Where Equine Education Comes to Life
The Oppenheimer Family Equine Center provides students with real-world experience in equine care, training and management. Through Cal Poly’s Learn by Doing approach, students work directly with horses in modern facilities that prepare them for careers in the equine and animal science industries.
Breeding Lab
The Breeding Lab supports Cal Poly’s hands-on equine breeding program, providing students with experience in artificial insemination, semen evaluation, herd health and data management. The facility includes a phantom for stallion collection, examination chutes and modern lab equipment that allow students to apply classroom knowledge in a real-world setting.
Foaling Barn
The Foaling Barn features six flexible foaling stalls with attached outdoor runs overlooking irrigated pastures. A dedicated student lounge supports foaling enterprise students who monitor mares around the clock during foaling season using live video feeds.
Stallion Barn
The Stallion Barn houses Cal Poly’s stallions and the administrative offices of the Equine Center. The facility also serves as a multipurpose classroom and laboratory, allowing students to learn directly alongside live animals in support of Cal Poly’s Learn by Doing philosophy.
Student Horse Barn
The Student Horse Barn provides approved housing for student-owned horses used in equine coursework. This opportunity allows students to deepen their hands-on experience while utilizing Equine Center facilities as part of their academic training.
Equine Center Pastures
The Equine Center includes more than 150 acres of pastureland. Irrigated pastures support mares in foal and growing foals, while dry land pastures are used for riding horses and enterprise horses in early training.
Arenas
Facilities include a 150-by-300-foot covered arena with seating, a 100-foot outdoor round arena and five additional round corrals. These spaces support classes, student enterprises, equestrian teams and boarding activities.
Walter J. Thomson Mare Barn
The 40-stall barn houses horses for the Quarter Horse Enterprise, Cal Poly’s equestrian and dressage teams, horses being studied in animal nutrition courses and select boarded horses, supporting both instruction and research.
Additional Facilities
Additional resources include a 36-stall mare barn, tack rooms, wash racks, tie rails, a 500-ton hay barn and multiple pipe paddocks with shelters.