Augh, manure forks!

PapaverFollis

Well-Known Member
Joined
13 November 2012
Messages
9,560
Visit site
Practice my dear. Clear dry clean straw to one side with 4 prong fork. Turn over straw with poo on it onto the floor. clean straw to one side again. Scrape poo and wet straw to middle and load barrow with fork and then when left with bits sweep floor and shovel the rest into barrow. Lay bed back down as desired. There you go. Only took me 60 years to suss it out!

I need some lessons! ? We can't afford to rubber mat and use my preferred bedding options at the moment so I'm stuck with cheap and cheerful straw and I'm utterly, utterly useless with it. As well as struggling with the poos, I just can't seem to separate the wet and the clean straw satisfactorily and it is just a stressful mess. Fortunately I'm at home so no-one judging me while I stomp and swear! The horses like the straw though, they lie down a lot and obviously find it cosy. Plus my utterly disgusting big mare is actually cleaner on straw than other any other bedding, there just ends up being a lot of wet to take out, however it does stay put at the bottom of the bed and she doesn't walk her poops in like she used to on sawdust/wood pellets/shavings!
 

Esmae

Well-Known Member
Joined
20 February 2016
Messages
3,294
Visit site
I need some lessons! ? We can't afford to rubber mat and use my preferred bedding options at the moment so I'm stuck with cheap and cheerful straw and I'm utterly, utterly useless with it. As well as struggling with the poos, I just can't seem to separate the wet and the clean straw satisfactorily and it is just a stressful mess. Fortunately I'm at home so no-one judging me while I stomp and swear! The horses like the straw though, they lie down a lot and obviously find it cosy. Plus my utterly disgusting big mare is actually cleaner on straw than other any other bedding, there just ends up being a lot of wet to take out, however it does stay put at the bottom of the bed and she doesn't walk her poops in like she used to on sawdust/wood pellets/shavings!

Back in the day there was no such thing as rubber mats. There was only straw bedding (shavings came later) My old guv'ner used to require us to have huge banks and the middle (the bed itself) had to be at least the depth of the fork prongs (he used to check and woe betide if it wasn't right) and we had to plait the straw at the front of the box. Damp straw went into the banks to dry and use again. All the banks had to come down and we had sweep underneath before restoring them daily. Then sweep the middle and shovel out the last before rebedding the middle. Fresh straw as necessary. I'm not quite so picky these days (too old for that) You will feel where the wet is and you can dry out the damp to go again. It's only the sodden that needs removing along with the poo. Guv'ner also used to say that you use the right tool for the job at hand and learn to use it correctly. He was a stickler but stood me in good stead.
 

Annagain

Well-Known Member
Joined
10 December 2008
Messages
15,785
Visit site
They do say a bad workman blames his tools but in this instance it's definitely the tool that's at fault. Those things are bad enough on shavings, let alone on straw. I'd definitely go for the Fynalite. I bought Siani shavings fork last year after Siencyn, my first one finally died after about 20 years of really top notch service. Siani works with wood pellets not straw but I can definitely vouch for her (and her relatives') longevity and quality. They're pretty reasonable too.

You do know you have to name your tools don't you? They give you so much more when you give them the respect they deserve by naming them. Maybe that's where you've been going wrong.

Yard Brush | Horse and Hound Forum
 

PapaverFollis

Well-Known Member
Joined
13 November 2012
Messages
9,560
Visit site
Back in the day there was no such thing as rubber mats. There was only straw bedding (shavings came later) My old guv'ner used to require us to have huge banks and the middle (the bed itself) had to be at least the depth of the fork prongs (he used to check and woe betide if it wasn't right) and we had to plait the straw at the front of the box. Damp straw went into the banks to dry and use again. All the banks had to come down and we had sweep underneath before restoring them daily. Then sweep the middle and shovel out the last before rebedding the middle. Fresh straw as necessary. I'm not quite so picky these days (too old for that) You will feel where the wet is and you can dry out the damp to go again. It's only the sodden that needs removing along with the poo. Guv'ner also used to say that you use the right tool for the job at hand and learn to use it correctly. He was a stickler but stood me in good stead.

I think you need to do me a YouTube tutorial. ? unfortunately my previous experience with straw beds was not good (places where it was badly done deep littering, not my horses or my money so couldn't do any different as only there once a week). But I do like them, other than my p*ss poor mucking out skills with them. In my defence I can drop my pitch fork prongs down with some added force too into my straw beds and not get a clang, so the finished result doesn't suffer. Just me that suffers trying to achieve it! ?
 

Palindrome

Well-Known Member
Joined
19 July 2012
Messages
1,750
Visit site
I prefer a shavings fork too, even on straw, the Fynalite is sturdy enough that it doesn't break (metal head) and the fiberglass handle gives good leverage.

I have recently broken the plastic part of my manure scoop, do they make metal scoops somewhere? The handle is still good so perhaps I will attempt to remake the bucket part by attaching a metal dust pan or something akin.
 

Caol Ila

Well-Known Member
Joined
23 January 2012
Messages
8,012
Location
Glasgow
Visit site
I’ll let you know how it goes with the Fynelite once it arrives! Might be the answer to all our woes.

My stable cleaning skills are poor compared to esmae’s. Very poor. I’ve never plaited straw in my life.
 

Caol Ila

Well-Known Member
Joined
23 January 2012
Messages
8,012
Location
Glasgow
Visit site
I think my yard friends would reckon that I've lost it if they saw me trying to plait the straw. I don't bank, either. Got traumatized by banks at the last yard I worked on, where the YO wanted us to do each stable (shavings) in 10 minutes flat, with a perfectly flat bed, flawlessly even banks, and swept so clean you could surgery.
 
Top