bedding...rawr!

[WoodysMum]

The price of my livery includes straw, and I can get Hunters shavings for £7 a bale. Woody is on rubber mats with a layer of shavings and a straw bed on top, but it is always a big mushy wet mess when I come to muck out (no matter how deep the bed is) and he is always standing in his own muck (not good with ongoing thrush problems!) His stable doesn't exactly smell pleasant!

What other bedding arrangement can I try? I was thinking of aquamax/equisorb or something similar, as they are cheaper than shavings and seem to work a bit better? He is barefoot though so dont want his feet drying too quickly. The main problem is that I am basically paying for straw, so if I dont use it anything else has to be fairly economical! I go through about a bale of shavings a week and that is just replacing the wet under his straw bed, but then I take the wet out everyday since he drags his bed around and usually ends up standing in it otherwise....

Any help?

 

[flyingfeet]

Have you tried using just a really thick straw bed? This is all mine have, but with the sneaky advantage of earth floors, so I only take wet out when I am feeling the urge for a big clean out!

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

Do you need the straw? My 2 are on deep litter, bog standard shavings beds at the back 2/3rds of their stables, just rubber mats at the front. Beds been down a year and a half now. Never any stable smells at all. 1 bale a week does my boy who is out during the day, in at night. The new bale goes in a bank at the back and I just pull down enough new every day after the poo has been taken out. My mare is only in for 4 -5 hrs a day and it's weeks since I added ANY new shavings to her bed! Shift 3 or 4 poos, tidy up and job done!