Whether it's your horse barn, horse paddock, horse pasture or horse stabling facilities, you need good horse latches to secure all areas where horses are kept. We'll look at wire gates, pipe gates and wooden gates to find the most secure horse gate for your ranch.
The ideal horse latches and horse gates should allow entry and exit free from impediments, so you can lead a horse with one hand and open and close doors and horse gates with the other. But keep in mind that your horse should not be able to perform the same tasks with their muzzles.
Some horses can and will open gates. I know because I have owned more than one who have been able to use their lips like fingers. They've learned to open stall doors, gates and even grain boxes-a somewhat amusing but very dangerous ability not only to themselves but to their stablemates as well.
The latches around your farm or ranch should be human-friendly and horse-secure. Let's look at some common gate types and consider the fundamentals for securing them.
The gate types we will be focusing on are wire, pipe and wood. Simple is nice, but function is everything. You'll want to be able to operate most gates one-handed because 90% of the time, if you're not leading a horse through one, you'll be carrying something. It's very convenient to be able to use one hand to get the job done.
Wire Gates
As usual, there are always a few exceptions. One in particular stands out-the wire gate.
Wire gates have been around forever. They are often used to divide pastures for grazing or to allow large vehicles access. Wire gates generally require at least two hands to open and close.
The gate is hinged by wire to an H-brace and generally will have a top and bottom loop as the latching system on the other side. When closed, the gate should not sag and the wires (usually a minimum of four strands) should all be tight from post to post. The lower loop is used to secure the post and give you leverage for closing. The upper loop is the most important and should have just enough play in it so that you can get it over the gatepost.
The variations in tightness of these gates has challenged marriages and created a right of passage for many a youngster. Suffice to say, wire gates should be snug enough so an animal cannot nudge it open or push it over.
The need for assistance in securing wire gates has spawned a variety of homegrown devises. A company called SpeeCo has a nifty mechanical type upper gate closer on the market for posts up to 5 inches in diameter. They also have a cable that adjusts to most post sizes. (Check it out at www.speeco.com.)
