There’s not a lot of horsing around among employees at the ISU Horse Barn.

Lori Brief, a senior in animal science and employee at the horse barn, puts in about 15-20 hours a week.

“I do pretty much everything from cleaning the stalls, to feeding them, helping them with breeding and foaling, grooming them and getting the horses ready for sale in the spring,” Brief said.

Sara Garr, agriculture specialist, said there are four students on average who work at the barn during the school session. Only two or three people work in the barn during the summer months.

When looking for new employees, Garr said she looks for students who have a background in farm work. She also looks for people who can handle the weather and chore work.

During the spring months, the employees start their day at 7:30 a.m. They begin the day by taking a trip to the off-campus pastures. It takes about an hour to set up.

The base herd of horses is around 45, depending on how many colts are born. Usually there are 10-14 foals born each year and the number of horses almost never drops below 60.

“Even though we breed many of our horses, people still donate their animals to a place where they know the horses will have a good home and be taken care of,” Garr said.

“Most of the donors give their horses to the horse barn because they don’t want them to be sold. Most of the horses that live here are donated old show horses whose careers are over,” she said.

A lot of seed companies test their feeds on the horses. They hope the employees will try out their feeds and see how the horses react. The horses are put on a high-speed treadmill and are observed on how well they perform after they are given the supplement in their food.

The majority of the research done at the horse barn is limited to just the feeding trials, but on different kinds of horses. The broodmares, mares that are bred once a year, are one of the more active kinds.

They are given feed supplements in their food and their foals are watched carefully to see if they receive any more nutrients and protein through the milk.

The horse barn is not just limited to horses and their care. Several animal science classes are held in the barn throughout the year. In the spring, Animal Science 216 is offered. It consists of breaking and training horses.

In the fall, Animal Science 316 is held in the barn. The class deals with the interaction of physiological development and behavior of the horses with training and athletic performance.

Two other classes are also offered. Animal Science 413, equine exercise physiology, shows students the techniques used to develop conditioning, fitness and athletic potential in the performance of animals.

It also offers advanced techniques to prepare horses for show, performance and sale. The other class is Animal Science 415, equine management.

It teaches the nutrition, physiology and reproduction of the horses. The object is for the students to manage the horses’ health, growth, breeding and their exercise programs.