low maintenance bedding and a rubber matting question

J

JLD

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hi. just think about the coming winter ( sorry ! ). is the first winter I have had my horse at home. he is currently out 24/7 with about 6-7 off grass with soaked hay in his gated field shelter. come winter he will either be in over night or at have access to a stable and a large area of hard standing. I need to minimize weekday chores due to manic life. I like aubiose and would quite like to semi deep litter this as is a system i know well but wondered how if this would stand up to him pottering in and out or whether rubber matting with a small bed would work better - this never looks very welcoming or warm though. if you semi deep litter over rubber matting does it just get manky and smell ? thanks for your expertise as usual !
 
Mine is out 24/7 with access to a stable, I have thick rubber mats and deep litter on top of them, I find I use far less bedding than when using a thin bed and removing daily. It is supportive, comfortable and warm and not smelly at all.
 
thanks, thats really useful. I wasnt sure how rubber matting worked with deep litter. does it damage the concrete floor at all or is it better having the wet held off it ?
 
This is where wood pellets would work well

Minutes to muck out
Minimal smell
Affordable
Tiny muck heap.

Yes they take a bit of getting used to - I know the first time I laid the bed I was standing there with a hose watering it muttering away to myself that this can't be right :-) but I'd never go back to straw or shavings now.
 
I semi deep litter on top of rubber mats. I take the wet out once a week. It stinks when I do take the wet out, but that's the only time. The rest of the time it's lovely and dry and non-smelly! I've tried loads of bedding - shavings, easibed, Aubiose, wood pellets. I've settled on one called Duobed which is shavings with small bits of straw in. By far the best I've ever used.
 
I was in same boat as you just brought my horse home from livery and could not afford £7.50 shavings, found a good shaving supplier at £1 a bag which was good but then he sold up. I changed to wood pellets and have found them ace. Rubber matting and used 7 to start bed up and top up 1 bag every 5-6 days fo4 my horse and a bit longer for my pony. Take a bit of getting used to but great and dont smell at all!
 
My girl lives out year round but with access to a large stable 24/7. She's comes in two or three times a day to sleep & shelter. I use thick rubber mats (about 2") with straw pellets on top, deep littered. I dug the bed out last year (wood pellets that time) thinking the mats would rot with the wet on top but they were actually reasonably dry and clean. It didn't stink either like i expected. I changed to straw pellets purely because you don't have to soak them. The straw pellets are very nice but i do have to damp them slightly to stop her nibbling at them! She does tread a little bedding in and out but it's easy to sweep up, in the winter when it's damp it's more of a pain but it's still cleaner than actual straw which i've also tried! It mostly happens when new pellets are put in so i tend to put a few bags in at a time and then leave it for ages till the wet starts showing. Thats fairly rare though as she doesn't do much mess in there.
 
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