Stabling without bedding?

Eww yuck. I don't want my horse either splashing himself when he pees and developing cruddy legs from it, or standing in wet pee and poop and developing thrush from that.

I know that mine lie down and I also know that capped hocks do develop from lying on rubber mats with no bedding ... ask me how I know :(

I wouldn't do it, but it's your choice, your time and your finances of course.
 
jsr said:
100% sure...7 years of ownership so pretty much know him by now. He even stops in canter, pee's and then carries on...doesn't position himself, care if a rider is on his back or anything, although does fart afterwards...he'd scratch his ar*e if he could. Always said if he were a bloke he'd wear a dirty vest and stink of fags and booze. ;)
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What's his name - Rab C Nesbitt???
 
Re banks and getting cast I am absolutely certain that around 20-25 years ago there was some research done which suggested that stables with banks in actually caused more horses to get cast. I'm trying to find it on google but having no luck so far.
 
cptrayes said:
If you have a look at any field that horses are left on for months at a time you will find bare patches, which I call "bedrooms". They scrape off the grass and make a hollow and then they lie their belly in the hollow. Cows and sheep do it too. I think it's to take the weight off their ribcage.

Mine live in a barn overnight and each morning I can see exactly where each on them has made a "form" in the dirt floor to lie in.

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Not only that but when we put piles of forage in the field, we often find horses lying in the piles, sometimes eating, sometimes asleep.

OP, I wouldn't like to have bare rubber mats, for the reasons that others have suggested.
 
cptrayes-that's interesting to know,my horse spends ages digging & scraping massive hollows in the summer. I just thought he was wierd! Nothing else on the yard does it though.
 
I got rubber matting last winter and only put a sprinkle of shavings down to soak up pee. With 4 stables to muck out everyday it has been a godsend! It takes me about 10mins to muck out 1 stable. Also saves money on bedding! ;D Its not cruel and all 4 of mine pee at least once during the night. :)
 
Archina said:
I got rubber matting last winter and only put a sprinkle of shavings down to soak up pee. With 4 stables to muck out everyday it has been a godsend! It takes me about 10mins to muck out 1 stable. Also saves money on bedding! ;D Its not cruel and all 4 of mine pee at least once during the night. :)
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I can muck out my 12*17 boxes with mats and 3-4 inches of shavings/pellets in the same amount of time. My horses pee 4 or 5 times/night as they eat alot of hay and drink plenty of water.

I don't think it's 'cruel' to not have bedding, but I don't think it's particularly healthy or pleasant for horses either. One of mine is very clean and will not even step in his own pee and poop if he can help it. Poor guy would hate a filthy wet box with no bedding. My mare ... not so much.
 
I have banks all around and enough straw to totally cover the foot part of my boots in the middle. I've got thick rubber mats. Not overly sure what Markie's going to be like over winter when he's fully in at night, but, when he's come in the night before shows, he poops at the back of the stable and lies down in the middle. In his previous home he only had a sprinkle of shavings on thin rubber mats, but, he had the choice to go out into a sort of 'holding' paddock.
Some on our yard have minimal/no bedding on rubber. YO says the horses on straw are usually laid down when she goes out for her final checks/dog walk, but not the ones with very little bedding.
My old sec d used to have a huge straw bed and he was very clean. his stable was only 10' by 10' though, Markie's is 12' by 14'!
 
If you have the bank there then he will pull some down himself if he wants to lie down/ have a wee, this is what mine does. He's on mats and shavings and drags the bed around constantly so when I muck out I just roughly brush it into a square in the corner (he still gets a bale a week so there's plenty of shavings there) for him to lie on and if he wants a wee or more bedding he pulls it out himself. Mine wee's and poos in the same place each night so I know where to look which may also help keep him clean :)
 
I dont mind either way. When my boy is at home, where we have rubber matting, he will usually only have a small sprinkle of shavings to absorb any wet. Now I dont have rubber matting, I do give him a relatively thick bed of straw with banks, but this is the norm at the yard and he is on part livery, so this is done for me, and unlimited straw is included in the cost of livery. I really dont mind either way to be honest, he is very tidy, does everything in the same spot, and I know he lies down when there is no deep fill because of the odd shaving stuck to his mane :p If your worried about getting cast you can buy anti-cast rollers to put on the sides of the stable, but I have never had this issue with mine :)
 
If you are worried about the horse getting cast most bankings these days aren't big enough or solid enough to help. Anti cast strips fitted to the stable walls or an anti cast roller (if you can still get them) are a better bet.

My horses don't always wee in their beds. I have tried big thick beds, thin beds, straw, shavings and now wood pellets and none have made a difference to if they do or not. Sometimes their rugs will have bedding on them and sometimes in the summer I can see the pattern of the rubber matting on their sides from where they have laid down directly on the mats.

I prefer to have some bedding just to soak up any wet not for them to lay on as they aren't bothered where they sleep. If bankings are there for your boy to knock down if he wants something to wee/lay/stand on I don't see a problem. Not really much help am I :rolleyes:
 
That's a nonsense argument that horses aren't "nesting" animals. Of course they aren't! But neither are they animals who choose to spend 15+ hours in a 12ft x 12ft space where they have to pee and poo and eat and rest. A natural horse is unlikely to ever be in the same space for more than about 5 mins tops. A stable and bedding is a compromise solution for owners. Use those little grey cells peeps.
 
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