Rubber Matting Advice Wanted

[eeyore]

sorry wasn't sure where to put this board..

anyhoo - we used to get free straw with our livery, but because of the bad summer it was grey and horrible.. so now we're having to buy in our own, but our horse is VERY messy, and it's really costing :-S

just curious as to the ups and downs of getting rubber matting and shavings.
my dad actually suggested it before i did, so i'm assuming he's willing to help out with the costs of it (i know they're pricey).

also.. i've heard that cattle matting is basically the same but cheaper? is that true?
i know that whenever something has 'equine' stuck in front of it, the price doubles!! lol!

all advice welcome ~ good or bad! :rolleyes:


OOO and also also, (haha)
i think that the livery are possibly giving us one free bale of shavings a week, so can i advice about mucking out and the good/badness of using shavings please.. thanks.

[cazrider]

Hi

Can't answer the cattle matting bit, but I have used rubber matting for all three of my horses, and would never give them up. However, I did try to use straw on them with my current horse. It was a complete disaster, so went on to shavings and have had no problems.

I have found, however, that the theory which says just use a tiny amount of bedding as they don't need it with the mats, in practice means horse covered in wee and poo in the morning, especially if he lies down a lot. Therefore my beds are not much thinner than they were before. So, not a massive economy, but I do like them.

Hope this helps

Caz:)

[eeyore]

thanks for the reply!

how easy are shavings to muck out though?
i've heard you use this little sort of shavings rake and sift through them or something..

unfortunately my horse is motivated by food! so he just eats all day and then 'unloads' it in his stable :rolleyes: lol!

oh! and, why was using straw on the rubber matting a complete disaster?

[^_^pEpPeRpOt^_^]

My horse and most of the ones where hes kept are on rubber matting with shavings and i find them a lot easier to muck out and find you dont have to take as much out as you do straw, but agree with cazrider if you dont have many in which i dont and your horse lies down them them or their rug gets disgusting especially if they are in at night, only bad thing is the cost.
They also dont go very far 2 bags just managed to fill my stable.

Your horse sounds so much like mine he does the same eats then poops so gets very messy but if you just have them round the side banked up then sprinkle them over the floor at night its a lot easier to muck out.

[SarahC]

Hi!

Just thought I'd let you know my experiences.

I too had rubber matting, however we were on straw and it was awful! We aren't allowed shavings at my current yard so the mats went (fortunately I didn't pay for them in the first place as they were already in the stable!).
Straw doesn't soak up wee as well as shavings, so the majority of the wee just went straight under the matting or sat in a puddle at the front of the stable after it drained down. I used to have to take the matting up really often to clean it and even then, it still smelt awful! The amonia (sp!) in the wee actually started to rot the stable floor!

When I had shavings at a previous yard, I had quite large banks and I used to use the shavings fork to chuck shavings up the banks and all the poo would roll down to the bottom making it easy to pick up and dispose of.

About once every week or so, I would turn the whole bed up and get rid of the wet patches that were stuck at the bottom.

I loved shavings for ease of mucking out, however, I found them really really expensive compared to straw.

S

[cazrider]

The reason strawas a disaster with mats was exaclty as SarahC says. Admittedly, Sennie is a very wet horse, but the pools of wee in the stable were HORRIBLE!.

However, although Sennie is very wet, he is also very clean, so the poo is in piles at the back and you just lift them out. So, add to that removing the wet patches from the middle. That's my mucking out routine. He doesn't grind the poo up and spread the whole thing around the box as my first horse used to do, thank goodness. So it's very easy really. Once a week I go through the banks and have a good sweep out.

You can't deep litter Sennie because he is so wet, so all the wet patches do have to be removed every day, but that's not really a problem.

I also like to add a bale of Equisorb every so often and mix it with the shavings in the middle of the bed, as its extra absorbent. But very expensive!

Hope this helps.:)

[Beryls Mum]

Can't help with the shavings, personally I don't like them. My girls just churn the whole bed up into a disgusting mess so did not stick with them for long.
I use a nearly full bed of straw and find this is working well for me. I could not use just a thin layer of shaving anyway as they refuse to wee unless there is nearly a full bed. However if the yard are going to give you shavings that is probably the wyay to go.
I have two stables matted, one with an expensive brand (equimats) and one with some much cheaper (half the price) that came from a local tack shop. I would never again buy the cheaper stuff you really get what you pay for. The expensive equimats were easy to lay and one person can lift them happily. The cheaper ones were a nightmare, they are so heavy it is hard for two people to lift them. Cutting them to fit was really hard work, I don't know how I am going to take them up to wash under. This is one case were I thing the extra money is worth it.
Another thing I did not think about before laying, make sure you have one mat going the full width of the door. I have one stable with two mats joining by the door and one mat is slowly making an escape out, I have to keep putting it back. Sounds obvious but I just did not think when laying.

[kayjayhorses]

oooh something I can answer with ease!!!
I have rubber matting had it now for about 5 years and absolutely love it.

Pro's: Only need a small amount of shavings in an area where your horses would go to the toilet, mine only go in this area and no-where else which means mucking out is a dream.
Keeps muck heap smaller.
Mucking out is very quick and easy.
Keeps bedding cost to a minimum
I like how it looks, nice neat amount of bedding and all the dust can easily be swept away from the front.
One of my horses is grey, and as he goes to the toilet in one area and lays in another, no stable stains.

Con's: You must fit it properly any gaps would mean pulling out the mats regulary and cleaning underneath as all the urine would get under the matting,
I've had mine 5 years and have never had to pull them out as they very tight in the stable and nothing can get beneath them.
Expensive to lay but inexpensive for bedding as you use less.
Some horses wont lay down on it if they are used to lots of bedding.

[Angiebabe]

Hi. I started using shavings this winter because the straw wasn't very good and Spirit tends to eat it.
I am quite careful with them and manage to use 1 bale most weeks and top up with two occasionally. I did put 6 bales in to start me off though so that was quite expensive. I do the same as SarahC. Skip out the poo off the top during the week by picking the main bits off then throwing the rest of the dry shavings up the banks and wait for the poo to roll to the bottom. Then on Saturday I clear all the dry onto the banks and remove the wet from the bottom. I like it and its so much quicker in the week I can do it myself instead of paying YO to do it. So in that way I make up for it being a little bit more expensive.

[eeyore]

thanks for all the replies!

just a little curious..
some people have said you can use shavings where they mainly 'do their business', so in the middle mainly, so in this case do you have to basically fill the stable with shavings as if it were a concrete floor anyway?

and also, if you have absolutely no gaps between the matting so nothing gets under them, can i assume it doesn't smell?

[Zingy]

To stop urine getting under the mats, you have to seal the whole lot. Problem is then that it's very difficult to move them!

Best way I've found is to seal the floor first using concrete sealant. This stuff absolutely stinks so you can only do it in an outdoor stable, but it stops any urine soaking into the concrete as it forms a waterproof layer. In the one stable I didn't do that in, the concrete rotted. Having said that it was very poor quality concrete to start with, but anyway.

Second - check which way the floor slopes. If you're lucky there won't be anywhere that catches pools. Best way is to tip a bucket of water on the floor when it's dry, but try to get it coloured! I've got disinfectant which turns the water bright green and this is much easier to see. Cover the floor with water and see what happens. Anywhere that the water pools, this is where urine will pool and smell. So in these areas you either need a lot of bedding or be able to lift the mats and wash under them. Bedding may not work though as the urine could run to these areas under the mats from elsewhere.

Check where the water naturally runs to. Hopefully it'll be an outside wall, or if you're especially lucky it will be 1 corner. Drill holes in the stable walls to allow any water to escape (best done before the floor sealant actually).

I've got 2 types of Fieldguard mats - the ones on legs and ones without. The leg ones are more expensive but a lot better. Used with no bed there's no smell - I just washed under them once a week (lift a corner away from the drain hole and run a hosepipe for 5 mins, then chuck a bucket of water with disinfectant down). Lifted them once a year. The solid ones do get liquid under them (though I never used much bed) and they do squelch when walked on! Horses don't mind though! With a lot of bed they'd be ok but I'd go with shavings or preferably something more absorbant.

One thing to watch for when you get mats is that you can move them. Sounds obvious but I know 1 person who's mats had to be rolled up and towed out of the stable with a van because they were too heavy to move by hand (by 6 people). Another got some fairly light but huge mats - they can only be moved in a box or trailer, so is a pain if moving yards.

[kayjayhorses]

Both of my mares have a small amount of shavings in a half circle at their back wall and they do their business there and there only, my gelding has a channel across the middle of the stable from side wall to side wall he has learnt to go to the toilet there as well, maybe I was just lucky but they manage to keep their stable quite clean.
I think if you decide this is a possible option for you it will be a case of trial and error for a bit.

[eeyore]

hmm yeah i think you are lucky your horses do their business in one spot! mine just goes anywhere he's standing at that moment whether his water tub or feeding bowl is in the way or not! lol!

i was just thinking though..
with a rubber-matted stable; could i put up large banks all the way around (of shavings), and a couple of cm thick layer of shavings across the floor in the middle?

he always does his 'business' there.. and that way i could take out the middle part and then just sprinkle down a new layer!

would that work?

[kayjayhorses]

I think to be honest anything would work with matting, some people don't use any bedding at all but most horses wouldn't be happy with that as the urine spashes up their legs.

On the other hand, some people lay a full bed on top of rubber matting.

I used to lay full bed with all 3 of my horses (before matting) and they would go anywhere including anywhere they were standing, because they can.

If you do it, I would try laying a small area of shavings increase the size if it doesn't work then start reducing it until you and your horse are happy. I had 3 out 3 success rate, that can't be just a fluke surely.

[eeyore]

Originally posted by kayjayhorses
I think to be honest anything would work with matting, some people don't use any bedding at all but most horses wouldn't be happy with that as the urine spashes up their legs.

good to know! :D

we've decided to stay on straw until he can live out, then we're going to enquire about the matting.. hopefully my dad will help me there "price-wise"..
oh well, he said he'd get me driving lessons for my b-day, so he can get me rubber matting instead! lol!
but then again he bought me my horse's tack and paid half his insurance at christmas.. ok. i have some buttering up to do..

thanks for all the advice, everyone!! :p

[Samsky]

A girl on our yard has a horse who box walks so makes a mess of his bed.She had him on straw originally and it was no good for her so she got rubber mats with shavings and now uses much less bedding.

Another girl has a horse that is extremely messy.The horse used to belong to the YO's daughter and during the winter when they are in,she had to have nearly a bale of straw a day.The new owners kept her on straw originally but we spending up to £8 per week on straw and it never looked clean.They decided to try shavings to see if it made a difference and although it has not made a big difference cost wise (they use 1 bag some weeks and 2 the next) the bed is much better and the horse does not eat it either.

[Bay Mare]

Has anyone used Equimats? (http://www.equimat.co.uk/) Three smaller mats interlock like a jigsaw to make up one big mat. I like the look of them but someone who has had a similar design (though not the same company) said that the 'jigsaw' bits push up after a while.

Thanks

[vjwuk]

Yes I have Equimats, reading the threads prior to this Equimat do state you must leave at least and inch around the edges to allow for spreading. I have a heavy cob, a friend who went in with me to buy the mats has a small pony. My mats have spread a little so I am glad I left a gap. Pony's mats haven't moved at all.

I am glad I got it. I tried the "scattering of shavings and banks" method but found that as I have mare who wee's everywhere her rugs were disgusting, therefore I have gone back to a thick middle layer and banks which works much better. Even though she is in half a day at the moment due to restricted turnout I am only taking out a barrow a day and putting on a bale (£6) a week.

It is much warmer in there and less backbreaking to muck out.

I am planning in the Spring to lift them and clean underneath and disinfect etc.

With Equimats the more of you that buy at once the better as they discount accordingly. Deliver to your door too.

[artemis]

I use mats & shavings & I agreeit's false economy to put down too little. I think that the biggest saving is in time. 15 mins for 3 horses isn't bad going. Mind you they're all clean types & I do skip out at every opportunity.

[Zingy]

A lot with the bedding depends if you mind having a dirty horse/ dirty rugs. I opted for no bedding and an extra stable rug so I could get it cleaned part way through winter. Horse didn't mind a bit and it was cheaper and easier than bedding. Wouldn't work if you're trying to keep a show horse pristine though!

[crazyhorse25600]

hi,all our three are on rubber mats and straw,my mare is really dirty and when i 1st got the mats i tryed shavings but i was using 2/3 bags a week so it was saving the pocket ,
i also have normal size beds on top of the matts,there deff cleaner and quicker to do,but its not relly saving on beding,
as people have already said if your lies down alot they are covered in muck and wee,this isn't normal and i have seen it burn a horses coat before,
i would also wash it out rgulary which isn't a nice job and takes a while to do,but they start to smell
good luck