Safety for young horses
The other is stud fencing. Much used, as its name suggests, by studs for fencing in mares and foals, this is a white plastic fencing which is very forgiving, as it has no sharp edges, doesn't splinter when it is damaged, and yields if a horse runs into it. For private use, though, it is perhaps too forgiving, and horses (including youngsters) tend not to respect it as much as something more solid.
Here are a few things which should never, never be seen near fields where young horses are kept:
Barbed wire: a vet once said to me he'd halve his income if barbed wire was banned. He was half-joking, but the injuries caused by barbed wire can be very serious - they can scar a horse for life at best, and at worst can lead to infection and death.
Stock wire: the large-spaced squares of this wire fencing may be good for keeping sheep in, but they are open invitations for curious little muzzles and probing forefeet. Young horses can get badly tangled in this kind of wire, though it is perfectly safe for older horses.
Field care
We found out the hard way with Abbie that fields have to be kept scrupulously clear of debris of any kind. Before putting a young horse in a field, check it over carefully for large stones or rocks, any pieces of wood, metal, old buckets, tree branches... in fact anything unless it's grass or other horses! Keep checking, too - everything you pick up is one less vet's bill.
Holes and very rough ground are also potential accident zones: rolling the field once a year may solve the problem, but if the ground is too badly poached, for example, by gateways, it's worth considering installing a concrete hard standing instead.
The stable
If you keep your horses in wooden stables, it's a good idea to run your hands regularly over every surface, right up to the ceiling, to check for splinters and nails. Just making a visual check isn't always enough - you miss the one tiny nail that catches your horse's inquisitive nose.
There shouldn't be any sharp edges - the metal surrounds to reinforce stable doors tend to be the worst culprits here - and you could take the further precaution of covering the top of the stable door with a solid rubber covering. The horse may chew this, but he will chew the wood anyway, and
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