Bedding

ivandenisovich10

ivandenisovich10

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I know bedding threads have been done to death but my question is, If cost was no object then what bedding wouild you use? Would stay with whatt you have or change?
 
I've tried lots of different beddings over the 40 years of keeping horses and think I'd stay with what I'm using now: rubber mats with thick wood pellet bedding banked up around the back 1/2 of the stables. :)
 
I'd definitely stay with what mine are on... so much easier and faster than anything else... straw pellets on mats.
 
Thanks guys, well after years of using straw the young cob is so messy, I've got my first pallett of wood pellets arriving thursday so I'm hoping this will be a revelation
 
ivandenisovich10 said:
Thanks guys, well after years of using straw the young cob is so messy, I've got my first pallett of wood pellets arriving thursday so I'm hoping this will be a revelation
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Mine are arriving today!! Horse is moving to a new yard tomorrow, and will be on wood pellets on EVA mats. I can't wait. He's been on straw since I had him, as current yard will only allow that. Looking forward to 10 minute muck outs!!
 
Spyda said:
I've tried lots of different beddings over the 40 years of keeping horses and think I'd stay with what I'm using now: rubber mats with thick wood pellet bedding banked up around the back 1/2 of the stables. :)
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Me too! When I think of all the hours wasted spent mucking out straw or shavings and then having to make beds later then sweeping yards clean of the stuff I consider them a modern day miracle, for me at least! :)
 
Id stick with what rio is on (snowflake soft chip) as its good for him as hes tidy. Taz on the other hand i would have him on shavings or the soft chip as he would hopefully be easier to muck out as hes a total skank... Hes on straw now as he was gong through a bale of shavings every 2 days and its too expensive... 25 on straw is much better and i dont mind chucking it out! Where as i want to cry when i chuck out an entire bed of shavings... Bloody box walkers!!
 
Have used wood pellets for the last 3 years and think they are fantastic.

Just moved to new yard where ad-lib straw is included in price, so currently use this. Find straw very easy to muck out, especially for my gelding who likes to spread his poo about.
 
another who would stick with wood pellets no matter what. I value my time too much & lack of stink to consider any other bedding!
 
I've just been up to the new yard to put down my wood pellet bed for tomorrow, and I'm really impressed so far. I used 5 bags on top of the mats, added water, left them for a bit, then added 2 more. Bed was still growing when I left! Really bright and clean looking, and plenty thick enough with the amount I put in.
 
Ooh intrigued now!

Mine is on shavings & EVA mats, never used wood or straw pellets but they seem very popular!

Are they expensive?
Whats so great about them - do you muck out in a different way to shavings?
I like ned to have a really deep bed, is that possible with pellets?
How do you bank them up, don't they just roll down??!
Does wet sit on top or sink to bottom like with shavings?

Thanks for any info!
 
i use large flake shavings on eva matting and take out all the wet and poo every day so the beds always dry ,im very lucky my stable is huge and my horse is very clean :D . i used to use hemcore with my old horse and that smelt sooo nice and made a nice firm mattress when wetted up so difficult question which i would prefer ? just glad i dont use smelly straw anymore:eek:
 
Lancelot said:
Ooh intrigued now!

Mine is on shavings & EVA mats, never used wood or straw pellets but they seem very popular!

Are they expensive?
Whats so great about them - do you muck out in a different way to shavings?
I like ned to have a really deep bed, is that possible with pellets?
How do you bank them up, don't they just roll down??!
Does wet sit on top or sink to bottom like with shavings?

Thanks for any info!
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Mine were £5 per 15kg bag from UK Wood Pellets (Brand name is Kleenbed). You water them in the bag, and they turn into a sawdusty sort of thing, with some pellets that mix in and help absorb moisture. I used 7 bags in a 12x12 stable, and have about a 4in thick bed, without banks, on top of EVA mats. Cant' comment on the mucking out yet, as I haven't had a horse in there yet, but am reliably informed that they are far quicker and easier, and the wet sinks to the bottom where it sticks together pretty well. Also - you don't need to take all the wet out, as the bed is so absorbent.that it sucks it up without getting damp.
 
I'm intrigued as well. I'm not sure how they'd be better than fluffy sawdust. Maybe more absorbent for pee but if you have a messy one I'm sure they get that horrible dark brown color I can't stand. So please correct me.

I have 6 on straw. It takes my husband and me 30 mins to muck, pull down, rebed, fill water, and put in hay. Then yard is swept and ready to train. That to me isn't really ages. But of these are much better than I'm all for it!

Terri
 
I got my premium wood pellets for the equivalent of £3.88 per 15kg bag - delivered. I bought a pallet load (96x 10kg or 64x 15kg bags). Will last me a year, I estimate. So, works out to about £4.77 per week for a super (and I do mean SUPER) disgusting, big horse who's stressy and box walks, weaves and pees/poops for England. Bargain.

There are never any whole piles of dung in my mare's box by morning; everything is layed on and squashed or scattered throughout the bedding and mashed in. I can confidently say that the bed does not turn into a nasty mush (like it used to with miscanthus, Megazorb, hemp, shavings, etc....) I find the droppings become covered in a very fine layer of the broken down pellets which almost insulated them from combining into the bed to form a mess. The wet, like others have said, is immediately absorbed into a small area underneath the top layer, so doesn't combined with the broken up droppings kicked about on top. It's the combination of scattered dung, mixed with urine and having a big, box walking horse, that always used to leave my bed looking awful. But no problems with the wood pellet bed. I like the fact that it forms a fairly stable base and doesn't move about over the rubber matting like other types of bedding tends to when my big heavy footed horse prances about her stable :rolleyes:
 
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DosyMare said:
What's the difference in wood and straw pellets or are they the same?
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Well.....wood pellets are made of wood......and straw pellets are made of straw :D

I've been using LWP for four years now. Last winter I trialled straw pellets
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=482626&highlight=straw+pellets (sorry, the pics are all gone now).

I found the straw pellets formed solid lumps and I couldn't work with them in the end, so I returned to wood pellets.

However, if you are on a yard that will only take straw on the muck heap (such as Rockley Farm) - then straw pellets are worth using.
http://rockleyfarm.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/useful-things-straw-pellets.html
 
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