smellshorsey

What Kind of Stall Flooring Do You Prefer?

I should probably have a whole category called, "Things I Wish I'd Done Differently." One is the "flooring" in our stalls. We have no floors. We have dirt. I initially used straw for bedding on top of the dirt floor until Lucy got into the feed storage (another topic for my category of "Things I Wish I'd Done Differently) and had to be kept in the stall with butterfly pads in her hooves and all kinds of anti-founder precautions. Thank the Lord and our good vet, she didn't founder. (And I moved where I stored the feed.)

But I had to take the straw bedding out of the stall so she couldn't eat it and replace it with peat moss/gold.  It did make nice manure. Now I use pine shavings.

Incidentally, the horses are not kept in the stall (unless they've done something stupid and need stall rest) but have 24/7 access to their stalls. That means they can go in there any time they need to go to the bathroom. They take full advantage of this.

Now, what's good about a dirt floor is that it's easy on horses' feet and joints. What's bad about dirt is that every time I strip the stalls I strip a layer of dirt. (And then work lime in, etc. before adding the shavings.) If you saw Lucy in her stall, you'd think she was a pony. She's standing in a hole. Buddy's stall has only been in use for two years (didn't keep the pony before him in a stall) so his dirt floor (under the shavings) is fine. For now. It would also help if Lucy didn't go into the stall to pee every single time.

If I were to do it over, and I'm going to have to at some point before Lucy disappears from view, here are the choices:

1. Concrete, asphalt or other permanent surface. Good part: permanent. Bad part: Everything else.
2. Gravel. Good part: semi-stable surface that lets liquids flow through. Bad part: I don't like adding rocks to my nice soft sandy land, and it doesn't sound comfortable. Plus, the horses would figure a way to churn it into their bedding and I'd end up with heavy, rocky manure and my problem not solved.
3. Stall mats. Good part: made for the job and should be a comfortable surface under the bedding. Bad part: bazillion dollars and would be a hassle to install. Plus I'm not convinced that it could hold up to all that pee.
4. Tamped clay. Good part: Nice, natural surface that is semi-solid and permeable. If I'm smart, we'll slope it so that the liquids run out instead of forming a basin. Bad part: I'm sure I'll be digging up layers eventually, and also imagine that with Lucy's habit of peeing in the stall and ONLY in the stall that even it will become saturated, slope or no slope. Still, it could be redone yearly. I think that's what is suggested.

I think I've read of other options but these seemed like the basics. Before I make my next move, which will not be soon, what flooring do you have? What do you think is ideal and/or most practical? What would you do over?

Questions I Have

I have a few questions.

1. Just what exactly is so scary about a plastic grocery bag?
2. Could you tell if your cat was suffering from sleep deprivation, and what would be the signs?
3. Why is it that the more valuable your horse is, the more likely it is to develop serious veterinary problems? (Which is different from health problems, but not by much.)
4. Why do the people who insist on painting pictures of horses, especially for children's books, not get a photograph of a horse and use that as a guide for how and where horse tack is used/put together (I'm twitching.)
5. Why don't more men and boys ride?
6. Why is it that your horse always picks up bad habits from his/her horse friends, and not the other way around? That's why it's hard to sell a cribber. One cribber in the pasture is like putting a sailor on a ship with a carton of cigarettes. Soon everybody's smoking. Lucy wasn't scared of fireworks until Buddy moved in. Now they both hyperventilate -- and worse. Happy New Years, all you galloping fools!

Stupid things I have done with horses

Here are a few of the Stupid things I have done with horses:

• Tied up a horse by the bridle (have done this more than once and bought more than one new bridle, showing what a fast learner I am).
• Failed to notice the difference in height between a Thoroughbred and a Shetland pony. I put the TB, who I had in on trial, in the stall where I normally kept the Shetland pony. In the next stall was a garbage can containing sweet feed. It didn't register with me that the TB could reach over the partition, pull the lid off of the garbage can, and eat the level of sweet feed down as far as she could reach. It was very embarrassing to have to tell the owner that I would need a few more days to try the horse as I had, um, had to have her stomach pumped this morning and was waiting to see if she would founder.... (she didn't).
• Gone for a ride in a pasture full of happy horses. My horse got really happy, too, and I ended up walking back, even carrying the bridle....(and dragging my pride).
• Foxhunted horses I have never seen before.
• More developing and more to come....

Here are a few of the Stupid things I have NOT done with horses:

• Cannot presently think of any....