Bedding

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bikina

Well-Known Member
Joined
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298
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London
www.expeditionequus.com
Bringing new horsey to the yard soon, and wondering what bedding to use. He's a good doer, so I though straw might be a bad idea, and another person at the yard has offered to get me sawdust 'from the mill' - but I don't want any respiratory problems to develop. What would you recommend using?
 
Shavings - not mill sawdust.

You will need at least 5 bales to start of your stable - so would be a good idea to order a bulk load of 20.
 
Shavings are fine, get pretty costly, especially if you dont have rubber mats.

We currently use Aquamax in place of shavings in some boxes, which may not look pretty but is very effective and cuts costs plus the horses seem to like it.
 
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Whats the best to use? I've been recommended easibed before. anyone use this?

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Whatever you can get hold of tbh. They seem in pretty short supply at the moment. At least in our neck of the woods.
 
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You will need at least 5 bales to start of your stable

How did you manage that? I only used two to srat off my bed
 
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You will need at least 5 bales to start of your stable

How did you manage that? I only used two to srat off my bed

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If you don't want your horse to go through to the concrete then you need a minimum of 5 bales. However if you have rubber matting then half a bale or whatever your preference is fine.
 
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tell me more about aquamax! Have been on their website but theres not much info. Looks very...different!!

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It's very quick to muck out as you leave the wet because it's all absorbed by the bedding. About once a week we clear most of the wet in and put a new bag in so we use about 1 bag a week. It only works if you have rubbber mats though (well worth the investment if you dont)
 
I use easibed... It took about 6 bales to set up the bed, then I use 2 bales a week. I skip out through the week, and remove the wet every fortnight.
 
Personally I prefer to use shavings. I start my beds off with about the same as Amymay has said, to get a good deep bed (Mine are also on rubber mates
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) You could try easibed, megasorb, paper anything like that if you dont want to use straw
 
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What would be better - easibed or aquamax? which is cheaper in the long run?

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I used Easibed - liked it at first. But went back to shavings.
 
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Why did you go back to shavings?

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I found that I was using two bags of the easibed a week as opposed to just one of shavings - so it was economics.

Also Easibed is really designed to be used with rubber matter - which I don't have in my stable - so another reason why it probably didn't work for me.

Can't beet good old fashioned shavings basically............
 
If you don't have rubber mats, then shavings would be best or something like Beddown's Excel which is a mx of shavings and dust extracted straw, which makes a lovely fluffy bed. Aquamax is designed to be used with rubber matting.
 
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I'd rather have shavings as well. It's much easier to manage a shavings bed, however we have no choice on our yard
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I think shavings make a nicer bed as well
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aquamax is great and it canbe used very effectively without rubber matting, you just need more bags to start with and top up the bed.
 
I use woodypet, which is te same as aqumax, it takes me minutes to muck out daily, the wee gets mixed in and I take out the wet once a week. I have no rubber matting and needed 9 bags to set up, but now I use about 1 a week maybe less. It is cheaper and easier than shavings and when I ever muck out my friends horses on shavings I hate it now its much harder to muck out and takes so much longer.
 
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