How to Make Breyer Toy Horse Fencing from Free material lying around outside

This is one of those super simple projects that anyone can make. You need very few tools, and the materials you can literally find in your backyard (or at least at your local park).

Toy horses are just like real horses

Both my daughter’s like horses.

They have 1 real horse, and heaps of toy plastic ones. For some reason these plastic horses can’t be packed away in boxes, they need to be out on the floor, roaming free in the fresh air just like their real counterparts.

Also, just like real horses, plastic toy horses need lots and lots of stuff. Like saddles, horse blankets, people to ride them, a horse stable and fences to keep them in… lots of fences.

We have some of those toy white plastic fences, but no where near enough. The toy horses needed even more! So instead of buying more I decided to make some myself.

Fence material supplied by nature

After looking through my workshop looking for small enough material to use, like small diameter dowel, or something similar, and not finding any, it just hit me that outside there was a bunch of material that may do the job. Plus the end result would look a lot more rural than anything I could buy from the hardware store.

I’m pretty lucky that I live on a few acres, so I only had to walk outside my workshop and hunt around on the ground to find as much material as I needed. All I was looking for was some branches that were thicker for the fence posts, and a bunch of thinner branches for the fence rails.

The image above shows the actual pieces I use for this example.

Toy Fence Posts

For the Fence Posts, I use branches that are at least 15mm (5/8″) in diameter. At that size they are nice and stable. Anything thinner would topple over easier, while these ones sit well even on carpet.

I start off by cutting the fence posts on the mitre saw, which gives me a nice clean cut. It’s important that the bottom of the post is flat. The length I cut is 60mm (2 3/8″).

Toy Fence Rails

For the Fence Rails you don’t want them too thin, so I go for at least 6mm (1/4″).

The easiest way I found to cut them is using a pair of carpenters pincers.

I cut the rails 130mm (5 1/8″) long.

Getting the Posts and Rails ready

To start constructing the fence, first find a drill bit that is just a bit smaller (thinner) than the fence rail branch.

I found that a 3/16″ drill bit was fine for my rail thickness.

Drill holes

Then drill 2 holes in each post, only drilling in about half the thickness of the post.

These posts are 60mm long. From the bottom of the post I measured up 20mm (3/4″) and 45mm (1 3/4″).

Trim Rails and Add glue

The hole you drilled should be slighter smaller than the rail. So trim the end of the fence rails using a knife to give the rail a nice snug fit in the hole.