Latest trends - bedding in stables

[lottiepony]

I have noticed it on the yard I'm on and now seeing on livery space posts with photos etc but when (and more importantly why) is it a thing to now create a small corner bed in a stable.

Being somewhat of a traditionist my horses beds cover all of the stable floor bar a small 2ft strip at the front, whether they're on straw/shavings etc.
I see loads of people now with a 'L' shaped space around their horses beds, so the horses bed is it's own square in a corner with only 2 sides touching the walls. (apologies if you are struggling to picture this due to my useless description.)
The only reason I can think of is to save on bedding?
I've no idea why it bothers me so much but I just can't see how it would encourage a horse to lay down?
I love a big proper bed of straw and even my Shetland is treated to EVA rubber mats and full almost to the front bed lol.
the only time I think I'd ever remotely consider it is if the stable was huge (and I mean really huge)

Pointless rant over sorry!

 

[Pinkvboots]

I hate it as well I don't use mats but mine have deep full shavings beds.

My farrier always says he can tell when horses are stabled with minimal bedding as they stink.

 

[JFTDWS]

I used to look after a few kept like this 20 odd years ago. I always remember them peeing as soon as they got to the field, or onto grass on the way - they didn't like the way it splashed off the mat, and couldn't comfortably get into the corner to pee (geldings - the mares were OK with it). It's not how I would choose to keep horses, for sure.

 

[meleeka]

I think it's to save on bedding. Mine are bedded with just a two foot gap at the front (they are matted). A friend gives her horse quite a thick bed, but it's literally a strip, so not enough to actually lay flat out on. I'm not sure I see the point in that, she just as well do a thinner bed, but bigger.

 

[Highmileagecob]

Yeah, people on our yard do this, and yes, they say it is to save bedding. Then they have to take out virtually the entire wet bed every day.... Personally I prefer a large deep bed with wood pellets in his pee place, but each to their own.

 

[poiuytrewq]

Same, One place in particular I know have massive banks on the tiny corner bed, Nothing under the horse though. They then moan the horse lies in its own shit....

My other pet peeve for minging stables are mats that don't even slightly fit... just why? I get the mat at the front by the door and concrete under the bed (I quite like that) but random mats littered all round a nice flat could be easy to sweep concrete floor under beds makes my head itch.

 

[Pinkvboots]

Yeah, people on our yard do this, and yes, they say it is to save bedding. Then they have to take out virtually the entire wet bed every day.... Personally I prefer a large deep bed with wood pellets in his pee place, but each to their own.

Thats what I do and because mine are out most of the time the wet never comes through even left in for a weeks.

 

[conniegirl]

I do it for my little one. But he is 11.2hh (4ft3 rugs) in a 16ftx18ft stable. She has approx a 10ftx10ft square of bedding.

My other has a full bed but he is bigger and needs the space.

 

[MuddyMonster]

Each to their own I can't say this is something that bothers me & it doesn't seem to bother my horse when he's in. I started to put my bed in a square/rectangle not the whole length of the stable in the summer when he was in much less but found it much easier (as I feed soaked hay) to leave room for haynets to drip without wasting bedding. I'll continue to do this over winter once he comes in at night. I keep my spare bedding in banks too, so I can save time in the week and just pull down.

The bed's absorbent and deep enough to only take wet out once or twice a week and he lies down quite happily (and is on EVA matting under the bed) so it works for us.

 

[humblepie]

I do a full bed too and clean out the banks daily as don’t have mats. I think the really minimal bedding is for speed of mucking out as then just scrape the dirty area. That’s probably the two extremes with a nice middle ground

 

[smolmaus]

When I moved yards I tried a corner bed as it was what everyone else was doing, just to see. The stable was a different shape to my previous so the bed was about the same size/ depth. Pony didn't seem to mind but it was a pain in the bum to brush back and set right every day. Bedding ended up covering the whole stable anyway and she would poo directly on the mats which was much more annoying to clean. Back to a nice simple rectangle now. Was taking out the same amount of bedding both ways tbh so can't see the logic of a corner bed to save it.

 

[MNMyShiningStars]

I have noticed this a lot on the 'muck out with me' tik toks. Personally we have 2 open shelter stables that are half bed, decent thickness, to mimimise how much they walk out of the stable. Plenty enough to be comfortable sleeping on, which they do alot.
The other horse that is stabled at night has a 16x12 stable and has a full bed to the door. He doesn't move it about half as much as when he intially had a half bed.

 

[HopOnTrot]

Mine have a strip of bedding across the back of the stable, but they are only in for 4 ish hours a day. Both happily wee and sleep on the small section of bedding, I have EVA mats and one has asthma so less bedding means less dust.

If they have free access to their stables (and grazing) they will both come in and stand at the door to snooze, poo on the bed and lie down. This is despite having access to a yard area and a grass area. They also poo in the correct stable even if they have access to both!

 

[Hallo2012]

also detest it..................sometimes can smell the stink on horses i ride/teach!

mine have full straw beds to the door with sawdust under pee spots.

 

[Birker2020]

This was Lari's bed, was perfectly acceptable for a 17hh WB.
Adequate room for him to lie down, on top of rubber so no chance of hurting himself on bare concrete.
Stable pictured is actually 14 x 12. The bit from the bed to his net was when he had an abscess and I was trying to help with his comfort as that's where he stood with his front feet!
Bed had a bag of pellets which I'd replace every fortnight and a bale of shavings x 1 per week. The bed used to go along the long side of the stable at the back but it got to cost prohibitive to maintain with Bailey.

I think you are referring to a little sprinkle of shavings which I know some yards like to use.

 

[Hackback]

One horse was bedded like that on the yard I used to be on because she was so dirty and a box walker. Her bed was always completely trashed by morning so it was easier to give her a smaller square and take the whole lot out each day.

 

[HopOnTrot]

One horse was bedded like that on the yard I used to be on because she was so dirty and a box walker. Her bed was always completely trashed by morning so it was easier to give her a smaller square and take the whole lot out each day.

Yes! My TB had a tiny bed too, although eventually he ended up living out and that was much easier than having to remove an entire bed every blinking day!

 

[Hackback]

Yes! My TB had a tiny bed too, although eventually he ended up living out and that was much easier than having to remove an entire bed every blinking day!

Funny, this was a TB too

 

[rabatsa]

I only put a full bed down in an 11' square in my two 14' stables. This is because I have one that will not lie down if the whole stable is bedded. He likes to have his feet on a solid floor and not on any bedding. For the same reason the full bed in the 12' stables is 12'x9'. Another benefit in the larger stables is that one mare stands with her feet on the bedding and poos on the unbedded area.

These beds are not to save bedding as it 6-8" deep shavings.

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

also detest it..................sometimes can smell the stink on horses i ride/teach!

mine have full straw beds to the door with sawdust under pee spots.

I went to a friend of a friends yard this morning to drop something off, I could smell the stench before I saw her horses.
Not only are they all 3 with a ridiculously tiny patch, about 6ft x 6ft, the shavings are great big thin flakes that dont look absorbent, just horrible to see and smell.

I cannot see the point in having a stable and not putting down enough bedding for the horse to lie on, all of the horse, not part of it

 

[spacefaer]

Mine lies in the middle of her stable so a corner bed wouldn't work as she'd only be on part of it. She gets a massive straw bed as for the first time in about 20 years, I only have one horse. So I have way too much time to spend on her!

 

[scats]

I know a horse who waits til he gets outside on the nearest patch of grass to pee. He has no bed at all in summer for full days in and a sprinkle in winter that just dusts a strip at the back.

 

[Ceifer]

I think it all depends on the situation and the horse.
My big horse is clean and has a big bed. In fact the more bedding you have in there the better.
My pony is a disgusting swamp donkey who seems to produce twice as much poo as the horse and tramp it all in. He also has a dust allergy so straw is a no go. If I had a ‘normal’ size bed I’d easily be spending £25 a week on bedding and I just can’t afford to do that. I’ve had to experiment with the right amount to put in there so he will have a wee but most days I just have to sweep the whole lot out.

From a yard management point of view I went from a student in the 90s where there were 12 students and 4 staff members. Students were cheap labour and staff often got lower wages in exchange for livery or living in. straw/ shavings were more affordable. All the horses had huge beds but you were only mucking out 3-4 a day per person. The muck went on to the farmer next door.

Fast forward to when I was managing a yard. Staff had to be (rightfully) paid at least minimum wage, we had 2 students at a time. We had to pay to get the muck taken away and bedding is more expensive. Staff now might be expected to muck out 8 stables + as well as everything else going on.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I have noticed it on the yard I'm on and now seeing on livery space posts with photos etc but when (and more importantly why) is it a thing to now create a small corner bed in a stable.

Being somewhat of a traditionist my horses beds cover all of the stable floor bar a small 2ft strip at the front, whether they're on straw/shavings etc.
I see loads of people now with a 'L' shaped space around their horses beds, so the horses bed is it's own square in a corner with only 2 sides touching the walls. (apologies if you are struggling to picture this due to my useless description.)
The only reason I can think of is to save on bedding?
I've no idea why it bothers me so much but I just can't see how it would encourage a horse to lay down?
I love a big proper bed of straw and even my Shetland is treated to EVA rubber mats and full almost to the front bed lol.
the only time I think I'd ever remotely consider it is if the stable was huge (and I mean really huge)

Pointless rant over sorry!

It drives me mad! It's 30 years since I've been at livery and it had started then. It seems to have got worse. I have seen horses having to lie on concrete if they are to lie down at all.

Imo, the cost comes secondary to the horse's needs. If you can't afford to bed your horse appropriately then you shouldn't have a horse

 

[Hackback]

As an aside, now that I WFH using my tack room as an office I know first hand how much cold comes through rubber mats on concrete. Despite thick socks and soles the cold creeps through and my feet get absolutely freezing. That's why I give mine a deep straw bed!

 

[KC31]

Mine both have full deep beds to the door with big banks. They have pellets where they wee and are mucked out fully each day. I hate small beds and also hate the fact it gives them smelly rugs. I know someone who moaned about their rugs stinking, yet the horse had no bed! What did they expect as the poor thing had to lie in its own wee!

 

[millitiger]

Mine have huge straw beds and the wet one has pellets underneath.
All full rubber matted floors too.

I hate little squares of beds, even with rubber matting.

When I bought my horse Jack, on the first viewing he wee'd twice with me riding him in the arena.
When we picked him up, he had another wee when I rode him and then a huge wee when I put him in my horsebox (which also has full straw bedding).
This horse was kept in 24/7 for 6 months of the year with a teeny bed in a huge stable, only leaving to go on the horse walker.
His urine was always like thick syrup and I wonder what internal issues it caused him to not feel he could freely urinate when he wanted to.
Poor sod and all for someone to save £10 a week on bedding.
If you can't afford to bed your horse properly or have the time to muck out properly, don't have horses!

 

[dottylottie]

lily used to have a square bed at our first yard, stable was 14x12 but she was so dirty i had to empty it daily, couldn’t afford to be going through a bale of straw every day! it was big enough for her to lie down on though, the long side of the stable was the front and she just trashed it, so no matter how thick it was it had to be in a big square. it was emptied and replaced daily so she didn’t smell icky.

now that she’s stopped doing that, she has a regular big bed with a strip at the front! now she poos at the front on the mats, gross mats but easy to muck out…not so great when i step in it in the dark before work though

 

[KittenInTheTree]

I hate this trend too. Stables should be clean and cosy for horses!

 

[equinerebel]

I hate seeing the small strips of bedding. Mine doesn't have mats anymore (they didn't fit properly and were disgusting so I sold them), but she does have a full straw bed.