Whats cheaper, straw or shavings?

SpottyTB

SpottyTB

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I cant decide whether or not straw is cheaper than shavings for my girls bedding, I think i can pick up a bale of straw for 2.50 down here and I don't know what shavings cost at Cornwall farmers but which is the cheaper method? Sort of planning ahead, my first winter funding my girl completely on my own and REALLY could do with saving every single penny:)
 
Aha! Then that would depend on your method of bedding down.

If you were to bed down regularly, they would both work out expensive relative to their cost.

However, if you deep litter with both, it works out half the cost, again relative to whichever bedding you chose.

I trialled both methods, not on purpose, but it was what was available. I have found deep littering on straw uses one bale/week. Deep littering on shavings was also 1 bale/week. I used three straw & two shavings the conventional way.

I use deep litter straw.
 
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Straw is always going to work out cheaper than shavings I would have thought. Depends what you pay though. I pay £1.20 for straw and £7ish for shavings.
Straw goes further too. One bale of straw will equal about 2 of shavings in terms of floor coverage.
 
On deep litter shavings I get through one shavings bale a fortnight. I don't like deep litter straw, and I worked out for a normal bed of straw I would be paying double than the deep litter shavings. (this would be with 2 bales of straw a week which is what I did last year).
I have a solid base of shavings which stays down, then a a deep dry bed on top which gets taken up and put back down everyday. Any lumps of wet on top of the base I take off so they don't soak through into the bed. Less money, less time consuming, thick and lovely clean bed :D
 
Thank you all for commenting, I was thinking about keeping her in at night and if its compulsory at the livery then i'll have to, but I think I will aim to find a livery with 24/7 turn out - which is what she's been used to! Straw seems to be the cheaper talking to a few people, however shavings seem less work? :)
 
I think it depends what your used to and your horse. When I used to work at a yard they were all on straw and I actually found it very easy. The one winter my horse has spent in he was on shavings, and I hated it! He would wee and poo throughout, I had to do a full muck out every other day. But due to his straw eating I had to stick to shavings. Having said that if I had a clean horse (I wish!) I think shavings would be easier.
 
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