Second Act Farm is located in Eldersburg, Maryland, in Carroll County on nine beautiful acres.

Farm owner Brittani Director has been riding horses since the young age of eight. She is an active East Coast competitor following the A-Circuit. She shows her horse Rococo in Adult Amateur Hunter Jumpers.

“I have competed in the hunters, jumpers, and equitation, from Short Stirrup up through the Amateur Owner Hunters and High Adult Jumpers. I train with Ken Krome, Jennifer Newman, and Carolyn Krome at Persimmon Tree Farm/ K2 Show Stables.”

A Second Chapter

“My family has never sold a horse that we have bought, so eventually you end up with horses that are older and ready to retire! My family decided we wanted to purchase a small family farm where our retired horses could live their days out with us. We ended up purchasing my nine acre farm, located in Eldersburg, which is just a short drive from Persimmon Tree Farm/ K2 Show Stables where our show horses are.”

Second Act Farm’s name has dual meanings. Brittani’s family’s last name is Director, so the goal was to come up with a name that tied in movies or acting. Since the farm is for retired show horses now in the “second act” of their lives, the name was perfect!

The Renovation

Brittani and her husband moved to Second Act in the summer of 2013. The work on the barn began right away, bringing the horses home in the fall.

“When we bought my farm there was a structure where my barn currently sits, but it was really just a three-sided run in shed with a “tack room,” there was not even a real floor or electric. We knew we wanted to create a safe, clean, beautiful space for my horses, but one that also looked similar to my home so that it looked like it fit the property.”

SMS Builders, based out of Pennsylvania built the barn. They were easy to work with and moved quickly on the project. Tim Kyle Electric took care of the barn’s electricity and First Class Mechanical set up the plumbing. Both contractors are local to the area and had experience working on horse barns.

One of the biggest challenges was planning the design before the renovation. The barn is located on a flat area, but is surrounded by hills. Working the barn’s design into the limited level space was challenging. SMS Builders drew up five or six barn designs until they landed on the perfect layout.

One of the first renovation days resulted in a flooded basement for Brittani and her husband. A builder turned the water on in the barn. Immediately water began gushing out of the basement ceiling. The plumber arrived quickly and determined the previous homeowner had finished the basement themselves, and never attached any of the piping in the basement ceiling.

SMS Builders tore down the original structure down to the studs and started from scratch. They added added onto both sides of the aisle to make the stalls, tack room and wash stall. They added the bump out in the front of the barn for the feed/shavings area and stairs for the loft.

Inside the Barn

The barn has five stalls with a heated tack room, hot and cold wash stall, hayloft, and a large grain and shavings area. The stalls have dutch doors and large windows for plenty of ventilation and natural light.  The heated tack room is an essential lifesaver during the cold winter months. It keeps medications and hoses from freezing. Brittani has had to stay up all night with sick horses on frigid nights, and has been thankful for the warmth.

The small barn and thoughtful layout makes chores easy to do.

“If you are getting horses dressed in the morning, and you forgot a pair of boots or fly spray, my tack room and feed area are only a few steps away from the stalls, rather than a larger barn where you have to go back and forth down a long aisle. This has always helped me get the barn work done efficiently in the mornings before I go to work.”

When it comes to keeping a clean and organized barn, storage is essential, explains Brittani.

“Everything needs to have a space, otherwise, it ends up being all over the place. My blankets are stored on shelves in the tack room by horse. My medications are in a medicine cabinet. My feeds are kept in metal trash can, and my supplements have their own shelf. I cannot stand when you walk into a barn and the aisle is filled with things, and there are supplies all over. I find it to be unsightly and unsafe. Labels can also be your best friend! I label all my storage bins so I can quickly get what I need. Blowing the aisle every day is also a good way to keep a barn clean. You are able to quickly clean out dirt and dust, as opposed to sweeping.”

Equine Residents

Brittani and her sister’s retired horses lived on the farm for five years.

In the spring of 2017, Brittani’s horse Season suffered from colic due to a strangulating lipoma, and had to be put down at the age of 27. Suddenly the other horse, Bogey was left alone so Brittani got him a mini donkey named Chief to look after him.

Bogey had been diagnosed with sidewinders a few years prior, so his stability was different day by day. In the spring of 2018, Bogey suffered from a secondary infection that would not get better. Not being able to eat, and barely able to stand, he had to be put down at the age of 28.

With Chief now left alone, Brittani rescued another mini donkey from an abuse situation. The mini donkeys are currently the only residents at the barn, and are best friends. They share the same stall, and are never far from one another. Brittani’s show horse, Cody, will be coming home this fall to be retired at the age of 20.

Thank you Brittani for sharing your renovation with us! If you are looking for more renovation inspiration, check out this Hudson Valley Horse Farm Renovation.