Grass mats in the stable

[StableName86]

I have a massive fidgeter in the stable, and he poos a lot! He is also quite wet. He bucks and jumps around at feed and turning out time and because of the field layout he has to wait until several horses are turned out before his turn.

I have tried every type of bedding under the sun and every way of managing it without success .

My horse mostly poos along the back wall of the stable, but pretty much all of his bedding ends up piled there too
So it’s a big ordeal sifting through it all. It takes forever and the bed still ends up black. He basically puts the poo through a blender each day

It made me wonder, has anyone ever used grass mats over the top of the base of the bed to help stabilise it and then just put an inch or two of bedding over that?

Any suggestions welcome

 

[gallopingby]

Not sure what you mean - l use mats with hemp bedding on top for my very wet horse. The hemp tends to stabilise if you let it and you can just pick the dropping up and then take out the really wet patches from time to time. To trick is to let it form a good solid base that you can add to. I do have grass mats down in one stable but have rubber mats on top so that the stable can drain. I still have bedding on top.

 

[StableName86]

I use aubiose at the moment, he has a really big bed and rubber mats, but by the morning it’s almost all been pushed to the back wall piled high. So I thought perhaps I could put grass mats over the base of the bed to try and prevent the whole lot getting moved about but the wee can drain down through it to the base of the bed and I could put fresh on top

 

[Equi]

I understand what you’re thinking but no I don’t think it would work. They would stay in place properly and if he lay down with a rug on it could get caught on the clasps. Also the poo would still be walked through it then you have to lift them and sift through the poo anyway.

The best thing I’ve found for my lad who is fairly clean I’ll admit but a big lad so wet/large poos is Allbed fibre bed and make it thick. A small “half the stable” bed will get dirty much faster than a full stable bed.

 

[StableName86]

Ummm I didn’t think about the potential of rugs getting caught! You’re right

I have tried the huge bed but honestly its a nightmare whatever bedding . He has wall to wall thick bedding but Im in the process of running it down to be thinner because I just end up with a stable full of brown bedding.

On straw he was 3 huge wheelbarrows full a day out and a bale in every day , aubiose he is getting 1 heaped barrow a day taken out and 3 bags a week in and it still looks black.

I think Im fighting a losing battle but I keep trying…. Hes 23 now but im still hoping for a miracle

 

[Flowerofthefen]

I think if my 23 yo was that upset in the stable i would try my best to change how he is kept. I understand its not an easy thing to do on livery but id definitely try my best.

 

[StableName86]

I have moved him to a retirement yard in the past to live out but he was sooooo stressed, we came back after 4 days. He is a tricky boy to keep happy and very very dominant in a field so lots of places cannot accommodate him , he has been at this yard for 20 years, we all know him very well and manage him the best possible, he is out with 2 others that he gets along with, I don’t want him on individual T/O in a small paddock . Between turnouts and feeding he is generally very settled….so long as nothing in his routine changes!

He is a big strong boy and doesn’t look or feel his age mentally, which is a challenge now he has been retired from riding (I still lead him out on hacks or do groundwork most evenings to keep him active and happy)