Barn Boots

Barn boots are certainly a barnyard essential. Whether cleaning out stalls or grooming the horses a good pair of boots keeps you warm and dry. Some boots offer crush resistant toes that can protect you from injury too! Thanks to the recent “boot” craze sweeping the country there are many brands and tons of styles available in stores and online. Make sure to choose carefully and consider the tasks you do in and around your barn before making a purchase.

Colorful waterproof rain boots easily double as farm boots and can bring a little fun to your chores. They are generally quite reasonably priced and when they get super dirty replace them with the newest crazy color or pattern! Many of today’s rubber rain boots are even recyclable, so you can feel earth friendly as you toss the old pair into the recycle bin and break out your new pair. Remember that if you are working around animals these boots seldom if ever sport a safety or crush resistant toe or steel shank.

For the practical farm boy or girl waterproof neoprene boots are not only warm and dry, they’re super comfortable too! Generally available in basic black, bark or olive green they clean up easily with a good hosing and can handle the tough jobs well. Some even come with the “all important” toe and/or shank protection necessary around large animals. They are especially great in fall, winter and early spring because of their warmth ratings. If you wear them for wet messy jobs in the heat of summer make sure to wear a sock that keeps or wicks moisture away from the foot.

Cowboy and wellie style boots are all the rage these days…and not just in the southwest! On runways from New York to Paris and Milan the cowboy boot look is the fashion statement of record! In fact I just recently saw them made from rubber rain boot material! The leather versions come in steel and composite toe for extra protection as well as plain toe versions. Horse trainers and breeders love their leather cowboy boots. With wear the leather eventually takes on the shape of the feet to form the perfect fit. If you’ve ever gotten “attached” to an excellent quality leather cowboy boot you can certainly understand why many a cowboy from the old west chose to sleep with their boots on!

Still there are many hold outs that stick with the traditional lace-up leather boot for all manner of farm work. These come in a variety of heights and with or without toe and shank protection. They are great if you’re fixing fences, plowing or feeding. Lace-ups provide excellent ankle support and like their pull-on counterparts eventually become a most comfortable and reliable friend!

Whatever barnyard fun you’re involved in just remember to “boot up” before you get started and have a great time!