Deep Litter? Who does it?

wellsat

wellsat

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I've recently swapped Gerry onto deep litter straw and its the best decision I've made, I don't know why I haven't tried deep litter in the past. He gets to have a lovely thick, deep bed, and it actually smells less than a normal bed as its so deep that the wet really drains away.

Only problem is I feel a bit manky for doing it as the rest of the yard lift their beds every day and think I'm a bit dirty for leaving the wet in. Its not a cost saving, our straw is free, I just think it works better for a big, dirty and wet horse.

Who else does it?
 
ME :D for the same reason, wet stinky mare!

I need to "adjust" mine at the weekend.... seems to be higher and solid at the back with a hole in the middle (think this is her pivot point when she tells the boys either side of her off lol!!)

but it saves me soooo much time in the mornings, if I mucked out fully I have to take 3x wheelbarrows out!
 
faith123 said:
but it saves me soooo much time in the mornings, if I mucked out fully I have to take 3x wheelbarrows out!
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Gerry is a dirty, dirty beast. Even on deep litter I still take out three full barows most mornings. High fibre diets certainly create a lot of poo!:eek:
 
They are far warmer for the horse because of the depth and warmth created by the natural 'rotting' process. Ive never done it with straw but we had deep litter shavings beds in our own place and they were so easy to manage. Bu**er what others on your yard say or think, it is a common practice and just as correct as a full daily muckout or lifting the wet once a week. If it works better for your horse then you know you are doing the right thing!
 
I was on deep litter on cushionbed but it just didnt get established this year without costing me the earth. I've just switched to straw with my cushionbed bed underneath but I have found myself digging out the base at the bottom and when it runs out i will be on just straw - might try deep littering straw though - did it take long to get going? How much clean do you put in each week? I currently get through a big slice every other day.
 
interesting!! i was only thinking about trying deep litter the other day as its so so cold was thinking it would save time and be warmer for my mare,but how often do you have to completley muck out??
 
I've never done it before so I can't comment on how often you have to completely muck out but I'm assuming I won't muck out until he goes out 24/7 in spring.

It took maybe a week to get established, it feels nice and firm under foot now apart from the odd patch where I seem to have to dig it out because he churns it up.

I put in 1-2 big slices each day but then I'm taking quite alot out still. By the time I've got all of his poos and any wet which has made it to the top its usually 2-3 barrows each morning. It is barley straw though so I suspect he may have a nibble on it overnight as well.
 
i did it :D best type of bedding i had :D until horse started staying in more, aka weeing more.. making the bed soaking right though :( now on straw mucking it out everyday and still get a river outside her stable
best type of bedding if horses at out all day and dont spend too long indoors i think :) but my mare wees so much :o
 
scazza said:
interesting!! i was only thinking about trying deep litter the other day as its so so cold was thinking it would save time and be warmer for my mare,but how often do you have to completley muck out??
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We only changed the beds once a year, in spring or summer when the horses went out full time, assume it would be the same with straw. The best bed I have ever seen was about 4 years old, on our then livery yard, didn't smell at all and was pretty much solid underneath but in a supportive rather than hard way, perfect for the lami pony. We had put him on a beautiful clean straw bed which he immediately started eating, the vet made us move him onto this old bed and it was brilliant to manage.
 
deep littering works well as long as the bed is deep!! i muck mine to the floor on shavings though i used to deep litter. when deep littering the beds want to ideally be 18 inched deep with the banks higher. time saving when done well and they dont smell, but masjor dig out when you do dig out!!! its the age old what you gain on the swings you loose on the roundabouts!!!
 
I deep litter mine and always have done. Beds are lovely and deep and don't smell at all. One pony is very wet and very dirty (a mare), the other is reasonably tidy. One is shavings, the other Easibed and both stables drain well through cobbles underneath the deep litter. I don't have mine in very often though, just when they need to come to let them dry out, or for extra feeding. I always remove poos, several times a day and always skip out last thing about 10ish. The wet I only take out as needed, when it's really soaked, but most of the time I just add another bale of shavings. If they're in, say on box rest, then I remove wet once a week. It works fab for me!

Sue
 
And me. The stable is too big not to, it would cost a fortune to keep it deep enough! It works very well. Done it with both straw and shavings.
 
Me too! On easibed like someone else earlier. Last year was my first time and I was a complete convert - much less messy and smelly than my previous shavings beds (which were lovely on a sunday night, and a lot less lovely on a friday!!) and saved me a bomb as the horrible wet just stays underneath leaving a lovely thick clean layer on top. Last year I changed them once mid-winter. This year I've got the hang a bit better and think they will keep okay through till spring turnout time. You definitely save more time! For weeks on end all I do is skip out and then for about 4 saturdays in spring I do big muck outs. Much easier.
 
We use Wood Pellets, with straw on top, we take the worse of the wet out once a week, and top up the straw as and when necessary. We have huge, big, deep comfy beds. Couldnt possibly afford to do such a big bed with shavings!
 
I am lucky to have two that I can do deep litter with. The third is a real pain deep shallow what ever seem to have to clear most of the middle every day. All are on straw.
 
I deep litter using all bed - amazing stuff!

The finer shaving type (a bit like sawdust) is the base layer, and then there is bigger woodchips that are the top layer.
Fantastic, bed dosent move, highly absorbent and only lift a layer of wet when it rises to the top - usually every 2 months or so :)
 
Last year I took it allthe straw out a couple of times over the winter. This year im going to see if I can leave it in till they go out in the summer!

Like I said earlier though Its deeper/more solid at the back (where she wees) and dips in the middle (her pivot point when turning I think!!) and the front is alright lol
 
only_me said:
I deep litter using all bed - amazing stuff!

The finer shaving type (a bit like sawdust) is the base layer, and then there is bigger woodchips that are the top layer.
Fantastic, bed dosent move, highly absorbent and only lift a layer of wet when it rises to the top - usually every 2 months or so :)
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I deep litter with straw, have done for the last 2 years, if it gets churned up I bat it back down with the pitch fork and put more straw in, gets nice and warm, no capped hocks,and I manage on about 20 small bales of straw for the winter, ends up about 2' high, and come the spring it all gets removed and the stable is steam cleaned, it don't smell of amonia, because it don't get disturbed, works brill for a wet mare :-)
 
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Does deep litter work well on straw? I've only ever deep littered on shavings, however the horse I have always has a wet bed and I take 2-3 wheel barrows out per day. Tempted to deep litter his bed right now...
 
I deep litter on straw during the week, I just take out poo's during the week and add a slice or two on the top. I then take out the worse of the really wet stuff at the weekend, the beds stay lovely and thick and warm, they never get really wet and my horses are in a lot atm.
 
I thought I was deep littering till I read everyone's comments! Mine's a very dirty boy! I take most of the wet out as he wees in the same spot so it would never dry! He's only in when being ridden the next day though so not so bad!
 
i deep litter, but with wood pellets. Ron barely uses his bed so his is pretty good, but Tom is a manky wet smelly horse and even a deep litter bed takes some looking after, but it's by far the easiest way of working IMO
 
I deep litter on straw, taking out poos and any wet which has risen each day. Once a week I give it a good tidy and often skim some of the top off the underneath (if that makes sense) One of mine walks all her bed to the back so it all gets pulled forward and rearranged. I use a big bale in about six weeks, as opposed to one every three weeks when I was mucking out daily.

Beds are big, smell-free, warm and, surprisingly, look cleaner than when I used to muck out. We dig right out every spring, which is a bit of a mission with an average of 24 barrows from each!! But it works for us and the horses seem happy.. they certainly lie down often enough.
 
We deep litter on straw every Winter, much the same as Quickfire posted previously. Ours can come in for shelter or go out though so a lot of their poos are on the hardstanding which makes it easier for removing daily. I don't interfere with the layers of the bed once it is down and it does make for more cushioning and warmth. Takes some shifting in the Spring though! :)
 
I designed one of my sheds specifically so that they can be deep bedded - in fact we deep bed for the whole winter - never lifting the beds untill the spring - it is the best system ever. The beds take five minutes to do - they are always dry and fresh in fact by the time they are lifted by tractor in the early spring they are about 2ft deep. They are always dry cos the wet sinks to bottom and there is very little dust as they need minimal mucking out and new straw adding so you aren't constantly shaking out the dust. The stables are made of steel gates which are lifted out in the spring so the tractor can come in and do the heavy work.
One of the added benifits is the heat that there is in them means the horses have electric blankets meaning that the older more artiritic ones do really well on them as they lie on heated beds which really eases their joints.
Another bonus is that we use so little straw - real cost saver. This shed used one big bale of straw in one week for nine stables wheras my other shed for the same amount of horse goes through one big bale every two days (these beds are mucked out fully every day) as cas't get the tractor in to these!
 
We use it for loose boxes and field shelters. Wouldn't do it any other way now. Very cost effective, time efficient and a lovely warm bed all the time (try standing a water bucket in a corner and it won't freeze even on the coldest nights). The beds go down in early October and are lifted at the end of April. The rotting down process is already well under way, which is great for the manure heaps.
 
yes me too with straw very deep ! If you dig a big hole you can see it steaming when you pull the bottom out !Underfloor heating ,wouldnt do it any other way
 
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