Best cost effective bedding?

[lisa_lou]

Looking at keeping costs as low as possible this winter on bedding, currently using straw but not at all absorbent so wanting to try something new also straw is very bulky on the muck heap so wanting to reduce muck heap size if poss. What's very absorbent , fairly cheap and not bulky?

 

[Tiffany]

www.fitchrecycling.co.uk › Animal Bedding

 

[WelshD]

Arden Safemix is quite cheap (between £4.50 and £6 near me) and is quite good value for money, reasonably absorbant and eay to muck out

 

[NativePonyLover]

I use straw with a base layer of either chopped straw or wood pellets. A bag/bale as a base lasts about a month, so not expensive.

For me, straw works out to be the most cost effective by far & absorbancy is increased using a base layer.

 

[Irishbabygirl]

I quite like Miscanthus - £6.72 for a bale.

 

[DIESELSUPERSTAR]

Depends on the horse from my experience. My sisters horse won't wee inside unless absolutly desperate, so if we get to him too late, he floods his bed. Last winter, for him it was cheapest to deep litter on bedmax shavings which once set up would be about a bale every week and a half or so. We choose not to use straw because of the smell but would probably be cheapest. I am going to bulk buy bedmax shavings as they are thicker and easier to muck out and smell a lot less and work out at about £5 per bale.

 

[AliceCrail]

I'm just about to change mine onto wood pellets. I was looking into it as a base layer for mine, and found that the bags are less than £4 each which maintenance wise, makes it similar to straw cost, and hopefully more absorbent, less smelly and dusty and time consuming! It is not the posh white stuff though, but the darker looking stuff.

 

[Tilo]

I'm just about to change mine onto wood pellets. I was looking into it as a base layer for mine, and found that the bags are less than £4 each which maintenance wise, makes it similar to straw cost, and hopefully more absorbent, less smelly and dusty and time consuming! It is not the posh white stuff though, but the darker looking stuff.

Do you shovel out the base layer once a week and replace like for like?
Sorry to hijack post!!

 

[Megibo]

Wood pellets! Works out about £2 a bag. Only use 1 or 2 a week

 

[Noodlebug]

I am thinking of changing my horse back onto straw but is does have an allergy which thought was to dust but he seems worse in the summer than when he is in. I chalk floors so it drains but I used to put megasorb and stable fresh where he did his wee and mucked it out every week. Do you find that your eat the straw?? As for cheap bedding cardboard is quite good but use of much of it. Maybe a layer under the straw would works as very absorbent.

 

[AliceCrail]

Tilo - I haven't tried it yet, but there are loads of videos on YouTube for pellet bedding.

 

[mycocorocks]

straw or miscanthus pellets - we find them more absorbent and much easier to get rid off than wood

 

[Queenbee]

How do you're wood pellets work out £2 a bag????

 

[Tarbs]

How do you're wood pellets work out £2 a bag????

This??!!