Managing a straw bed

The Trooper

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Morning all,

Last week i started bringing Bonnie in through the night, giving 2 hard feeds and adlib hay and haylage at night (to try and put some weight on her).

I am bedding her on straw, practically no one else at the yard uses straw they all use shavings/saw dust which i don't like (Personal reasons i guess).

What i am hoping to achieve is a deep litter bed and take as much of a hand off approach as possible, what i am doing each day is as follows. I'm picking up all the poos and if needed pulling some fresh straw down off the bank and putting new straw onto the banks if required. The stable doesn't smell or anything, there is reasonable drainage (Brick/cobbled floor with a drain).

Is what i am doing ok? I was considering doing a full muck out at the weekend but if i'm honest i'd rather not for a number of reasons. The bed currently feels nice and spongy and i'll be honest, i could sleep on it myself i reckon.

Any advice or tips is greatly appreciated. This isn't only the first time i've used straw but is also the first time i've had to keep a horse in over night.

Thanks all.
 

be positive

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I use straw but dont deep litter although have in the past, what you are doing sounds fine but it will get wet over time if you dont either take out some wet patches now and again or keep topping up with fresh so it gets deeper, the key is to be very generous with the straw and add more before you think it needs it, it helps if the horse is not inclined to trash it and the droppings are on the top so easily picked up.
 

Seville

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You will need to strip it out on a regular basis. If you leave it too long you will find it incredibly hard to dig out and you will be putting a huge amount on your yard muck heap which might cause an issue. Once a week will work well. As you are on livery it's worth checking with your YO.
I keep two on straw, I muck out to the floor every day, but put new down most days. The beds are very deep and banks are high. It's takes about ten minutes a box to do. The trick is using lots of bedding, oddly it makes it easier to muck out.
 

Theocat

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With straw, even with good drainage there's a real risk it will turn into a squelchy marsh underneath - I would keep a close eye on it, because you really don't want your horse standing on that.

I really like deep litter, when it's properly done, but I would always choose shavings rather than straw to do it with. I would only use straw if I was doing a full muck out daily.
 

The Trooper

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Deep litter has to be just that - deep, so if you don't want to start afresh every weekend, you will need to top up, not just pull down the banks.

I perhaps didn't make clear what i do. I take straw from the bank and spread it over the floor and then add new straw from the bale to the banks.

Bonnie is an extremely clean horse, she doesn't box walk or trample her poos into the bedding, they are all there on the top waiting for me.

With regards to our muck heap, I don't think it will be an issue as it's taken from the yard and piled in a field to rot to be used as fertiliser. No one has even mentioned limiting what is put on there.
 

Goldenstar

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It’s many years since I have dealt with straw ( or anything) as true deep litter .
I used to have a huge stable when I was still at my parents which I deep littered when I was weekly boarding at at school .
My mum skipped it out every day and added some straw as and when .
At the weekend I pulled back all the loose straw and levelled the soiled stuff underneath by removing the high points that form where the horse liked to pee , then relaid the loose straw and added more .
The horse was stabled at night December to March .
It worked fine although I would not do it with a performance horse because there’s no getting away from it it’s bad for their winds .
 

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I would be wary of deep littering on straw as the ammonia can build up and cause respiratory problems. We have four heavies on straw and they all have a full muck out each day. You get to know where the wet areas are and we usually take two wheelbarrows from each a day. This is done in the morning and the beds are left up to dry the floor. They have a couple of rubber mats at the front where they stand to eat hay. We put a generous amount of straw in each day to replace what is taken out. To give you an idea we use four round bales a month, so one each at about £20 each.We have tried shavings and wood pellets but it didn't really work and was very expensive.
 

meleeka

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I’m not sure of any benefit to deep littering straw. It’s quick and easy to do a full muck out daily and having helped a friend there’s no way I’d want to clear out a deep littered bed by hand, even weekly. I knew someone else that did it but she cleared it out with a digger twice a year and the bed was probably two feet high by the end.
 

The Trooper

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Thanks everyone for your input.

I'm starting to think i may be better going back to using the saw dust that is available at the yard; I've been using quite alot of straw to try and establish this bed, it is clear that the straw is wet and compact underneath but I always make sure there is fresh clean straw on the top.

From a cost perspective, as this is a factor for me. I think i paid £35 per round bale of straw when i bought this one in and i have been getting through it at a rate of knots trying to establish this bed.

I really appreciate all your help guys,
 

MotherOfChickens

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I kept my horse at a yard where they deep littered straw-I would not do it again, bad for their wind and their feet and I am a long straw fan. I'd prefer to do a complete muck out personally.

sawdust or shavings under straw works well-might be worth a try?
 

The Trooper

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I will probably lift the bed tomorrow and see what the state of play is underneath. It's been around a week, maybe 10 days since i brought her in.

My worry is going through alot of bedding, mainly from a cost point of view but not to the detriment of Bon's health. I really love this forum and i'm glad to be a member.
 

Pinkvboots

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I wouldn't deep litter straw personally I am not a fan of deep litter at all, the longest I leave wet in would be 3 or 4 days then fully muck out, that's just me though I don't like the thought of leaving it in there, with straw I would muck out fully and have a huge bed with big banks adding plenty every day it is time consuming but if your only doing 1 bed a day it's not so bad.

Reasons for not deep littering is when my horse was 3 he was in a stable in a internal barn all the stables were deep littered, he was out overnight and in for about 6 to 8 hours a day and his breathing became bad, my vet put it down to his stable environment so we moved him to an outside stable and mucked out everyday and his breathing went back to normal.
 

scrat

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I will probably lift the bed tomorrow and see what the state of play is underneath. It's been around a week, maybe 10 days since i brought her in.

My worry is going through alot of bedding, mainly from a cost point of view but not to the detriment of Bon's health. I really love this forum and i'm glad to be a member.
Could you use the sawdust from the yard under the straw on the wet bits of the floor? You could leave that as a base for the week if it's easier and save some straw.
 

The Trooper

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Could you use the sawdust from the yard under the straw on the wet bits of the floor? You could leave that as a base for the week if it's easier and save some straw.

Yup, that wouldn't be an issue, we buy it by the wheel barrow and pay for it on our next livery bill.

Time isn't so much an issue, it's more the cost. If i could get bales for £20 each i'd make a point of doing a full muck out everyday. I can really see it taking too long anyway.

Why did i have to buy a flower-like shire horse lol!
 

MotherOfChickens

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you would save loads of straw by having the sawdust underneath-straw on its own isn't absorbant enough imo to deep litter-straw works best if the floor can be swept and aired regularly (if not daily).

last year I couldn't get much straw due to the poor harvest, I put wood chip down with straw on top-worked a treat with two ponies sharing a byre. this year I do have straw but have done the same and with a big horse you do need a decent bed especially if you don't have mats.
 

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I am deep littering with chopped rape straw under straw, 10x12 stable fully bedded for 15.2 horse. The chopped rape is quite deep and then lots of straw on top. At first I lifted every week but this time I left it a month before digging out the wet. It forms a very stable base after a couple days, I occasionally remove some wet straw to keep the straw layer clean. Even after a month you could lie on it and it smelt like clean straw. I add about half a builders bag straw a week, maybe more if needed (horse does eat some). I don't know how economical this is on straw as it is shared bales included on livery but I only needed to add two bales chopped rape after a month deep litter. It works so much better than just straw, which is horrible as a thin bed and difficult to maintain as a deep bed on its own.
 

The Trooper

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Ok, so following on from this thread and having done some reading it seems around 50/50 for Vs against, but most who are pro deep litter don't do so on straw.

I'm intending to fully muck out tomorrow and just go to daily mucking out, the horror stories about breathing problems as a result of ammonia is enough to to convince me to put in the extra half hour.

When i put a new, clean bed down, realistically how deep will i need to have it? I'm going to use the straw i have left and then likely change on to another type of bedding...
 

scrat

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Ok, so following on from this thread and having done some reading it seems around 50/50 for Vs against, but most who are pro deep litter don't do so on straw.

I'm intending to fully muck out tomorrow and just go to daily mucking out, the horror stories about breathing problems as a result of ammonia is enough to to convince me to put in the extra half hour.

When i put a new, clean bed down, realistically how deep will i need to have it? I'm going to use the straw i have left and then likely change on to another type of bedding...
You shouldn't be able to hear your fork prongs on the concrete when you stab your laid bed, that's how deep.
 

PapaverFollis

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I'm deep littering my clean mare in a well draining stable on Easibed... she has had breathing problems in previous stables but is doing really well this year. And I have had them in since October for my sins and have hardly taken any wet out!! There's not a hint of a smell in the stable and I'm kind of amazed. I'm using about a bale a week on average. I've had two "oh pants, I started digging" moments... one meant removing the wet from about a quarter of the bed, where it had build up worst and the other was taking the wet out from around her hay bar after a couple of weeks of putting soaked hay in it. Other than that it's probably been a half barrow or so of wet a week if I catch the top of the wet while skimming for poops.

The bed is wall to wall and very deep and was deep to start. Which I think is the trick. And I can't get over how clean it is! Lol. I used to be a muck out to the floor everyday person. Any hint of a cough from the mare and I'll whip the lot out and start doing it properly but so far, so good!

But yes, the point of that ramble apart from me using any excuse to go on and on about my horse's bed at any opportunity at the moment!!? Consider using Easibed if the horse is clean and the stable well draining and you can do a wall to wall bed. I've never been a fan of the stuff previously but I think I'm converted now at least in the above circumstances. (However I'm not a fan for dirty wet horses or half beds or not well drained stables....)
 

dogatemysalad

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We have to use shavings, but my preference has always been for straw. Mine had deep beds which were fully mucked out each day. It never seemed to take longer than a shavings bed, although, I'd leave the bed up during the day to let the floor dry off after sluicing the floor or spraying with Stable Fresh. I love the smell of fresh straw.
 

SEL

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I'm deep littering 2 on easibed. The mare doesn't disturb the base so although she is messy there is zero smell .

My gelding seems to walk in circles before settling down for the night so we have a ring of wet on show every morning. It only smells when the base is disturbed - so his stable can have a bit of a pong. I used to deep litter him in an open sided barn on straw. It was ok from a ventilation point of view but he did get thrush a lot which he's never had on easibed.

Deep litter straw is very, very heavy to remove in the spring. We had a small tractor that could take it out of the barn.
 

JillA

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You will need to strip it out on a regular basis. If you leave it too long you will find it incredibly hard to dig out and you will be putting a huge amount on your yard muck heap which might cause an issue. Once a week will work well. As you are on livery it's worth checking with your YO.
I keep two on straw, I muck out to the floor every day, but put new down most days. The beds are very deep and banks are high. It's takes about ten minutes a box to do. The trick is using lots of bedding, oddly it makes it easier to muck out.

I disagree - deep litter takes at least a couple of weeks to get settled and working well, so that the base is compacted and absorbent. I used to deep litter and leave it all season, empty it completely once it was no longer neededv in the spring The key to deep litter, whatever bedding you use, is to keep adding a little, even if you don't think it needs it. It will build and build and then the heat generated deep underneath will dry out the base layer. It really works best if you can use something absorbent like chopped rape straw or miscanthus as a base to soak up the wet, and then keep adding the straw on top, but it isn't necessary.
In the recent stormy weekend I was out of chopped bedding but I did have a big bale of lovely clean barley straw, it's been years since I used straw but it looks so nice and cosy. One year when hay was short I bought some clean oat straw and their beds got deeper and deeper as the nets and racks emptied into them. They were lovely and dry, it seemed a shame to get rid at the end of that winter.
 

poiuytrewq

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I’ve deep littered straw once short term. I was using a field shelter which had got muddy outside and made pushing heavy barrows through difficult. It was only to be a few weeks so I decided to try deep litter. It was ok, didn’t actually smell as long as it wasn’t disturbed. I chucked a half small bale in every morning.
I absolutely would not have wanted to muck it out at the end but O/H just did it with a digger!
Wood pellets, really deep make a pretty good deep littered bed.
 
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windand rain

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You will use much less bedding mucking out daily I could do the whole yard on straw in an hour and that included chatting as we did them when we had a lot on shavings it took almost an hour to do each one to make them look and smell clean. But I have an almost pathalogical hatred for shavings as I cannot stand the smell of shavings and wee mixed together. Your muck heap may be bigger but it is far more valuable if it is made of straw and properly made it will actually be smaller as most people dont make heaps anymore they just dump it on the top. The best bed we had was when the old girl was on box rest she had a rubber matted stable witha full sized 18 inch deep straw bed on top. The mats stopped her hurting herself and the floor was easier to sweep and mop over with disinfectant. two small bales made her bed on a sunday and we added bits to keep it fluffed up you dont actually need banks they tend to get mouldy and smelly as they are rarely turned properly
 

ezililaur

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I used to semi deep litter my mare on straw every winter. Absolutely loved it!

Remove the dung, leave the wet and keep topping up with clean straw. I'd get through the same amount of straw as anyone else on my yard who took wet out every day. It'll end up as a thick compact matress. If you do it properly and be generous with clean straw it'll take you right through until summer. It'll never smell.

It is back breaking digging it all out. I would wait until on 24/7 turn out and do it over a course of a few days. I found it worth it as it saved me so much time over the winter. Muddy wet legs would dry completely overnight as the bed generates warmth too. Can't use straw at my new yard. I do miss my old deep litter.
 

Blazingsaddles

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Morning all,

Last week i started bringing Bonnie in through the night, giving 2 hard feeds and adlib hay and haylage at night (to try and put some weight on her).

I am bedding her on straw, practically no one else at the yard uses straw they all use shavings/saw dust which i don't like (Personal reasons i guess).

What i am hoping to achieve is a deep litter bed and take as much of a hand off approach as possible, what i am doing each day is as follows. I'm picking up all the poos and if needed pulling some fresh straw down off the bank and putting new straw onto the banks if required. The stable doesn't smell or anything, there is reasonable drainage (Brick/cobbled floor with a drain).

Is what i am doing ok? I was considering doing a full muck out at the weekend but if i'm honest i'd rather not for a number of reasons. The bed currently feels nice and spongy and i'll be honest, i could sleep on it myself i reckon.

Any advice or tips is greatly appreciated. This isn't only the first time i've used straw but is also the first time i've had to keep a horse in over night.

Thanks all.
I’ve deep littered on straw before. As long as the bed is deep enough to begin with & you don’t own a horse that digs then it should be fine. It’s a PITA to remove in the Spring. Make sure you replenish with fresh straw & remove any wet patches on the surface, though don’t dig down to far down & disrupt the base.
 

ester

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I’ve only ever done weekly deep litter (straw/rape straw/miscanthus) and definitely get through less bedding that way, half a small bale of straw a weeks for a good deep bed and banks for the tidy one.
Poo pick in the week and pull clean down from banks as required.
I do actually prefer doing this with straw rather than daily much out. If I had to use straw again now I would put wood pellets in the wee spot as with other bedding they seemed to lock the wet in well.
 

Hoof_Prints

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I bed on straw again after a short phase of trying shavings! I tried deep littering and decided it was much easier to just skip out the poos, flip the straw back and brush out the wet in to a poo picker, sprinkle a little fresh on top. It probably takes an extra couple of minutes but saves back breaking work digging out a deep littered bed! Also I just can't cope with the muck, it went ok for a while and then it seemed to seep upwards and get dug up no matter what I did. Straw beds are really easy with tidy poo-ers too!
 
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