Stable Mats advice

[welshcobabe]

I have decided to have my stables fitted with rubber matting. Now I have always in the past used straw, so my questions are.
Do you use any bedding at all with your mats ?
Do you use a small amount of shavings ?

I am told that horses are not nesting animals, and I know its in my own mind as I am used to see big deep straw beds but do you use any bedding and if so what ?

My local posh livery yard just has the matting down and no bedding and the matting is washed down everday.

So tips on rubber matting management please.

I have decided to change as the cost of straw and shavings is going through the roof in our area and also after years mucking out my ageing back is feeling the pressure. with two horses and my stables are 14 x 12.

 

[AmyMay]

We have fieldgaurd mats in all the stables on the yard (except mine

).

The horses still have a decent amount of shavings on them. But the mucking out process is so much quicker as obviously nothing is deep littered etc, and the wet is taken out every day.

Definately worth the initial outlay I would say. However, having moved Amy 18 months ago, and taken my admittedly cheep mats with me, I would only invest again if I was not on livery (ie horses at home). My mats just did not fit another stable, so I ended up giving them away.

 

[KJJ]

I have mats as Jaguar was a complete muck monster...

I have tried little bed and it just didn't work... for me or him... he wouldn't lay down... and I felt so mean anyway.. if on the odd occasion he did lay down his rug would get plastered!!

With the matts now I still bed down as I would without ... HUGE amounts of straw... but the one thing I find is that I don't go through as much as it doesn't 'move' quiet as easily over the mats, so only certain areas are mucky and horrid!!!

 

[Baileysno1]

I have Ryu on equimats, with a 2-3'' shavings bed and thick banks, hes really really dirty though, having the mats has meant I just use a bale of shavings a week compared to 2. at my last yard Bailey just had a layer of shavings on those black bumpy mats he was really clean on them and did most of his mess on the mats at the front of the stable so I just hosed down the front.

As AmyMay says well worth the investment

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

The make of the mats is of little importance, just don't get any thinner than 17-18mm or you'll find they'll probably eventually rip due to weight & twisting of the horse on them. As for shavings, you will use considerably less & it's quicker & easier to much out. Initially you'll be tinking that your bed is too thin but you'll soon get usaed to it & you'll save alot on your shavings bill.

If there's a fall on stable floor then you'll have no smell. Occasionally you can wash out with disinfectant & if it's bad weather & floor won't dry you can use Jeyes Binfresh which is a powder.

 

[Loopy_laura]

i have rubber mats and a 'good' depth of shavings, if i dont put enough in they are really harder to clean out. think its trial and error really thogh cause they are all so different!

 

[dozzie]

I use equimats because they are so light to handle and paper bedding as I had horse at the time who coughed on shavings.

Would not go back to anything else now.

Put about an inch depth of paper towards back of box, or where horse poos or wees. Just to soak it up. My theory is they lay down on the ground outside so really mats are no different.

However I do have one who doesnt like "splashback" and crosses his legs all night, and one who doesnt like to lie down but they only come in for the farrier. So not really an issue for me.

I do have cheaper wall mats too so dont need huge banks.