What to Consider for the Best Bedding for Your Horse? Straw or Wood Shavings?

The best bedding for your horse. What to consider when choosing?

The times when the only available bedding option for our horses was straw are long gone. Nowadays the market offers us many more possibilities, thanks to which every owner can match the type of bedding to the individual needs of their horse.
When it comes to bedding, we very often decide on an easily available and most economical option, without analysing our choice too much. There is, of course, nothing wrong with this, as long as our horse has no special requirements. Nevertheless, it is worth looking at the possible options. The wealth of the assortment may cause a slight dizziness, especially if you do not know what the most important differences between the types of bedding are and what you should take into account. That is why in this article we will describe both the best-known types of bedding and the less popular options, and present their most important pros and cons.

What to consider when choosing bedding for our horse?

The choice of bedding is a very individual matter and many factors influence it. That is precisely why we cannot single out the best one, or give a universal answer for everyone to the question of which bedding to choose. Ostensibly its function seems clear – to insulate the horse from the hard and cold floor, increase its safety and comfort (prevent slipping or injuries when lying down and rolling), and absorb urine and droppings to the greatest possible extent. However, the number of options already available and the new ones constantly appearing is a response to the varied needs of horses depending on the way they are kept, their physical condition or the work performed. The preferences and priorities of the owners are also not without significance. Well-chosen bedding can positively affect the comfort and health of our horse, and vice versa – chosen badly, it lowers its welfare.

When choosing bedding, we have to take into account many factors that we often do not even think about when deciding on a change, such as:

• Availability of the bedding – make sure that the chosen bedding is available in your area and you will be able to order it regularly, without paying exorbitant sums for delivery and without risking that the waiting time for it may extend to weeks or months (this can be caused, e.g., by importing the feed from abroad, the lack of a manufacturer’s representative/distributor in your region).

• Storage – before you decide to change the bedding, check whether you have the appropriate place to store a larger quantity of it. Take into account the requirements that the manufacturer usually informs about (temperature, humidity, maximum storage time, etc.). The bedding should be stored in the stable or very close by, so that you can deliver it to the horse’s box without a problem.

• Dust and dusting – if your horse has problems with the respiratory tract, you will need bedding that does not dust and in which there is no dust (or there is a minimal amount). In such a situation it is best to consult a vet, who should advise you on the best option.

• Absorbency – one of the most important tasks of bedding is to absorb urine and moisture. You do not want your horse to stand on wet bedding or be exposed to inhaling the ammonia that is secreted from horse urine and irritates the respiratory tract. Consider how absorbent the bedding is in the context of how often the horse’s box is mucked out, how much time it spends in the stable, etc. Absorbency has a great influence on the amount of bedding you will need.

• Comfort – the tasks of bedding also include providing maximum comfort to your horse and enabling it to lie down or roll freely (and safely). This is all the more important the more time the horse spends in the box. If we have concrete floors in the stable, we need quite a lot of bedding to relieve our charge’s joints and give it a feeling of comfort. If the floor is equipped with rubber mats, the amount of bedding needed may be smaller.

• Disposal of the bedding – the most common option is composting, but different beddings need a different amount of time to decompose into manure, and the amount of space they need is also different. Consider whether you have the appropriate conditions for composting the bedding, or whether its collection by a company that deals with this will be necessary (additional costs).

• Price – although everyone would like to give their horse the world, we are usually limited to a smaller or greater extent by our finances. Before you decide on new bedding, try to estimate how much of it you will need per month and what costs this will generate (bedding, delivery, storage, disposal). Check the option of jointly ordering a larger quantity with people from your stable, or from the area, which can lower the price.

• Palatability of the bedding – important, especially if your horse has a tendency to eat the bedding from under itself and problems maintaining weight. To prevent this, you can use bedding that will not be appetising for the horse (basically any, except straw). Such a solution is also often used for horses in intensive sport training and fed according to a strict diet.

• Other – the amount of time the horse spends in the box, how much it drinks and how often and in what quantities it urinates, whether it keeps the box clean or rather makes a big mess and digs through the bedding. All this affects how often the bedding will be changed and how much of it will be needed (costs and our time).

The 5 most popular types of bedding – pros and cons

Now that you already know what you have to consider when choosing bedding, let us look at its various types and their pros and cons.

Straw

Without a doubt the most popular of all beddings, present in almost every stable. Straw is not only easily available and relatively cheap, but also looks aesthetically pleasing.

Pros:

• Availability.
• Relatively low price.
• Good insulation provides warmth and comfort.
• Composts very well, giving valuable manure.

Cons:

• Relatively low absorbency.
• Requires special storage conditions, otherwise prone to rotting and moulding.
• Straw is not recommended for horses (and people) with respiratory problems, due to the large amount of dust and pollen.
• Willingly eaten by horses.

Wood shavings

The second most popular option. Remember that if you decide on it, it must be wood shavings sold for the purpose of animal bedding. Ordinary shavings from a sawmill may contain dangerous or sharp elements and harmful substances.

Pros:

• Availability.
• Affordable price (although this may depend on the region).
• Good-quality shavings have little dust.
• Packed in plastic bags, they are easy to store and transport.
• Good absorbency compared to straw.
• Horses will not nibble at them.
• They provide very good support for the horse’s legs.

Cons:

• In some horses they may cause an allergy.
• Too fine, although they are more absorbent, may dust.
• Frequent removal of wet shavings necessary (preferably twice a day)
• They decompose considerably longer than straw, the longest composting period (even up to a year).

Pellets

A very universal, high-quality bedding. Pellets are usually made of compressed shavings of coniferous trees. Thanks to very low humidity (6-8%) they are absorbent and efficient. Remember that when filling the box with pellets, you first have to lightly spray them with water and wait about 20 min for them to loosen and soften.

Pros:

• Very absorbent.
• Binds ammonia very well and eliminates the unpleasant smell.
• Good-quality pellets are a sterile product, contain no dust, mould or fungi. Ideal for horses with skin allergies and respiratory problems.
• Easy to store.
• Composts very quickly (about 3 weeks).
• Easy to keep clean. It is enough to remove wet patches and droppings and add pellets on average once a week.
• Unappetising for horses.

Cons:

• High price compared to other beddings.
• A relatively small offer of manufacturers.

Peat and its mixtures.

In recent years we can come across it in some stables as valuable bedding for horses. This type of peat is subjected to special heat treatment and dedusting in order to remove fungi, spores and mould from it; only then can it be used. Sometimes herbal mixtures are added to the peat, which, on the principle of inhalation, make breathing easier for allergic horses.

Pros:

• Very good absorbency and ammonia binding.
• Ideal for horses with allergies or RAO.
• Provides a very good environment for the horse’s legs, prevents thrush of the frogs.
• The most ecological bedding.
• Composting is practically not necessary; it can serve as manure right away.

Cons:

• Price and limited availability.
• An unaesthetic appearance (peat is earthy by nature; although it is not, it looks dirty).
• Freezes at low temperatures (not suitable in winter for open stables).

Flax bedding.

Bedding made from chopped flax straw has recently become quite popular thanks to its almost “magical” properties. Extremely absorbent (1 kilogram of this straw can absorb up to 5 litres of liquid), with hypoallergenic properties, it has quickly gained many supporters. 

Pros:

• Very good absorbency and ammonia binding. The top layer of straw stays dry, and all the moisture falls to the bottom.
• Quick composting (2 times faster than ordinary straw).
• Hypoallergenic.
• Not willingly eaten by horses, due to the bitterish taste.
• Very good thermal insulation.
• Easy storage.

Cons:

• Price higher than ordinary straw.
• Lower availability.
• In horses that dig through the bedding it may be hard to create an appropriate bed, because for this to happen the bottom layer should not be disturbed (then it can, however, be used together with mats and changed more often).