When you’re constructing a horse farm and have limited land, design and layout are critical to maximizing your time and resources. You might be constrained by existing fencing and buildings. You might have to work around natural obstacles such as streams and hills.

“Often, new horse property owners come from urban settings and are unfamiliar with a rural lifestyle,” says Alayne Blickle, founder of the horse and property management program Horses
for Clean Water, in Nampa, Idaho. “They don’t know that you shouldn’t put your … sacrifice area over your septic system’s drain field,” for instance.

Then there are those who are familiar with living with horses but are, perhaps, getting their first property and have a blank slate and no idea where to start. Either way, here’s how to design a functional farm on what land you have.