Wood Pellet Bedding

[Ramona]

Anyone have any experiences with using wood pellet bedding at the track. Any pros and cons about it's use. Effects on the feet and what to do about it.??

[ZiaLand]

This was posted on another thread (about barn ventilation). Is this the type of bedding you were asking about?

Laurie

Lei Owen
Weanling


Joined: 16 Sep 2004
Posts: 18
Location: NW Arkansas
Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2004 2:49 pm Post subject:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Louis, I don't know if this has been discussed before. If it has, just skip this post.

This is how we handled our smelly barn's. We had 4 mares and foal's stalled this spring. We have clay floor's in our stalls and had alway's used wood shaving's or straw. The time it took to keep the stall's clean and smelling sweet was killing us. I ran across Woody's Pet Pelleted Bedding at our local Tractor Supply. It came in 35# bag's and recommended 7-8 bag's for a 12X12 stall. I bought enough for one stall, I figured I could afford $35-40 if it didn't work out. Following the instruction's on the bag, we stripped one stall, put down Stall Dry, sprinkled the pellets around the stall and following the instruction's, sprayed with a light mist of water. The pellet's blew up, we had about 4 inches of sawdust minus the dust. AND a sweet smelling stall. The following day, we did the same for the other stall's.

Those babies were laying down in the ammonia smell. No amount of fan's was going to move that smell. Now, we have a sweet smelling barn, no ammonia smell.

There are several other brand's of pelleted bedding. I bought a pallet load, and have only used about 1/3 of the pallet.

Would the stable owner's want to try something different? We find that the pelleted bedding is no more expensive that shaving's or straw, there is not as much waste, dryer stall's, no more stripping stall's, and much, much less time spent cleaning stall's. One added advantage we found, by cleaning the waste up twice a day, fewer flies in the barn.

[Ramona]

What I was trying to draw out, is whether anyone that used the bedding had problems with the feet. We had a problem where these pellets dried out the soles of our horses feet. It seems if the pellets require water, it may be depleting moisture in horses feet.

[TBLADY]

Hers what i do...take a muck tub or a wheel barrow and dump in one bag of pellets and then add ONE water bucket of water...mix let set about 15 mins...maybe more. Use for bedding. I know sounds weird...but I used it in all of my stalls and love this stuff to death and no dried out soles

[Ruffian]

This sounds like a magic bedding!

Who manufactures it? does anyone reckon it would be good for quite a 'moist air' climate?(such as UK?)

Lots of my horses suffer from mud fever unless they are absolutely clean and dried off(try doing this to a nutter broodie!) every evening. Drying out is the thing I need!

Thanks

[TBLADY]

www.woodypet.com I THINK is one of the product web sites. I'll look on one fo my bags for another.

[katydid]

if you add water to the woody pet however it doesn't last as long...I leave it in its pelleted form and just keep mixing the wet spots everyday. Once its reached its maximum moisture then I start scooping out the wet spots and adding new woody pet.

As far as depleting moisture from the soles of the feet...I think that is a fallacy (at least for the woody pet), its actually GOOD for their feet because the woody pet retains a higher moisture content than other types of bedding. Not all pellets are created equal...get a pellet specifically designed for use with animals...wood stove pellets can be dangerous/toxic to horses because of the types of woods they may use.

[katydid]

Who manufactures it? does anyone reckon it would be good for quite a 'moist air' climate?(such as UK?)

Its good in moist air climates but what I've found is that it reaches its moisture capacity much faster in humid climates.

[susanh]

I use Magnum Horse pelleted bedding. Couldn't find a Woody Pet dealer in this area. It works the same, it stores easily. We don't use that much as we have soft stall flooring inside the stalls so we only use it for absorbing and not for warmth. If you let the product dry out once it is broken down from the pelleted state, it gets really dusty so you have to watch you are keeping it at the correct moisture (not hard to do). My farrier says my TB's feet are the best he has ever seen them in the 3 yrs he has been doing them, so I don't think it dries out the feet.

[Lei Owen]

Besides the Woody brand pellet, we have also used Eagle Valley ABM pelleted bedding. ABM is made in Canada, but there are two warehouses in the States. It's just about the same price as Woody's. If you do a Google search for pelleted bedding, you'll find several more brand's on the market.

Some people have used the kind of pellet's that you burn in your stoves/furnaces. Those I'd sure be leary of because of the type of wood used to make the pellet.

We've never experienced any drying out of our horses feet. But, they are not on it 24/7.

To break up the pellet's, we found a nozzel at Home Depot that we use on our hose that has a mist setting. This work's great for the bedding. You can control the amount of water better. (An added feature, in the hot summer time, the horses love for you to mist them! They'd stand there all day. )

[Pete]

Hi All,

How much dust do the pellets create (if any)?

I'd think that if there is any problem with the pellets drying in the feet that it can be managed.

Regards,


Pete

[katydid]

I have experienced virtually no dust...but one must keep the bedding at optimum moisture (i.e it feels slightly moist to the touch but it won't transfer onto jeans should you kneel on it). Its awesome for the horses feet!

Good Luck.

[Pete]

Hi Katy,

How do you remoisturize pellets that are in the stall already (aside from the obvious). Is it as simple as spraying water?

Pete

[katydid]

yes you can mist them slightly with water to allow the pellet to expand and break down into a shavings like bedding. Once maximum moisture is reached you need to remove the wet spots and add new pellets and you will have a stink free/ virtually dust free stall.

Once the bedding is used though you technically you can allow it to dry and recycle it...it does get dusty and its moisture retention properties aren't as good.

[Sylvie Hebert]

by the way i now use pellets made here in northern quebec and love them,never dusty,never have to moisturise them and really $ savers.