside so no cuts or scrapes can happen. I also have the gate they make. Nice. You can teach the horse over time to stand there and you can open it from the saddle. The gate also has a little thingy which flips and it locks the gate so no lippy nosed horse can open it. These are not short heighted panels either. You could put plywood in side or out if you wanted, or buy it like that from them. Also the way they chain together, the chain fits into a slot, not a hook which a horse could get something hooked on it, or you could with your boot or something like that. I think it chains top and bottom. I see the thing each day but would have to have another look.

Like I said I have a 90' rp. I did make it smaller for a horse I was training, I think to 70', I just removed some panels, and doubled them to get a smaller rp. I am really conscious of too small of an area, and the horses legs in that small area. Big horses, well you get a 60' rp, it really puts that big horse very close to you. These are nicely painted, some of the rp you get they rust in one year.

Good luck!

[crosscreeksh]

We adopted a burro through the BLM and she was pregnant. We had her turned out (with a run-in stall) in round pen panels. What we ended up doing was using plastic snow fence with small holes like this:

http://www.acehardware.com/product/i...83&cagpspn=pla

We just attached it to the round pen with baling twine. Super cheap, super fast, no issues with the burro baby escaping. It doesn't last long, for some reason it just fractures in the cold. (Weird for snow fence!) But, babies grow so you don't need it for long. Our neighbor uses the old fashioned wood snow fence to keep his babies in his electric fence, but I don't think that's safe, as it has wires holding the wood slats.

http://www.trafficsafetywarehouse.co...FU-d4AodJSUAxg

This!!! 3 or 4 feet should be adequate.