[Houdini1220]

What would you consider to be the minimum width I could get away with for an attached run for a 16'1 TB? I have almost no wiggle room as my property is very small. I am considering a stall switch for a few reasons, but the one I want to put him in has the smaller run. My biggest worry is when he rolls.

[Bluey]

I would say, a stall and a stall sized run would be minimum, but by far not adequate.
We had such when a horse was in rehab and was not supposed to move around much, but for a healthy horse, I would rather have at least 12' x 24', as so many in the SW may be, like in AZ and CA, where there is no room for anything.

More important for a stabled horse with little to no turnout is that it be managed where it gets worked with outside the stall for as much as possible, daily and several hours is best.
That is how many school horses in Europe were managed, living in stalls 24/7, but out giving lessons and trail rides several times a day, practically every day.
Those horses were contented and healthy.

[horsepoor]

When I've had my horses in situations where they had a stall with attached run, I've not had them roll in the run (the runs have been gravel since that is what you have to do here to not have mud). They much prefer the cushy bedding in the stall. Or maybe they were smart enough to not try it in the smaller runs (the smallest we've used has been 12'x18', most have been at least 12'x24'. I would not want to go narrower than 12' as that seems to be a good size for them to turn around in. Fence type matters too as electric fencing on a small run makes it seem that much smaller!

[Houdini1220]

Part of the reason I am thinking of switching him to the smaller run is that it has a gate that attaches to the small ring. I would like to be able to open that gate during the day and allow him free access to the ring, but still have the option of his stall if the weather gets bad, or he just feels like coming in. So my main concern is at night when I would shut the gate to the ring....or if the weather is bad...like now....and the ring is not usable. I think the run is about 12 feet wide. I am debating if I want to try and make it bigger. I can only go bigger into the ring though, and then I would lose part of my already small ring and it would no longer be a straight fence line.

[Houdini1220]

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...n/DSCF2622.jpg

This is a picture of the small one. Not the best view....but maybe you can get an idea.

[BEARCAT]

I think that looks fine - I would be more worried about a bored horse chewing all that pretty wood!

[NBChoice]

I think that looks plenty big.

[horsepoor]

I think it seems plenty big as well. What a pretty barn! I'd be worrying about the wood getting chewed on as well -- it looks so nice now and I swear they find that appealing (ooh, look, new barn and fence...yum!).

[Cluck]

That looks great for width. Would definitely advise a hot-wire though

[mkevent]

Beautiful place! I think the runs look big enough.

To add a monkey wrench into your plans...
Is the ring finished or a fenced-in grassy area? The reason I ask is that loose horses will put a lot of wear and tear on the footing of a finished ring. They will paw,roll, run, buck and dig deep marks into the footing, possibly affecting the underlying base. They also wear little "trails" because they tend to go in/ go out using the same path. If it is a finished ring, you have to be vigilant about picking up manure or it breaks down and mixes into the footing.

[Houdini1220]

Thank you for all your replies. That picture is from when the barn was first built. Horses have been in it since Oct. and so far no wood chewing. We have double hay nets fastened inside troughs and it keeps them pretty occupied all day trying to get all their hay. When not doing that they stay pretty busy annoying eachother. I want to avoid hot wire if possible since it is such a small space as it is. Plus I like being able to hop over a fence if necessary.
As far as the ring....it is a finished, packed base with sand on top. We had it professionally done. I know it will get wear and tear......but to be honest I only do a small amount of riding and our property is so small I really want my horse to have some more room. His mental health is more important to me than footing at this point. My dad is on poop patrol throughout the day and I clean up at least twice a night, so the manure doesn't really concern me. I figure having to do some footing maintence every now and then is worth it if my big guy is happy. I literaly have no other place to put him but the ring at this point. The rest of the property is used for other things and is not part of the "horse" area.