Ponies Going Crazy

Hi Everyone!

This is Dakino and I just made a video of Garrod Farm’s ponies going crazy.  I don’t really like the music, but I guess it was one of the few that sounded decent from the track list.  So to identify them:

Black/White Pinto-Oreo

Buckskin-Spirit

chestnut w/ flaxen mane-Pumpkin.

I hope you learned your colorings or you won’t be able to figure out which pony is which! 😉  So watch these cute little ponies running in the Garrod’s pony area!

Bedding/Muck

Hi!  It’s Dakino, and I am going to talk about bedding and muck.  You readers are lucky because this is from my horse notebook and people from my blog hasn’t read this information yet! 😉

Table of Contents:

• Bedding Options
• Types of Muck
• How to Muck
• Me and Mucking Out

Bedding Options

There are many bedding options and it is important to choose the one that fits your horses’ needs.

Never ever use rubber matting alone.  Horses will be injured!!!
Rubber matting may be used underneath bedding.

Straw:

Straw is a very popular type of bedding.

Pros:

• economical

Cons:

• not absorbent
• horses may eat
• can be dusty
• heavy and smells
• wet goes straight to the ground

 

Woodshavings

Pros:

• absorbent
• warm
• easy to store
• small muck heap
• dust free

Con:

• can be expensive

 

Paper Shavings

Pros:

• dust free
• absorbent
• eco-friendly

Cons:

• Expensive
• difficult to manage (blows around)
• difficult muck heap controll

Warning: paper shavings with print on it will stain the horse’s coat

 

Hemp

Pros:

• absorbent
• dust free

Cons:

• Expensive
• if horse eats, it will swell and causes colic

Warning: do not put feed over or on hemp

 

Compressed Wood Fiber Pellets

Pros:

• absorbent
• provides deep bedding

Con:

• expensive
• similar to hemp-if eaten, swells and  causes colic

Warning: do not put feed over or on compressed wood fiber pellets

Peat Moss

Pros:

• warm
• ‘virtually’ dust free
• useful for laminitic horses

Cons:

• Expensive
• difficult to muck
• stall appears darker

Types of Muck

There are three types of Muck:

Deep Littering

• only immediately droppings and wet areas are removed
• fresh bedding placed on top
• monthly-cleaned

Semi-Deep Littering

• Removed and cleaned weekly

Mucking out

• cleaned daily

How to Muck Out

Things you will need when mucking out:

1. A wheelbarrow
2. a shovel
3. a shavings rake ( and/or pitchfork for straw)
4. new shavings/bedding
5.  Muck heap

How to muck out a stall with outdoor and indoor (bedding in indoor only)

1. Remove droppings in the inside along with the shavings around it using a shavings rake
2. then remove wet spots with shavings rake or shovel (whichever one is better for you)
3. Then using the shovel, remove droppings outside.
4. Dump removed shavings and droppings in the muck heap.
5. Pour out how much bedding you need
6. Spread out with shovel or rake

How to muck out a stall with indoor only shavings

1. Remove droppings in the inside along with the shavings around it using a shavings rake
2. then remove wet spots with shavings rake or shovel (whichever one is better for you)
3. Dump removed shavings and droppings in the muck heap.
4. Pour out how much bedding you need
5. Spread out with shovel or rake

Me and Mucking Out

For me, I like the woodshavings the best.  And it’s the only type I’ve ever worked with.  I’ve only worked with mucking out.  Cleaning daily.  And I work with mucking out stall with outdoor and indoor.  It is the type of muck I think people should use.  Garrod Farms boarding stalls are box stalls with a small paddock in the back.  I’m not a big fan of mucking out, but it’s for a horse…right?

 

So that’s about it for today!  See you later!