Economical bedding

[poiuytrewq]

Not open weekends. I think at the moment it’s 9am-4pm Monday to Friday, but I find sometimes you can turn up and they are closed for various reasons and opening/ closing times seem to change around a bit.

Ok, so that would seriously annoy me if i drove over and they were shut!
I don't know if you ever go Phipps way but they now have a brilliant lock up that you can pay over the phone and just collect at any old time from the shed with a door code. That's very handy.

 

[poiuytrewq]

I swapped from shavings to Concord straw pellets a few years ago. Much cheaper and rot down so much better. Also far quicker to muck and no smell. I do have rubber mats down as well.

I did quite like straw pellets, I did find though if i put them in dry they ate them by the mouthful and they seemed to me to be pretty dusty from day 1. I had to water them and they made a nice bed, easy to muck out and as you say no smell but my rugs hanging up, ledges and water buckets were definitely dusty.

 

[ponyparty]

I use straw pellets under miscanthus - I love shavings beds, but want to get my muck heap removed for free by someone local and don’t want to wait a year for it to rot down. The horses do eat the pellets if they can see them. Mine also had a go at eating the miscanthus but soon changed her mind

 

[Ceriann]

I did quite like straw pellets, I did find though if i put them in dry they ate them by the mouthful and they seemed to me to be pretty dusty from day 1. I had to water them and they made a nice bed, easy to muck out and as you say no smell but my rugs hanging up, ledges and water buckets were definitely dusty.

I find straw pellets dusty on their own so only put them in wet spots under probed.

 

[poiuytrewq]

I find straw pellets dusty on their own so only put them in wet spots under probed.

Yes, and as mine is so dry i dont really think that would be necessary Probed looks good though, I've just looked it up.

 

[Ceriann]

Yes, and as mine is so dry i dont really think that would be necessary Probed looks good though, I've just looked it up.

I have one that is very dry and she only has probed. I buy mine by the pallet load to get the best deal.

 

[nikkimariet]

Rooni is on leftover haylage. He drags it about and it’s no different to straw tbh. He’s very dry however which does help.

 

[Maxidoodle]

Google only brings up human bedding if I try that, I’ve never heard of it so am going to assume it’s not stocked in one of the local places but will certainly look out. Thanks
I believe Equinola is rape. Wasn’t overly keen on miscanthus but I think it seems to come in quite different looking forms the stuff I tried was like crumbled roots. Dark brown and not very nice.

I’m not really sure there’s a lot of good straw round here. OH buys and sells and if he can’t get me anything decent I’m assuming it’s not there at the minute.
Maybe small bales but again no idea where from

Ethos miscanthus is really nice, the citronella one was fabulous in the summer too, my stables were the only ones not filled with flies.

 

[poiuytrewq]

Ethos miscanthus is really nice, the citronella one was fabulous in the summer too, my stables were the only ones not filled with flies.

I will definitely look that one up. Citronella is one of my favourite smells!
It reminds me of being a kid on a pony!

 

[LEC]

Just switched to unibed as it was £250 for a pallet and quite like it. It was supposed to be for day beds during the summer but all ours are still in at night

 

[marmalade76]

Can't you use shavings and burn them? I burn all our bedding (two stables plus hen house) 'cause we've only got a small muck truck.

 

[conniegirl]

Our yard recently swapped ftom straw to chopped rape. Its fantastic and doesn’t leave you stinking after mucking out like straw does

 

[poiuytrewq]

Can't you use shavings and burn them? I burn all our bedding (two stables plus hen house) 'cause we've only got a small muck truck.

No I don't think so. Once a year after harvest bales with broken strings and such like get burned and we get a good few complaints about the smoke so it couldnt be a regular thing. We once had my muck heap accidentally set alight and it smouldered horribly for ages.

 

[poiuytrewq]

I'm liking all the rape straw type bedding suggestions. From the various brands websites it looks ideal and fixes the muck heap/removal issue. Its also not as expensive to get a pallet delivered as I'd expected and i can top it up easily with the odd locally sourced bales if needed.
I'm not sure of the top of my head now which brand it was but one above only charged £17 delivery which probably isn't far off me taking the lorry a few times to buy 10 at a time say, so that's great.

 

[poiuytrewq]

Just switched to unibed as it was £250 for a pallet and quite like it. It was supposed to be for day beds during the summer but all ours are still in at night

This one is actually a really good price. £280 delivered to my address and 36 on a pallet. I've just checked and the other brands are all much the same weight wise so works out at £7.77 per bale.

 

[lizziebell]

Ok, so that would seriously annoy me if i drove over and they were shut!
I don't know if you ever go Phipps way but they now have a brilliant lock up that you can pay over the phone and just collect at any old time from the shed with a door code. That's very handy.

Wow - what a fab idea. Wrong direction for me most of the time.

 

[conniegirl]

We get ours from the farmer. He sells big bales of it about really cheap

 

[poiuytrewq]

We get ours from the farmer. He sells big bales of it about really cheap

I wish!

 

[LEC]

This one is actually a really good price. £280 delivered to my address and 36 on a pallet. I've just checked and the other brands are all much the same weight wise so works out at £7.77 per bale.

There are 10% discount codes try Elphick10 I think it is

 

[poiuytrewq]

There are 10% discount codes try Elphick10 I think it is

Wow! Is that a regular thing?
I’m going to have to leave it a few weeks, had a seriously massive month bills wise which I hadn’t really taken into account but am definitely going to get a pallet from them once I’m sorted.

 

[Goldenstar]

I use Equinola for Sky he’s itchy on shavings and straw .
It’s extreme economic because he uses very little it composts super quickly the only down sides is that it treads about a lot .

 

[poiuytrewq]

I think I’m about a month on Equinola now. I still intend to buy the pallet of Uni bed but I’m getting through the bales I purchased very slowly so have had no need yet.

I love it, so easy to skip out and the bed looks exactly the same every day of the week even though i only turn it once a week.

Also, and there could be a few reasons but my asthma symptoms have vanished!
I still have one on straw but am probably going to switch him too.
My only issue is it makes me cough like mad bedding up or turning it. I suspect it’s the smell/whatever it’s treated with perhaps.
So I’m a little hesitant to buy a whole pallet just in case!
Is all rape straw much the same regardless of brand?
I thought someone else said about Equinola making them cough but can’t see anything now

 

[Barton Bounty]

I have just started using unibed lavender, Orbi seems to like it and it definitely smells better so easy to muck out

 

[poiuytrewq]

I have just started using unibed lavender, Orbi seems to like it and it definitely smells better so easy to muck out

It’s great isn’t it! Did you buy a pallet or do you have a local stockist?

 

[Barton Bounty]

It’s great isn’t it! Did you buy a pallet or do you have a local stockist?

For now i just bought from a girl but when winter comes ill get a pallet.