Barn Winter Must-Haves Checklist

Winter barn chores come down to three jobs: keep water open, keep hay in front of your horses, and keep stalls dry. Get those right, and most horses handle the cold just fine. Get them wrong, and you're chipping ice at 5 a.m. and watching for colic. Here are the barn winter must-haves we'd stock before the first hard freeze, all available in our barn supplies lineup and beyond.

Barn Winter Must-Haves Checklist

• Water heat: a stock tank de-icer for the pasture and heated buckets for the stalls
• Hay tools: a bale cutter, a hay hook and a feeder that keeps hay off frozen ground
• Feed tub: for warm, soaked mashes on the coldest days
• Stall cleaning gear: a stout fork, a muck cart and plenty of dry bedding
• Blankets: a turnout blanket sized and weighted for your horse
• Safety basics: heavy-duty cords, cord protectors and hooks for drying wet blankets

Water That Won't Freeze

Water is the most important item on this list. Horses prefer water between 45 and 65°F, and an 1,100-pound horse that normally drinks 10 to 12 gallons a day may drink only 1 to 3 gallons when the water is near freezing, according to NC State Extension. Low water intake is closely tied to impaction colic, the type vets see most in winter. Keeping water open and above freezing is the best colic prevention you can buy.

Stock Tank De-Icers

For pasture tanks, the Api Stock Tank Deicer 1500 Watt is a sinking design with a weighted stainless steel element. It's made for plastic tanks holding 100 to 300 gallons and comes with a 6-foot anti-rub cord. If you'd rather have a unit that rides on the surface, the Api Floating Tank De-Icer with Guard adds a galvanized wire guard for rubber, plastic and structural-foam tanks plus a built-in thermostat that only heats when it needs to. For smaller setups, the Farm Innovators Floating Plastic Tank De-Icer runs at 1,250 watts and is thermostatically controlled.

Sinking or floating? Horse owners say floating de-icers tend to become toys, especially with young horses. If you've got a pasture full of busy-bodies, go with a sinking model or a floater with a guard, and route the cord where it can't be grabbed or chewed.

Heated Buckets for Stalls

Heated buckets keep stall water drinkable overnight without a separate heater in the bucket. The Farm Innovators Heated Flatback Rubber Bucket holds 18 quarts, hides its 90-watt element where horses can't reach it and has a non-chew cord protector. The Api Heated Plastic Flatback Bucket holds 5 gallons and hangs flat against the stall wall. For a run-in shed or a small paddock, the 16 Gallon Heated Bucket is thermostatically controlled and rated to resist cracking down to -20°F.

Bucket tip: Research shared by the American Association of Equine Practitioners found that most horses do their drinking within a few hours after feeding. Topping off heated buckets at feeding time, twice a day, keeps fresh water in front of them when they want it most.

Bucket Heaters for Warm Water on Demand

The Api Bucket Heater 1000 Watt drops into a 5-gallon plastic bucket and heats water fast, which makes it handy for warm mashes, washing buckets and thawing frozen hoses. It's built for heating water, not for de-icing a bucket your horse drinks from. Pull it out and unplug it before the bucket goes in a stall.

Waterer tip: If you run automatic waterers, keep a spare Little Giant Stock Waterer Float Assembly Kit in the tack room. A float that sticks in the cold can leave a trough dry or flooded, and a spare gets you back in business in minutes. Before the hard freezes, the Horse Hydrator Water Filter can help picky drinkers by taking off-tastes out of hose water. It's rated for 40°F to 100°F, so bring it inside once temperatures drop.

Hay and Feed Tools for Cold Mornings

Hay is a horse's furnace. Digesting forage in the hindgut produces body heat, so extra hay is the first thing to add before a cold snap. NC State Extension recommends feeding at least 1.5% of body weight in hay during cold spells, or roughly 15 to 18 pounds a day for a 1,000-pound horse.

• Tough 1 Hay Bale Cutter: slices twine fast with gloves on, and it's cheap enough to keep one in every coat pocket.
• Bond Steel Hay Hook with Wooden D Handle: saves your back when you're moving more bales than usual.
• Little Giant 11 in. Fence Feeder: keeps grain and supplements off frozen, muddy ground.
• Horseman's Pride Mini Feed Tub: a sturdy tub for warm mashes. NC State suggests letting a soaked mash sit about 15 minutes before feeding.
• Little Giant 3 Quart Enclosed Feed Scoop: measures grain consistently when you're adjusting rations for the cold.

If your horse is still drinking less than you'd like, ask your vet about adding horse electrolytes to encourage water intake.

Stall Cleaning Gear That Handles Frozen Manure

Horses spend more time inside in winter, so stalls get dirtier and wet bedding freezes into clumps. A good fork and a way to haul it make the job go a lot faster.

Stall Forks

The Tough 1 Pro Pick Rounded Stall Fork sifts shavings and keeps clean bedding in the stall. If a head cracks on frozen manure, you can swap in a replacement fork head instead of buying a whole new fork. For pens and run-ins where you need more muscle, the Little Giant Metal DuraFork handles the heavy, frozen stuff.

Muck Cart and Bedding

The Little Giant Muck Tub Cart has pneumatic tires that roll over ruts and snow, carries up to 350 pounds and folds flat for storage. It holds a standard 70-quart muck tub, which is sold separately. Restock with Queen Easy Sift Shavings, 100% pine bedding that sifts clean and soaks up moisture so stalls stay drier.

Bedding rule of thumb: Bank extra shavings along the stall walls. It gives your horse a warmer, drier place to lie down, and you'll pick less wet bedding out of the middle of the stall.

Blankets for the Cold Snaps

Not every horse needs a blanket, but clipped horses, older horses, hard keepers and horses without shelter often do. The NRS Turnout Horse Blanket has a 1200-denier ripstop shell and 250 grams of fill, plus a tail flap and fleece wither protection. For colder climates, the Professional's Choice 1200D Horse Blanket steps up to 300 grams of fill. Not sure what weight or size you need? Our horse blanketing guide walks you through it, and you can shop every style in our horse blankets collection.

Barn Safety Before the First Freeze

Winter is peak season for barn fires, and heaters and cords are a big reason why. The AQHA's barn fire checklist is worth a read. Here are the basics we'd handle before plugging anything in:

• Use heavy-duty cords only. Toss lightweight household extension cords and run one long cord instead of chaining short ones together.
• Keep cords away from hay and off nails, and run them through conduit where horses or rodents could chew them.
• Dust heaters and lights before the season starts. Dust and cobwebs on hot surfaces can catch fire.
• Know where your main breaker is, and make sure everyone at the barn does too.
• Hang wet blankets to dry on utility tack hooks or rubber safety hooks so they don't sour on the floor.

Barn Winter Must-Haves FAQ

How do I keep my horse's water from freezing?

Use a stock tank de-icer in pasture tanks and heated buckets in stalls. Both are thermostatically controlled, so they only heat when the water gets close to freezing. Check them daily, since a tripped breaker or a pulled cord can leave you with a frozen tank by morning.

Do horses need heated water in winter?

Horses drink more when their water is warmer. They prefer water between 45 and 65°F, and intake can drop sharply when water is near freezing. Since low water intake is a leading risk factor for impaction colic, heated water is one of the most important winter investments you can make.

Is a sinking or floating de-icer better?

Sinking de-icers are harder for horses to play with, which makes them a good fit for pastures with young or curious horses. Floating de-icers are easy to see and check, and models with a guard protect plastic and rubber tanks. Whichever you choose, protect the cord.

How much hay should a horse eat in winter?

Plan on at least 1.5% of your horse's body weight in hay per day during cold weather, or about 15 to 18 pounds for a 1,000-pound horse. Hard keepers and older horses may need more, so check body condition under the blanket by feeling for ribs.

Are heat lamps safe in a horse barn?

Heat lamps and space heaters are a common cause of winter barn fires. Most healthy horses don't need supplemental heat if they have hay, water, shelter and a blanket when needed. If you use any heat source, keep it caged, dusted and well away from hay and bedding.

Get Your Barn Ready for Winter

Don't wait for the first ice storm to find out a bucket is cracked or a de-icer is dead. Shop our heated buckets and de-icers, stock up on barn supplies, and check out our winter farm and ranch prep tips for your other animals. Stay warm out there.