Deep litter/ shavings management

RubysGold

RubysGold

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This year I'm going to be using shavings and I have bought rubber matting.
I think I will deep litter through the week and muck out on a weekend.
But how does deep litter work, I know you take out droppings and leave rest of bed, but how does that not get messy, does the top layer not end up covered in wee?
Do you put in a bale every weekend or put some in every day, tell me how you manage your shavings bed.
Nickie
 
I personally don't deep litter as I prefer to muck out completely daily. Shavings tend to soak up the wet from below the bed so the top stays relatively dry, unless you have a very wet ned.
I have a dirty horse who is wet but his bed stays dry on top. He gets a bale of shavings every 2 to 3 days. My other 2 horses are much cleaner and need a bale down every 7 to 10 days.
 
sorry to ask but why deep litter if your on matting? you wouldnt need that much of a big bed so you can manage the bed easier and quicker...my mare is usually dirty and i mean filth...but since she's been on matting and about an inch of bedding she has been a dream to muck out..takes me couple of mins unless I'm being really fussy about all the tiny bits....
but usually yes take poo out, scrap top layer of wee off and cover up...but i found I was using more bedding that way.
hardly use shavings now....it's taken 4 bags to set her bed up, she has huge banks now though...and like i say about an inch on floor...
 
Kezz: I bought the matting because shavings seem to move easier then straw and don't want Roo exposed to the concrete floor.
I'm not deep littering to save time, I just want to use as few shavings as possible and thought maybe deep littering would save the amount I use.
Is a deep littered bed dirty? It kind of puts me off but I want to work out the best way of managing a bed.
Is full muck out every day the best way to manage a shavings bed?
Nickie
 
if you've got rubber matting then there's no need for deep litter, save your money and just have a very light section of shavings,
it's completely overkill to have all and everything...

I've managed very lovely deep litter shavings beds on high quality livery yards which were dry, warm and clean and need very little attention, but this needs a large amount of shavings put down and patience whilst they bed down....if you're a "fussier" person who spends an hour on each bed getting all the slightly discoloured shavings out then it's not for you.
 
The matting is 17mm, is that thick enough to only have a light section of shavings?
By light section, do you mean like a thin version of a bed, or just like a corner of the stable bedded, or literally a sprinkle of shavings?
Nickie
 
I don't use mats as i like to have a nice deep bed of shavings, Roger is fairly messy but i tend to pick out the muck and then level over the top every day.
I try and muck out every 7-10 days and take most of the base out, use the banks to make the new base and then put a bale in to make up the banks.
I don't always have to put a new bale in, yesterday when i did it there was plenty of clean to make a good bed out of it.
When he was in a lot more i mucked out totally every day but i find with the deep litter he stays a lot cleaner and i need to use less new shavings.
 
If you deep litter, you need to do it properly or not at all.
Leave it alone as much as possible, which means no shifting the wet out at weekends. It takes 2-3 weeks for a deep litter bed to settle properly, though I tend to move the wet from the middle around to under the banks the first few days to create a good layer. Start with a deep bed, then just take the poo out every day, adding a small amount of shavings daily, and leave well alone. If any wet comes to the surface skin it off but try not to disturb the bed as much as possible.
 
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I'm not prepared to do that. :S
I just don't like the idea of it.
Nickie

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How come? The wet rots down and should not come to the surface. It creates a deep, warm, clean bed that should not smell or be dirty if done correctly.
 
Tbh, I have no idea why, it just doesn't sound nice,
plus the thought of mucking out the whole lot at the end of the winter sounds awful!
Nickie
 
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Tbh, I have no idea why, it just doesn't sound nice,
plus the thought of mucking out the whole lot at the end of the winter sounds awful!
Nickie

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It's nothing like people think before they try it. TBH, if you're going to deep litter, you should do it properly or you'll always have the in-between phase you get before before it settles down. I promise you it doesn't smell nor is it wet or dirty as long as you leave it and don't mess with it too much.
You don't have to take it all out if you don't want to, just leave it and it will rot down. It still won't smell as long as you don't disturb it or take the top layer off.
 
I might give it a try. If I still don't like it I can always try something else.
How many bales of shavings do you use to start, and how often do you put a new bale in?
Nickie
 
Sorry, went offline last night before I saw your response.

Usually 3-4 bales (though I use straw as I hate shavings, lol). Iuse to add 1-2 slices a day on top of the middle of the bed, but this year my straw will be in 6’x 2’ slices so I’ll probably add one a week but put the clean stuff up in the corners then pull a bit down every day, so you could always do the same with shavings.
 
I deep litter on rubber mats through winter, then take my bed up for summer and although I still have a deep bed I do a full muck out everyday. I like to deep litter through winter because it means he has a nice warm cosy bed, plus it saves a lot of time (but not shavings). I probably use about 2/3 a week to start off with, and he always has a superclean bed (I only take wet out if it starts coming to the surface or gets squelchy) but he only tends to wee in one place anyway. I hate thin beds on rubber mats-you end up taking the whole bed out every day and rugs get really dirty. I dont see a problem with deep littering on mats, and as for taking wet out on a weekend, why not? Just do what suits you, see how it goes you can always change your mind if you dont like it!
 
Prince is on thick rubber matting and a medium sized shavings bed. During the week I pick out all the poos and then scrap away the clean shavings to reveal the wet. I take the wet out and put the shavings back. This doesn't take very long at all. On the weekend i will fully chuck the bed up to give the mats a proper chance to dry and air and to get all small bits of poo out that i've missed. Prince is pretty messy so i don't think deep littering would work with him. He walks all over his poo and burys it in with the wee! A snow shovel is pretty good for this method. I use 1 - 1.5 bales a week.
 
Hi Nickie, I have rubber matting and use a semi-deep litter system whereby I put about 6 bales of easibed down to start with (150kg) and remove droppings daily trying not to disturb the bed. All the urine drains to the bottom and once a week I scrape back the top layer to reveal the wet patches, these are removed and I sprinkle the matt with equi-dry or leave to air and then pull the bed back down and add a bale. It stays pretty clean looking and never smells. It's quick and my muck heap isn't huge either
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