12 Awesome Enrichment ideas for your horse

Whether you are shifting up a more traditonal horse keeping setting or you are planning a track system, one of the most fun aspects to think about and implement is enrichment for your horses. Enrichment includes any aspect of your track that adds a little spice to your horses lives and emulates a natural environment, all while building their body awareness, coordination, proprioception and sense of curiosity.

Think about what a wild horse might be navigating in their environment – how might you create a little bit of that in your horses space?

Adding a kiddie pool and/or a gym mat is easy, cheap and fun for your horses! A large tractor tire can be repurposed into a perfect pedestal obstacle.

Enriching things for horses might include other horses (the best enrichment of all!), poles, branches, rocks, hills, valleys, creeks, varied footing, varied forage, tires, trees and forests, treat puzzles, a gym mat, a tarp, a kiddie pool, wooden obstacles including pedestals and bridges.

If you’re in a boarding situation with an individual paddock, start simple with a few poles, some puzzles (hay balls are a great one for this), and maybe even a sand pile, and keep adding as you and your horse get inspired.

Remember, increasing your horse’s level of choice is key, so anything that does this is a win, even if your current situation isn’t ideal.

Adding poles to your paddock or to your track system increases the level of enrichment and mimics a more natural environment

Some of my favourite and often re-purposed enrichment ideas:

  1. Varied forage. Add horse-healthy tree branches (I love willow) and leave down branches that fall to allow your horses to munch on bark and leaves. Hide little bits of hay or treats around your track for your horses to sniff out and find. You can also mix up their hay by feeding a few different types at a time and add a bag of straw. Plant medicinal herbs and shrubs around your track for your horses to enjoy.
  2. Get their noses involved. Making puzzles for your horses using treats and cubes can be a very fun and engaging task for them. In hot weather, you can freeze water with carrots or apples to keep them entertained and cool. Learn more from Rachael Draaisma and her scentwork online course.
  3. Poles and logs. You’d be amazed how well-coordinated your horses become when they have to move over poles every time they run around your track. You can repurpose old fence posts or jump poles, or even logs that fall in the forest, to create a challenging, fun obstacles course.
  4. A big tractor or truck tire filled with dirt and then gravel – makes such a fun spot to stretch, play and build strength and coordination all in one. And small tires without the rims make great obstacles.
  5. A kiddie pool! Great on hot days and secondary water source. If you have a horse that loves water they will love this addition and it’s also a great way to get horses used to water. You want the harder plastic kind, nothing fancy. They are amazingly durable and easy to patch. Find them cheap on FB marketplace.
  6. A sand pile. Perfect for napping and playing! You don’t even need to spread it out – just let your horses do the job for you.
  7. A hay ball. My mare Raven loves her hay ball, and seeks it out every day. https://amzn.to/3RxbY4K
  8. A wooden pedestal and a wooden bridge.
  9. A hill. You’d be amazed how much your horses love climbing up and down a hill. How great is this skill when you get out on the trail, and also for building strength and coordination for whatever you’re up to. You can also add a rock pile and tuck treats in it for a surprise.
  10. A water buffet. We look at this great enrichment activity in a couple of lessons.
  11. Some puzzles. Make your horses puzzles. Raven has great fun with an empty plastic apple cider vinegar bottle with holes for hay cubes to come out, tied up in a tree (and it’s free and repurposed!). This treat ball is perfect for tucking hay cubes and providing a few hours of enrichment https://amzn.to/3z8DSOi
  12. A gym mat. The cushy terrain of a gym mat can be challenging for their stabilizers and can support positive shifts all the way up to the brain (Find them here – https://amzn.to/3RtA2Fx). Or try out Surefoot Padshttps://www.ttouch.ca/product-category/surefoot/

Here is a great article with some more ideas:

https://www.yourhorse.co.uk/horse-care/horse-behaviour/7-ways-to-enrich-your-horses-environment-and-make-him-happy/?rq=Justine%20harrison

This is a great FB page with lots of ideas for enrichment: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2609672455794356/

A photo of myself with Elisse Miki of Equilibira Therapeutics in Langley, BC chatting about the obstacles she includes in her horse space, including this pedastal. You’ll get a tour of her amazing track system when you sign up for our soon-to-be-released online course! As well, the header image of the water buffet is also from her track system.

Want to learn more? Sign up for our new comprehensive Build a Horse Track System (on the West Coast) online self study course.