Bedding driving me mad!

[emfen1305]

The clocks haven't even gone back and I'm already counting down the days until they go forward! I My horse is stabled at night (4pm-7am) and he is unbearably messy! Poo is not a problem, he poos all in one corner and doesn't squash it in but he just drags the rest of his bed (mainly the middle) and mushes it all up as he doesn't bother picking his feet up! I deep litter him and have built up a bit of base and put a new bag down each week on a Saturday and by Tuesday his bed already looks a mess. I don't like him to be stood on damp shavings because he suffers with thrush at the best of times so I want to make sure its dry for when he comes in but I can't keep putting two bags a week down. I've tried moving the haynet so he doesn't move around as much but I don't know what else to do. Does anyone have any solutions?

I can't change bedding or bring my own on and I can't move stables or leave him out 24/7 so I have to find a solution or keep putting two bags down!

 

[meleeka]

Rubber mats?

I’ve found some unbranded shavings at my local feed shop which are 2 for £6. They are excellent and really fluff up so a little goes a long way. Even a quarter of a bale makes a thick enough bed on rubber mats which lasts 2 days before I muck the lot out, so that’s only a bale a week. ( I only put bedding in the middle).

 

[emfen1305]

I got rid of the mats when I went to deep litter as you're not supposed to use both, he's better now on the deep litter than he was when he was on a thin bed but I don't know why it's been so bad the last couple of weeks, it looks like I haven't bothered to put clean shavings down at all!

 

[eggs]

I don't see why you couldn't use rubber mats with deep littering.

How deep is your bed? I find that with deep littering you need to get a good depth of bed and bang it down well. Once it has settled it 'shouldn't' get churned up.

One of my horses used to really drag her bed around but sadly it turned out that she had wobblers which was why she wasn't picking her feet up when she backed up from the door or her hay.

 

[Outdoorgirl]

I use matting and I deep litter shavings beds for my 3. One of mine poos all in one place, doesn't lie in them and doesn't drag her feet so she gets her bed dug out once a week and a new bale put down (if she needs it). It's definitely separate sleeping and toileting areas for her. If they were all like her I'd be laughing but they're not. The big boy poos all over the place then drags his large feet around to spread it but wees mainly in one place. I dig his very wet area out every day which means I'm taking out quite a bit of bedding and then hunt down the poo, which could be anywhere! He gets a fresh bale every week and by the time he gets it the bed is quite thin but the matting is there to cushion the floor. The other girl is a sweetie, but insists on pooing all over the place then covering it and weeing in 2 of her corners. The wee is easy to find and picked up every day because it just gets too smelly, but the poo is like going on a treasure hunt! I didn't used to have matting, but I wouldn't be without it now. I still make up a full bed with lovely big banks (bit of OCD there), but the mats just mean I don't worry too much if the beds get a bit thin.

 

[emfen1305]

I don't see why you couldn't use rubber mats with deep littering.

How deep is your bed? I find that with deep littering you need to get a good depth of bed and bang it down well. Once it has settled it 'shouldn't' get churned up.

One of my horses used to really drag her bed around but sadly it turned out that she had wobblers which was why she wasn't picking her feet up when she backed up from the door or her hay.

The base is pretty deep and solid, I scrape a bit of the top each week so it doesn't get too deep and he has a good amount of old shavings put back on top before putting clean ones down. The base itself is solid and doesn't churn so I don't really understand how he's making such a mess. Sorry to hear about your horse, I don't think he has wobblers (he's still under the vets for his feet problems so I am hoping they would have picked up on it!), I think he's just lazy and has big cobby feet!

 

[dogatemysalad]

I use mats and a semi deep bed, so it's possible to remove the wet spots and the poo. I use 2 bales of shavings a week and thought this was normal for a large horse. Scrimping on bedding is a false economy.

 

[milliepops]

I have used mats and deep littered for yonks.
I do think it depends on how absorbent the bed is/how wet the horse is though. Where I am now the stables don't drain brilliantly so I semi deep litter and dig the wet out every few days. it seems to stop it getting too grotty. Both horses have areas where they pee so I just take those spots out and throw some clean back in the hole. Can you try that?

 

[emfen1305]

Most people I know use one a week, I wouldn't say I scrimp on bedding, he has a lot of bed, it just seems particularly damp at the moment! Maybe it's just because the weather has been so grim and the fields are so wet as never had this problem in the summer and he was in for a similar amount of time!

MP - I've been digging out the front but which is the worst bit and refilling with the clean bedding but it seems the whole bed is just a bit damp rather than just a particular wet patch, maybe i'm just going mad, just feels like all of the clean shavings disappear in one day and i'm left with the old stuff to work with all week!

 

[meleeka]

The weather will be making a difference I’m sure.

 

[scats]

I’ve found over the years that some horses just need a couple of bags down a week. One of mine is the same. She getsa bag down at the weekend, but by Wednesday or Thursday it’s a mess and I end up having to take a lot out and put another bag down. I have rubber mats and I have tried deep littering, full muck out, you name it, I’ve tried it!
Polly is a poo wherever she happens to be standing, then mulch it in. There are no whole poos left by morning. What works for me is a bag down at the weekend and a bag down mid week, full muck out except for back bank, which I store a lot of the new shavings on and drag down over the days til the next bag is needed.

 

[emfen1305]

Thankss all - Scats, my friend's cob is the same yet her bed still looks better than mine! Horses eh!

Well the good news is I've given up lattes at work to start saving some cash so at least I can now use the redundant saved cash on shavings!

 

[BOWS28]

I know you say you can't change bedding but can i ask why not? I understand if they don't allow straw as it causes havoc with the muck heap size but wood pellets have been a life saver for my seriously wet mare. The wee stays in one spot and if you leave some pellets in the bed i find they soak up any excess moisture.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I use mats and a semi deep bed, so it's possible to remove the wet spots and the poo. I use 2 bales of shavings a week and thought this was normal for a large horse. Scrimping on bedding is a false economy.

I wouldn't have said that 2 bags of shavings per week was extravagant!

OP, The damp atmosphere will mean the the beds don't dry out when the horses are off them, as you would normally expect.

 

[SEL]

definitely not got a leak in the roof? I blamed by big boy for being wet for ages at one of my old yards until I sheltered in his stable in a rainstorm - and 'admired' the indoor waterfall.

Wood pellets are a life saver for my two mucky horses. @Outdoorgirl - I share your pain. I have one who walks in circles to settle himself down for the night, bringing up all the wet and mixing it in. The other hides her poos and a good muck out means sifting through to get each individual nugget out from where she's hidden it.

 

[Tarragon]

Wood pellets are excellent for not moving about. A friend of mine used to deep litter and had a base of wood pellets and would put shavings on the top.

 

[hopscotch bandit]

Its the condensation that causes the bed to be damp all over. So if you are in a barn and its warmer inside than out the warm air rises and then forms condensation on the roof which then comes down as moisture in the air. Sometimes when its been wet outside we have a phenonemon where the entire floor surface of our indoor barn (which is about 35 stables, plus a wide aisle, a narrower aisle and a large wash box area) is completely wet with moisture even though its not been raining inside! Its a nightmare when you have a nice thick dry bed!

 

[emfen1305]

Thanks all, so basically the weather is to blame and i need to start putting down 2 bags a week if I want to appease my OCD of having a thick, clean bed everyday!

 

[Mrs B]

As an aside, I don't think I've ever had a horse on under 2 or 3 bales of shavings a week ... in over night in winter, turned out or ridden first thing.

On rubber matting, I still take out a barrow to a barrow and a half of poo and wet shavings every day and sweep back to dry the mats ...