The benefit of rubber matting?

[Millie82]

We don't use rubber mats, but we do have earth floors. Two with straw beds and one with megazorb (she can't have straw as if she eats it she colics) I would never return to concrete floors, if I had the choice. We use big bale straw and it lasts us a good long time. We have had to experiment with the amount of bedding, as they are all rather wet mares and if we don't use enough bedding the floors get wet. If you get it right then earth floors are absolutely the way to go.

This may sound REALLY stupid, but how do earth floors work? Do you find a well draining area and put the stables on them with no floor? Do you have to relocate every so often as in mobile stables?.. They sound great and wanted to know more xx

 

[jsr]

I have 3 rubber mats, in summer when he's in for a few hours in the afternoon only I use nothing but in winter while he's in overnight I make large banks with around 3 banks of hemp type bedding, then just sprinkle over the floor to mop up pee..he doesn't lay down in his stable ever (too busy eating) so there is no point having a bed. All the pee runs to the door where I lay a good layer of shavings. It's so easy takes me literally 5 minutes to muck out and I use 1 bag of bedding every two weeks!! End of winter I dig out the banks and use whatever is useable and throw the rest. Mats cost me around £60 for the 3 (got 1 for cheap from a mate) and it's been a very very good investment.

Excuse the dog stealing the food, and the fact I haven't finished sweeping but this is it.

 

[BillyBob-Sleigh]

I have used them a couple of times, once with a deep litter shavings bed and emptying it out after I thought my eyes were going to burn out with the ammonia as all the urine gets under the mats. The second time was straw and mats - NEVER again, everything smelled, his rugs smelled even he smelled bless him because he was lying down in it (I was on full livery and didn't have a choice on the bedding I had). Now I have him back on deep litter with concrete floor and it's loads better! I think if I ever had it again it would only be a square infront of his door as he likes to stand and look and the world going by so it's just a bit softer for him

 

[starbar]

I don't bother with them . I don't like the way wee collects underneath them (I bed on straw), I'd be lifting them everyday and cleaning out underneath which kind of defeats the object!
I have really thick straw beds, if you drop the fork into them it doesn't hit the concrete. I like to muck out and push the beds back everyday for the floor to dry out before the bed goes back down. I'd quite happily curl up and sleep in one of my stables myself.
However, if I have a horse with allergies/copd it may be something I would look at but not something I would use out of choice

 

[Brigadoon]

I love it.
I had the usual worries about slipping and the smell but researched them well and ended up with Horsemat ones. They have a good drainage height and the urine flushes through them well with no pooling so no smell to talk about. I do have the floors done 'tho so everything drains well. I chuck a bucket of warm water with some cheap cleaner over them every week or so as well. One horse has the really thick spongy ones at the front as he has a vet condition and I feel its even better for him standing on to eat his hay.I use straw. I still have deep beds and banks but not quite as before and save a fortune compared to what I used to spend.
It is so time saving.