Question - what tool works best when poo picking a field?

Green Bean

Green Bean

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As the title, I will be poo picking on weekends this summer, something I have not had to do before and don't think my shavings fork and handheld rake will stand up to this - any suggestions?
 
The most thorough and quickest way is rubber gloves, a rubber bucket and a barrow. I think it is kinder on the back too than using a poop scoop. I couldn’t get a good result with one of those poop scoops and pushers on a concrete yard. I was ineffectually scraping away with the pusher for ages trying to get all the bits up.
 
Over the years I've been convinced that several different things were best!
Current is a regular poo picker but with a little hand held rake which was a few £ from Amazon. Purchased because someone i worked for had one of the newer little rake poo pickers and i decided after a time i liked it. The amazon one if shorter and so much better!
I think its amazing how much easier the right tools can make a job!
 
I use a metal shavings fork and a barrow, or on very lucky dry days I get to use the mule, which is much less effort.

I cannot get on with the rake and scoop option, it does my shoulder in and doesn't work well when your fields are rutty from a herd of geldings having a hooley every day, and the gloves and bucket option doesn't work on the birded poos or the sloppy cowpatty ones.
 
Surbie said:
I use a metal shavings fork and a barrow, or on very lucky dry days I get to use the mule, which is much less effort.

I cannot get on with the rake and scoop option, it does my shoulder in and doesn't work well when your fields are rutty from a herd of geldings having a hooley every day, and the gloves and bucket option doesn't work on the birded poos or the sloppy cowpatty ones.
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See, I didn't get on with a shavings fork because of the rutty field thing, tines getting caught on lumps, stuck in the grass etc. Infuriating!

I found it much easier to use a big scoop with a hand fan rake (https://www.charlies.co.uk/red-gori...jGWYcGF_Kcc7HRMLv5T37CdWc7KF2ksUaAhg3EALw_wcB) as it allowed me to get it into small ruts, angle it as needed and flick/scrape stuff in.
I would lean over the handle, so the scoop was facing forwards but braced in place by my body and scrape towards me into the scoop, then dump into the barrow. The big scoop allowed me to scoop multiple poops into it before barrowing, which was a god send in toilet areas as it limited the amount of bending/twisting needed to go from scoop to barrow.

I have a dodgy back and general pain all over, and doing it the gloves/bucket way would absolutely break me!
 
Really does depend on your field. In the summer I poo pick daily as it's restricted, so I use the poo scoop and rake on hilly bits (too steep for barrow). It gets flung into the woods/onto the heap in the field, depending on which is closest. I've tried the fork option and it doesn't work in my field (no flat areas!) and I find bucket/rubber gloves not good for my back, partly as I have to carry the bucket up/down a steep hill, depending on where I am in the field! Are you able to borrow tools for a couple of weeks to try different options out? That's what I would do. I like the idea of the shortened garden rakes - never tried that option!
 
I used to use a little hand shovel but ended up with RSI from the wrist action so switched to rubber gloves and a plastic feed sack which I then dragged to muck heap. That was a small field though, nowadays I fill the rectangular feed block buckets that my sheep licks come in and use a trolley that will take three of them. Pull that to muckheap, lift out buckets and tip on heap.
 
Arzada said:
Rubber gloves, hands, bucket, wheelbarrow
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Do you not get a sore back?! Maybe it’s just me!


MuddyMonster said:
I use my shavings fork and a wheelbarrow (wear rubber gloves so sometimes need to get the tiny bits by hand). Sometimes use a friend's poop scoop but I'm not convinced it's much better than a fork!
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I do the same, saves my back bending right down to use my hands. I guess in long grass it would be harder work.
 
Nasicus said:
See, I didn't get on with a shavings fork because of the rutty field thing, tines getting caught on lumps, stuck in the grass etc.
I would lean over the handle, so the scoop was facing forwards but braced in place by my body and scrape towards me into the scoop, then dump into the barrow. The big scoop allowed me to scoop multiple poops into it before barrowing, which was a god send in toilet areas as it limited the amount of bending/twisting needed to go from scoop to barrow.

I have a dodgy back and general pain all over, and doing it the gloves/bucket way would absolutely break me!
Click to expand...

A shavings fork takes twice as long for me, particularly picking up after little A and on bumpy ground.

Stables usually done with gloves and bucket, but not paddocks as my wonky back doesn't cope, more so since my 2 x ops late last yr.

I use the same method as above, leaning over the handle and usually use the blade side to get droppings into the std scoop. I do poo pick at least once if not twice a day to save it being a huge chore, hence it doesn't take long.

I also pull the barrow out in the paddocks as it works physically better for me, never pushing it except on the yard.
 
Definitely the shorter hand rake and poop scoop. The longer rake that most come with gave me tennis elbow.
Shavings fork works ok if you have short grass and not too many divots.
I broke a few plastic shavings forks trying to fight the prongs out of long grass.
 
Green Bean said:
As the title, I will be poo picking on weekends this summer, something I have not had to do before and don't think my shavings fork and handheld rake will stand up to this - any suggestions?
Click to expand...
Snow shovel against side of my foot, you have more leverage than with a weak pronged shavings fork. Hate shavings forks, always used a snow shovel on my shavings bed too, much less waste.
 
I used to use rubber gloves and a skip then tip into wheelbarrow. That started hurting my back so moved onto scoop and rake. I then got RSI in my wrist so changed tack and used more of an elbow movement then got tennis elbow 🤣.

Ultimately I found a large Gorilla scoop with the plastic not metal rake was best for me.

This type of rake.

farmandcountry.co.uk

Farm & Country – Opening Soon

farmandcountry.co.uk farmandcountry.co.uk
 
cauda equina said:
I have been rubber gloveing droppings for the past 20 years and my back is *touch wood* fine, possibly as a result of all the bending and stretching? Who knows
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Funnily enough I found picking up droppings stretched my back. I could never get anywhere near touching my toes but after years of poo picking I found I now could.
 
Sussexbythesea said:
I used to use rubber gloves and a skip then tip into wheelbarrow. That started hurting my back so moved onto scoop and rake. I then got RSI in my wrist so changed tack and used more of an elbow movement then got tennis elbow 🤣.

Ultimately I found a large Gorilla scoop with the plastic not metal rake was best for me.

This type of rake.

farmandcountry.co.uk

Farm & Country – Opening Soon

farmandcountry.co.uk farmandcountry.co.uk
Click to expand...

i use that mini rake style youve linked, but a metal version, and a lightweight snow shovel, with wheelbarrow.
The tines on the hand fork have enough flexibility to rake bits through any long grass, whereas rigid forks or a small hand shovel sometimes tends to dig/scrape into the soil.
 
My poo picking helper!
If I have to do it myself, i prefer a shavings fork. I've got a Big Tidee with a long handled fork, and a Dungbeetle, but always end up going back to the trusty fork, I do't poo pick in winter, and get the fields harrowed and rolled before we start poopicking again, so no lumps and bumps to deal with
I have a Quickpick too, it lives in the depths of one of my hedges, where I hurled it a few years ago, as it drove me absolutely crackers!
 
Poo picking tool?

A foot in a cheap rubber boot.

Push into scoop with foot, don't overload, tip scoop into 2 wheeled barrow using both hands, one on the handle one half way down.
.
 
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