Looking for a fun horse activity? Try your hand at building homes the Two-Bits way. Get out a shoe box and get creative today.

Shoebox Barn made at Camp It Up! summer of 2009.

Making sure a horse has shelter and protection from severe weather is important to any horse’s well-being. Shelter to a horse is like a home to a horseman.

Today’s shelters can range from luxurious to simple: from an air-conditioned, well-bedded stall to the old porch of an abandoned ranch house. Here’s a fun activity to make your own simple model of a safe and protective horse shelter using a shoebox.

Materials:

Shoe box with lid
Construction paper
Markers
Glue (hot glue is best if you have an adult to help)
Scissors
Popsicle Sticks
Paint
Quick Air Dry Clay
Toy Horse (optional)

Crazy about horses? Test your knowledge with AQHA’s Junior Master Horseman program. You can even earn certificates!

1. Take the lid off your shoebox and put it together as shown in the picture. The top of the lid should be facing down so you can set the box inside the lid. You can use your scissors to make windows for your barn. These can go in the back of your barn (the bottom of the box) or on the sides.
2. Using any color of paint you have, paint your popsicle sticks. Later these will be a fence for your barn. This can take anywhere from 15-20 sticks depending on the size of your shoe box. Now, set these to the side somewhere safe to dry.
3. Use the construction paper and markers to make fun cut-outs and designs to jazz up your barn. You can glue the paper to the inside and outside of your barn. On the bottom of your barn (inside the lid) you may want to make grass for your horse to graze and walk on.
4. Using the clay you can create a feed trough, water tank, and anything else you think your hose will need. After they are dry and set, you can paint these to suit your new barn better.
5. When your popsicle sticks are dry its time to build your fence around the barn (or the lid of your box). Glue the sticks vertically inside the lip of the lid spaced apart just under the length of one stick. You can connect these using more sticks as shown in the picture.

Now your barn is complete! You can add your new feed trough and water tank to the barn before introducing your American Quarter Horse to its new home.