I like to spy on my horses. There, I said it. I love the ability to see what my horses are doing and that they are safe and where they are supposed to be.
How do I do this? With a wireless stable camera.
Whether I’m at home and don’t want to walk outside or I am away and want to check that they’re ok, I want the ability to be able to take a look at my horses whenever I want.
The first night my new horse was here, I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn’t see him on the stable camera and freaked out enough to walk up to the barn at 2:30 am in my pjs to check he was still there and ok. He was just sleeping! He looked up at me like “What on earth is your problem, lady?! Turn off the lights!”
So how do I keep an eye on my horses in the barn? I use Ring Cameras. I like to use these wireless stable cameras because they are easy to use and a reasonable price point.
I’ve been using these in the barn for 4 years with no issues. I tend to use battery powered models because it can be hard to be restricted by a plug, and I’m always afraid of leaving things plugged in with the chance of a barn fire.
So which Ring product do I use as a wireless stable camera?
All my cameras in the horse area are Ring Stick Up Cameras like pictured below.
They are mountable in a variety of ways, though I keep them on the stand that is shown above so I can move them around as needed and it’s easier for me to replace batteries.
Where do I place these wireless stable cameras?
I have a few common places around the horses that I keep these. One is on a ledge above a window in the barn – this allows me to see the horses inside, and it shows my baby the clearest since it faces his stall. I especially like this placement when I have to close him in during bad weather that way I can always take a look at him. Though he likes to nap in the corner that I cannot see him, always providing some uncertainty like I mentioned before!
Here is a view from the ring app of the camera looking at my horse stalls. Two of the horses were inside when I took this screenshot, but you can see the third when she is inside her stall as well.
I also have cameras along my fence line, I used to just rest them next to the posts, but the wind has been so bad that it blows them down, so now I nestle it against a post and tie baling twine to the fence to hold it on. *Also an important note – I would not leave these within reach of a horse who would mess with them and potentially break the camera or expose the battery. I have two I would not trust with being able to touch them because they’d spend all day trying to eat or break the camera. The horse whose fence posts I do use like this, does not investigate things and the worst she’d do is rub her head on the camera thinking it was the fence post.
Here is an a view from an outdoor camera “mounted”, ie sitting on a fence line:
This is how I started to mount my cameras outside, we have a lot of wind so it kept blowing off when it wasn’t secured! You can see how dirty it’s gotten recently from tumbling off the fence:
It would be easy enough to actually mount these with the provided mounting hardware, but I sometimes move them over to a turnout so I can watch and make sure my horses are safe when I am away.
The outdoor cameras from Ring have night vision so you can see the horses in the stalls or outside at night as well.
An important note about Ring Cameras is that they do require a Wifi connection. If you don’t have wifi, these cameras will not work. But if you do have Wifi, they are the perfect wireless stable camera.
My barn is about 300-400 ft from the house, and when we moved our horses into their new barn, the wifi did not reach the barn so I had to come up with a solution to continue using my cameras.
What if my wifi doesn’t reach the barn camera?
Since my barn is a ways away from the house, the wifi did not work there on just our normal in house wifi network. I wanted to have cameras functioning at the barn so I got a wifi range extender.
The one I purchased was this Netgear Orbi Outdoor Wifi Extender. I did get it on a black Friday sale because the full price is a bit pricey at $374.00 (price at the time of this post). It often goes on sale for quite a bit less. During the holidays it was $289.00.
The reason I got this extender was because I wanted to be able to place this outside and have it cover more of the barn area with Wifi coverage. If you have an outer wall (but still inside) with an outlet, you may get enough extra range with an indoor Wifi Extender such as this one – Macard Wifi Extender. I used an indoor extender before we moved our horses to their newer barn that is further away, and if you just need a little more reach, this is much cheaper and worked well for 4 years. The one inside the house wasn’t enough to reach the barn that is about 300-400 ft from the house with a hill in between.
The Orbi Wifi Extender can be set up inside or outside, which provides a way bigger range! It has worked great for us over the last 3 years – allowing wifi to reach the cameras in the barn as well as our phones or computers working in the barn as well.
What are some other wireless stable cameras aside from Ring?
I’ve talked a lot about Ring cameras because it’s what I use, but there are quite a few options that could be used as a wireless stable camera. Here are some other outdoor camera options:
- Eufy Outdoor Wireless Security Cameras
- I really like these cameras and may utilize them some day because you get multiple cameras that are solar powered so no need for batteries or cords. They seem easy to use with a clear picture.
- Arlo Pro 4 Spotlight Cameras
- This 3 pack of cameras comes with everything you need to mount the cameras and start seeing during the day or night. I’ve heard of horse people using these cameras successfully around the barn.
- GMK Outdoor Wireless Security Camera
- This camera is worth a mention because the price point is very reasonable at only $44.99 and you can buy just one camera that functions fully by itself (handy if you have just one horse and don’t need multiple cameras).
There are other outdoor cameras available and lots of lesser known brands are creating cameras. I used a cheap alternative from Amazon for several years but the app never provided the functionality I wanted. So up to you if you want to give them a shot!
What if you board your horse?
If you board your horse, it may be a little harder to set up cameras that comply with the barn’s rules or preferences. Make sure you ask your barn manager or owner before going and putting something up. Some boarding barns already offer cameras that you can login and view your horse on. But if you want to watch your horse and you board where they don’t already have cameras, you’re going to need Wifi or to purchase a data connection as well as get permission to mount the camera somewhere.
Once you have permission from the barn manager, make sure you purchase a camera that will work for your situation – IE plug in vs battery powered, wifi vs sim powered.
What are the best barn cameras without wifi?
There are excellent options for cameras that utilize a cell data network instead of using Wifi. They will cost you more as they usually have a monthly subscription cost to add to your cell phone data plan in order to run the camera and view the footage.
My favorite data enabled camera is the Arlo Go 2. It can connect to wifi or use a sim card for data. It is battery powered so it doesn’t require cords or an outlet. Very handy!
Another option if you don’t have wifi to run your stable camera is the Reolink Go PT Ultra+SP Cellular Security Camera. It runs with a sim card from any major carrier, provides a solar panel for power, night vision and smart detection features.
In summary, if you want to be able to “spy” on your horses, decide what options will suit your situation in order to pick out the best wireless stable camera for you. Ring works for me, but it may not for other people! Here are your biggest questions to ask when picking out a stable camera:
- Is this an outdoor camera? Even if your horse lives inside, the conditions of a barn are dusty and dirty and you should choose an outdoor camera.
- Do I have wifi access or can I get wifi access to the barn? If not, choose a cellular enabled camera
- Do I want to switch and charge batteries, or would a solar powered camera stay charged in my location?
- Do I want to use an electrical plug and is there outlet access?
- How much support will I need to use this camera? This may dictate what brand you choose.
Hope you’ve enjoyed seeing how I keep an eye on my horses, it definitely gives me peace of mind when I am not home that I can see what they are doing and make sure they aren’t hung up in a fence or cast in their stall! I highly recommend a wireless stable camera to ease your mind when you can’t be with your horse.
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