Horses in the City: Fira’s Backyard Stall

A backyard tour featuring Fira’s stall.

Chances are if you have been following me for a while, you are familiar with Fira and our city living situation. If you just happened to find my blog from Pinterest or somewhere else, let me bring you up to speed. I live in an equestrian community just outside of Los Angeles. Griffith Park is my playground and I ride all over the city streets. It’s a unique situation that I feel fortunate to have found. A ride with Fira in the hills or an afternoon spent in turnout is a happy escape for both of us. I want to help educate my readers about the area, preserve it and be an active resident. The equine community here is always fighting development.

Previous Blog Posts:

Living with Horses in the City 

Horses in the City: A Year Later

I’ve had several requests for a backyard or “barn tour” on Instagram. Here are a few photos of the space and stall. Since we live in Southern California – there is no barn. Our winters are mild and warm. Fira has a metal shelter in the back part of her stall offering protection from sun and winter rain. Fira’s stall is 25′ x 30′ and 18′ away from the back of the house, it doesn’t get much closer than that. It’s a dirt/sand space with rubber mats added to certain areas. I added sand to the stall when Fira first moved in.

What about manure? That’s another popular question I’m frequently asked. The trash cans next to Fira’s stall are my manure bins. I fill them up each week and wheel them out into the alley every Tuesday morning. They get collected and emptied by the city. I pay a monthly fee for this. I don’t even own a wheelbarrow. Our property is so small and the bins act as a wheelbarrow when I need one.

It’s just Fira in the yard, but she has an equine neighbor next door. They can see each other and nicker back and forth over the fence to right.

Fira has appropriately zoned her stall into sections. The back right corner is where most of her mats and shavings are. That’s her sleeping or resting corner. The back left area is where Fira eats her hay and grain. Her small hay feeder is perfect for the space. She doesn’t like to eat hay once it hits the ground, so keeping it in the feeder helps cut back on waste. The front right corner is where Fira has deemed her bathroom area. She’s extremely neat and only goes the bathroom in one spot. It makes cleaning her stall a breeze because she never goes in her shavings.

The sun shade offers a little extra protection during the summer months.

This is my hay and tack storage barn. It’s located between the patio and gate that leads outside. The 8′ x 8′ doesn’t offer a lot of room, but I make it work. I can store about two months of hay in the barn at a time. A local tack store offers delivery and brings me whatever I need.

That’s it! This is my tiny piece of paradise in the city. If you have any questions, ask away! Be sure to keep up with Fira and I on Instagram @horsesandheels_