A hoof trimming stall has a front gate having two pivotally mounted
spaced-apart doors for swinging inwardly and outwardly. The doors are
movable between a catching position in which the doors point inwardly for
receiving a head of the animal entering the stall, a closed position for
holding the animal in the stall with the neck of the animal caught in a
gap between the doors, and an open position in which the doors point
outwardly for permitting the animal to exit. A door lock/release
mechanism has a slider arm movable forward and backward, a hydraulic
cylinder for moving the slider arm forward and backward, a rear catcher
mounted on the slider arm for preventing the doors from moving from the
closed position to the catching position, a front catcher mounted on the
slider arm for preventing the doors from being opened by the animal when
the doors are in the closed position, and a release mechanism for
permitting the doors to move from the open position to the catching
position. An automatic reset mechanism automatically resets the doors and
door/lock release mechanism. The reset mechanism has a sensor for
signaling the hydraulic cylinder to move the slider arm backwards when
the doors are in the open position and a spring for biasing the doors
from the open position to the catching position.