Bed-Down are horse bedding specialists. We produce equine bedding and advise on its use. Here are some basic tips, for novice equestrians, on stable cleaning.
Stables should be mucked out every day; they need to be kept clean. Since horses often lie down in their stable, if you fail to keep the stable clean, your horses will be lying in their own urine or manure. And that’s bad for their health and wellbeing. At Bed-Down, we offer to support both experienced and novice equestrians with our yard visit service – contact us for more details – but below are a few general points.
Cleaning the stable shouldn’t be seen as a menial task. Actually, it’s an important part of the equestrian lifestyle. An inadequately mucked out stable can cause a variety of health problems in the horse, such as thrush, cellulitis, breathing problems or skin complaints.
Lying in its own manure or urine-soaked horse bedding is bad for your equine friend’s health. Ammonia fumes from urine can irritate a horse’s sensitive lungs. Horse hooves which are constantly exposed to wet horse bedding in the stable are at real risk of developing the bacterial infection thrush. This is a painful condition which occurs when bacteria accumulates in the softened sole because of moisture. It’s difficult to treat and very distressing for the horse. Moreover, when horses lie on wet or dirty bedding, they may develop any of a number of skin complaints.
A clean stable is important for any horse, but all the more so for horses that – for one reason or another – are confined to stables for prolonged periods.
It’s important to sift out the manure with a fork. Different horses have different habits. Some have a regular routine and defecate in the same place every day, while other horses spread their manure all over the stable. So get to know your horse’s routine. Some horses urinate in the back of the stable; some urinate in the centre. Remove all the urine soaked horse bedding to minimise the risk of thrush and to suppress ammonia vapour levels. Remove as much urine-soaked horse bedding as possible. Spread clean horse bedding as required. Whilst you won’t want to waste any bales, it’s better to have too much bedding than too little. Using too little bedding increases the risk of complaints such as hock sores, ankle abrasions and urine stains on your horse.
One more thing: when cleaning or checking the stable, don’t forget to clean out the feed tubs and make sure there’s plenty of clean, fresh water!
For advice on a horses’ particular health issues, you must always consult a vet. For advice on which horse bedding to use, talk to Bed-Down.
To arrange a yard visit and benefit from our professional advice, please complete this form www.bed-down.co.uk/yard-visits/
Or read about the benefits of our premium horse bedding range: www.bed-down.co.uk/our-bedding/
We’re here to help, so feel free to call us or drop us a line.
Telephone 01986 785278 Email info@bed-down.co.uk.
