stay with straw or change to wood pellets?

[pegasus1986]

Im umming and aahhing over wether to give wood pellets a try or stay on straw this winter what do you recon to wood pellets? Ive got 4 horses none of particulary wet just poo alot.

 

[stacey222]

I have 5 on straw and 1 on wood pellets, if straw wasn't so cheap i would have them all on wood pellets, they are brilliant, mine drags his feet around, but he can't seem to move his pellet bed like he did with straw or shavings, plus its alot quicker to muck out, i just take out the very wet spots and poo every day, doesn't smell either!

 

[Spot_On]

I prefer wood pellets to straw, as I find it smells less and quicker to muck out.

 

[Potato!]

I was on straw then went to wood pellets however didnt get on that great with them so now on chopped straw and love it.

 

[Suechoccy]

I'm going to try wood pellets for first time this winter. Shavings are too expensive. I deeplitter so am wary of using straw because of the microbes building-up that could lead to respiratory problems. If I did fullmuckouts daily, I'd use straw as cheapest option.

 

[Megibo]

I love pellets! Would only go back to straw if I ran out and needed something short term whilst ordering more.

 

[YasandCrystal]

This will be my second winter on pellets and I shall have 3 in until Christmas and then 5 in total after so I need the quickest bedding to muck out. I love them - economical and easy.

 

[poiuytrewq]

I had one on pellets and two on straw last year. Straw I get free so it seemed silly not to use it. I used the pellets on my wetter but cleaner horse. I far prefer them over straw because I get asthma and he gets a cough both are helped by pellets. I just prefer to muck them out- so easy and I like the fact I don't stink and neither did my stable or rugs. I hate the smell on my clothes after mucking out straw.

 

[Mince Pie]

Having covered the yard for my YO last week I am now a total pellets convert! We've got a horse on the yard which is on box rest and even he only took 15 minutes and only gets 2 bags a week. They're very economical too - scoop up the poo and the bedding just falls through

 

[NativePonyLover]

I tried wood pellets, but prefered straw overall. I now use straw with a wood pellet or chopped straw as a base layer. Works really well

 

[lula]

Are woodpellets the ones that look like cat litter and come in rather small bags about £2.5o each?

My concern was you'd need at least 20 bags to start a bed off and wondered if this would be economical in the long run.

 

[Tarandes Bear]

Very interesting thread for me too, if I may join in. I used shavings last year, very frugally I admit as I have rubber matting, but it cost be a small fortune with 2 horses, and that's with turn out by day and only stabled at night. Are you buying these wood pellets in bulk or are they something you can pick up at your local country/feed store? What make are they and how do you use them? I'm not thick, honest! Just very traditional, so any info would be much appreciated. Thanks

 

[Mince Pie]

You can get them by pallet but my local feed merchant does them by the bag as well - about £6.50 I think but don't quote me on it.
Lula you wet them so they do swell up, they come in 7.5kg bags - we put a half bed down with 8 bags on rubber mats which is about 3 or 4 inches thick. As I said the box rest horse gets 2 bags a week, the others get one - including my very wet boy as they are very absorbent. The wee stays in a small area as well so easy to take out - we take the wet out every day

 

[mightymammoth]

I'm another pellet convert after always using shavings, wouldn't go back now. if you have a very wet horse sprinkling some unsoaked pellets on top of the made bed is great for Absorbing the wee.
The pellets just absorb the wee so no smell of ammonia. I also just take the wet out which clumps together then mix in back through. It reminds me of cat litter.

 

[Squeak]

Another vote for straw pellets rather than wood. I buy them for just under £4 a bag and use a bag a week, I buy a tonne at a time, which helps with cost but they are easy to store. It took me about 4 bags to make up a bed so not extortionate at all. With the straw pellets you put the pellets straight into the bed without soaking first and this makes them even more absorbent. I've tried loads of beddings and straw pellets are by far the fastest and easiest to muck out as well as the cheapest to buy (and you save through having less on the muck heap as well) and don't smell. Total convert, I wouldnt use anything else.

 

[Tarandes Bear]

Sounds like I might have to give it a go. Is there much variation to using straw over wood pellets? I'm finding it a right pain trying to source straw at a good price, and that's even after a fabulous harvest. The local farmer down the road has put his straw prices UP this year! I too only use half beds, so how many bags would I need to initially make the beds? Thanks

 

[Ahrena]

I'm just starting my move from straw to pellets. One is on it for the first time today.

I love straw - love nothing better than a humongous fluffy bed BUT now I have a 4th horse, time it taking its toll and I need something quicker.

I have 1 on shavings and she's now been moved over (she would gobble straw, she even calls when I get some to put in another bed as its obviously food to her) so we shall see. I mucked it out for 2 weeks when housesitting which converted me as it was SO
quick.

We used 11 bags of the 15kg LWP premium ones and its made a fairly big bed in a 12 x 14 (half the stable is bed) with big banks. Some of the pellets havnt broken down yet so think it'll be bigger tonight after she's been on it.

 

[Joyous70]

I am considering moving over to wood or staw pellets, as i have a strange youngster, she doesn't like straw or shavings beds, she will not stand or lie on them, and consequently all her mess is at the front of her stable.

I know this might be a strange questions, but are the wood or staw pellets quiet? she doesnt like the noise that staw makes when i walk her onto it, also with shavings she tried to eat them!

 

[Potato!]

I found that my horse hated lying down on wood pellets.

 

[Joyous70]

I found that my horse hated lying down on wood pellets.

Oh rite, nowim in a pickle! maybe i shoudl wait until Your Horse Live and see with my own eyes what the bedding looks like etc., im hoping they will be out as much as possible again during winter, but i would like her to be comfortbable when she comes in.

 

[Tarandes Bear]

I'm just starting my move from straw to pellets. One is on it for the first time today.

I love straw - love nothing better than a humongous fluffy bed BUT now I have a 4th horse, time it taking its toll and I need something quicker.

I have 1 on shavings and she's now been moved over (she would gobble straw, she even calls when I get some to put in another bed as its obviously food to her) so we shall see. I mucked it out for 2 weeks when housesitting which converted me as it was SO
quick.

We used 11 bags of the 15kg LWP premium ones and its made a fairly big bed in a 12 x 14 (half the stable is bed) with big banks. Some of the pellets havnt broken down yet so think it'll be bigger tonight after she's been on it.

Are you going with straw or wood pellets? Let me know how it goes. If it works like cat litter how easy is it going to be to get the wee out! marvellous! ..... Off to do some research

 

[Cadburys_addict]

My boy lay down on his wood pellet bed all the time....probably more than he did when he was on the shavings I was on (and they were awful shavings)....I found pellets really quick and easy to muck out....if you buy in bulk and can store them they are generally cheaper per bag than going to a horse shop and only buying a few bags at a time.....I was very lucky we got them straight from the mill at 3.20 a bag....

 

[jrp204]

Wood pellets every time, we use them on rubber matting so only put a sprinkling in one corner, a bag would last 7-10 days. Easy to muck out, absorbent, less smelly and a much smaller dung pile.
Remember, you do have to soak them before putting them down though, bit lumpy otherwise.

 

[nix123]

Wood pellets all the way for me. Give them a go as you can always swap back if you dont like them.

 

[tabithakat64]

Wood pellets all the way for me, much less stinky, more absorbant 100 times quicker and easier to muck out even with messy or wet horses once you're used to it and both mine lay down still.

 

[Joyous70]

Can you still get trials from any of the wood pellet companies? I have my youngser who i said previously is a dirty mare and any messes in the doorway! and then there is my old boy 26, and i think he would prefer wood pellets to straw

 

[Tarandes Bear]

I'm looking at changing to pellets also. Yes, a trial would be a great idea. I'm going over to our local Mole Valley this arvo to see if I can get a couple bags to try before I commit to a pallet!

 

[poiuytrewq]

Can you still get trials from any of the wood pellet companies? I have my youngser who i said previously is a dirty mare and any messes in the doorway! and then there is my old boy 26, and i think he would prefer wood pellets to straw

I think you can if you look around, Ive seen a few trial size deals but cant remember which companies sorry.
As for your previous question about them being quiet, Yes I would say they are totally silent to walk on and they wouldn't move around at all once established.
I would also imagine they would give excellent support for cushings/laminitis horses.
I'd certainly say give them a try but keep an open mind at first as I found they can take a bit of getting to grips with as in the adding of new bedding etc. Some say add dry but my bed just got smaller and smaller and never broke down, since I started adding them already mostly soaked ive managed my beds much easier and more economically, but with a wetter horse this may not be the case?
Trial and error.

 

[Tnavas]

Give me straw any day! I hate shavings or sawdust as it gets in everything and if you have a messy horse it looks disgusting very fast.

Wood pellets I prefer if straw isn't available as they pack nicely and are easy to muck out. I deep litter my wood beds, only the dung is removed, they are then dug out at the end of the winter. Once you expose urine to the atmosphere it starts to smell, leave it buried it packs and rots down and is warm in winter.

 

[Joyous70]

I think you can if you look around, Ive seen a few trial size deals but cant remember which companies sorry.
As for your previous question about them being quiet, Yes I would say they are totally silent to walk on and they wouldn't move around at all once established.
I would also imagine they would give excellent support for cushings/laminitis horses.
I'd certainly say give them a try but keep an open mind at first as I found they can take a bit of getting to grips with as in the adding of new bedding etc. Some say add dry but my bed just got smaller and smaller and never broke down, since I started adding them already mostly soaked ive managed my beds much easier and more economically, but with a wetter horse this may not be the case?
Trial and error.

Thank you im going to have a nosey around and see if i can find somwhere who does trial size packs before committing to a pallet or half pallet.