Hello again, now let's talk about one of the most important parts of the horse's home, the flooring and bedding. The ground surface and the material on top of it represents the horse's cushion. Therefore, this bed needs to be clean, inviting, and comfortable to ensure the horse has time to rest adequately. When we don't provide suitable resting space and time for horses, they become subject to physical ailments, such as pressure sores, cracked hooves. Or worsening of sore muscles, or joints, or bones. In this lesson, we'll look at the best choices, and when we're through, you'll be able to identify the best selections for your facility. And be able to develop a maintenance plan to keep your horses safe and comfortable. Let's start with bedding. The bedding material that sits on top of the ground floor not only provides a comfortable resting space. But will play a major in stall hygiene, as it will absorb moisture and contain excrement. There are several types of flooring that are available, and each has certain benefits and disadvantages. Dirt flooring is, of course, the most common, but will turn into a pit over time as the stalls are cleaned. Horses may also paw and create uneven surfaces, and dirt flooring is very hard to sanitize, except to remove top layers. Clay flooring is more desirable, but it too needs to be maintained and replenished over time. Wood flooring can be found in older facilities, but it can become slippery and hard to clean. It may absorb urine odors, and it will rot over time. Concrete flooring is, of course, more expensive than dirt or clay, but it is more easily sanitized, and may allow better drainage. Overall, however, concrete flooring is not desirable, due to its unforgiving hardness, and it can become slippery when wet. If concrete flooring is utilized for stable passageways or for storage, it is recommended that it be texturized to make it less slippery. So you can see there is no simple answer to what the floor surface of your horse's home has. You may not have much of a choice, based on the existing facility. However, the preferred setup would be a rubber mat over dirt, or clay, or decomposed granite. Surfaces for pasture and pens include grass, gravel, crushed rock, compacted stone dust, and decomposed granite. Sometimes one corner of a pasture or pen will have a modified surface similar to those for stalls, creating a specific resting area. Some horses will defecate and urinate in one specific area of these outdoor living spaces, especially if bedding is provided. When adding bedding in a stall, a good rule of thumb is a daily minimum of 10 to 15 pounds of bedding per animal. That is sufficient to absorb moisture and excrement, and also provide some padding to the surface. Good choices for bedding include wood shavings, sawdust, straw, pelleted shavings, rice hulls, and shredded newspaper. A preferred source of bedding is often pine shavings, because it is absorbent, drains well, and is readily available and safe. Occasionally, horses will develop allergies to pine shavings. A stall that has been bedded with pine shavings is easy to clean and keep clean with daily removal of manure and urine. Straw and rice hulls are also good choices, as are pelleted shavings. Red alert, do not use black walnut shavings in bedding. Because as little as 20% of this can cause a severe systemic toxic reaction on contact or ingestion, and can lead to laminitis. As a rule, do not purchase quantities of chipped trees to supply bedding for your horse, unless you are certain of the type or species of tree that has gone into the mixture. Also note that it's important for your stable facility to provide an adequate space for dry storage of bulk bedding material. Bedding costs may be less when purchased in bulk, so this is often a good option for large boarding facilities. In outdoor areas, grass and soil or sand will probably be the most common surfaces. In any instance where a horse is housed on sand, it is important to make sure that they are not fed on sand, as sand ingestion can lead to serious digestive problems, including sand colic. If your horses are fed on sand, it is recommended that they are fed on a rubber mat on top of the sand. And that a commercial product that can clear sand be used on a regular basis to minimize risk. Consult with your veterinarian regarding sand clearing products. If you are housing your horse in a sandy area, you may want to test for sand on a regular basis, in their manure. The easiest way to see if your horse is passing sand is to collect manure droppings and place them in a bucket with a few gallons of clear water. If you stir the suspension until all the manure has dissolved and pour off the liquid, often the sand will remain in the bottom of the bucket. If you do note sand, it is important to contact your veterinarian. Some horses will accumulate sand in their gut and not pass sand. So a negative sand test does not mean that the horse is not accumulating sand. A final note on indoor stall flooring. Overall, the best flooring is rubber mats placed over a level surface, but under the bedding. This is really an optimal system, because it maximizes the use of the bedding, and maintains the flooring under the mat. Rubber mats also provide a softer surface for horses to stand on and lay down on. They can easily be disinfected and replaced as needed. Let's talk about drainage for a moment. This is an important consideration, because it aids in maintaining cleanliness, preventing disease, and in aiding an effective decontamination of the site. The first consideration in drainage is slope. Ideally, the crown of the stall should be in the center, especially if the base is made of dirt or clay, so that water may drain off to the perimeter. Porous base materials are best, but not always an option. Installing 2 drains are the best alternative, but require a constant upkeep. In any situation, however, it is important to make sure that water and urine can drain out of the stall. Chronic exposure to ammonia can irritate the respiratory tract and make horses more susceptible to respiratory disease. Finally, let's talk about the importance of disinfecting stalls and housing. First, there is no substitute for absorbent bedding and timely removal of excrement from stalls and pens. Most horses that are housed in stalls have the stalls cleaned once daily, and new bedding applied to make sure that the environment is absorbent. Additionally, pasture will need to have manure removed, or spread, or dragged on a regular basis to minimize the spread of parasites and contagious diseases. Something as simple as chain link fence dragged behind a mower or tractor will break up the manure pieces into smaller fragments that are disinfected by sunlight. If possible, it's ideal to drag a large pasture on a bi-weekly to monthly basis to minimize the accumulation of large amounts of manure. Some disinfection products are rendered inactive and useless if organic debris is present on the walls or floors. So pre-cleaning or scrubbing may be necessary before disinfecting a surface. It is recommended that stalls be disinfected before the arrival of a new horse. Or in instances where a horse in the stall has been suffering from an infectious disease. While nonporous surfaces, such as your floors and walls, are the easiest to keep clean, they're not practical home surfaces for horses. So we have to do the best we can with the porous surfaces that we have. Wooden walls can be coated with polyurethane to make them easier to clean and disinfect. Talk to your veterinarian to understand the difference between routine cleaning protocols and safeguarding against specific diseases common in your region. There is a range of products, depending upon the need, to adequately disinfect a surface. Next, let's review a basic protocol for disinfection. First, remove all organic debris, including manure and urine, thoroughly. Clean the area with water and a detergent soap, rinse, and then allow the surfaces to dry. Apply the disinfectant product according to the label. And use the effective personal protection equipment recommended by the disinfectant bottle. Do not rinse, and allow at least 15 minutes of contact time, or follow the label. Allow the product to dry thoroughly. Consult with your veterinarian to determine which disinfectant product is most appropriate for your intended use. Ideally, allow the disinfected space to remain vacant for an appropriate period of time. Remember that pitchforks, wheelbarrows, tires, and shoes can all transmit infected materials. And it is often recommended, in a case where you are trying to prevent infectious disease or minimize transmission of disease, to disinfect those items as well. There are several simple and inexpensive products you can use to disinfect stalls. Bleach is the simplest. It can be diluted with water, and a common recommendation is 1 part bleach to 10 parts water. Bleach is inactivated by debris like manure, so it will not disinfect a dirty stall. You will need to scrub all surfaces, as explained above, to maximize the disinfection power of bleach. Now that we've discussed the basics of flooring, bedding, and the very important cleaning, let's look at the safety measures you should have in place to assure the wellbeing of your horse.
