Daily mucking out is part of everyday stable life and is very important to promote the horse's health, because toxic gases can develop if mucking out is insufficient or superficial.
We explain here how to muck out a horse stable properly, how often you should do this and what to look out for when mucking out the stable.
A horse stable is properly mucked out by first removing the horse droppings from the stable with a bulb collector or a bulb fork. In the case of straw, for example, the dry and clean straw is transported to the side with a pitchfork and finally the wet or dirty straw is carried into the wheelbarrow. Afterwards, the stable is filled up with fresh straw.
However, there are other types of bedding than just straw. Which bedding you choose depends on your own preferences - each type of bedding has its advantages and disadvantages. However, it is essential that the bedding is odour-binding, absorbent and keeps the horse dry.
Below you will find a list of types of bedding for the stable.
Straw is the most common and popular bedding for horse stables due to its naturalness. In addition, straw, whether wheat, barley or oat straw, is inexpensive, easy to obtain and at the same time serves as a source of roughage for the horses.
However, horses should not be given straw as their only roughage, as they could develop colic if overfed. In addition, straw is often infested with mould and is prone to generating dust, which can damage the horse's lungs. Straw also requires a lot of space to store and produces more manure than other bedding.
Wood pellets are ideally suited as bedding for horse stalls, as they are natural, germ-free and do not produce dust. Unlike straw, bedding with wood pellets only removes the horse droppings, whereby the pellets fall down again through the tines and thus only piles and no litter are transported away. This results in less manure, it saves time and, above all, energy.
Unlike straw or shavings, wood pellets are more costly, but pellets require less space for storage and they smell fresher than other bedding. Wood pellets can be composted well after mucking out, as they rot after some time. As horses cannot eat the wood pellets, sufficient roughage must be provided every day.
Flax straw, also called flax straw, is more absorbent than conventional straw, which is why less manure is produced, and it is cheaper. It also offers a good opportunity for thermal insulation and therefore provides a warm lying surface for horses.
Just like the wood pellets, flax straw cannot be eaten by the horses, which is why fresh roughage must be provided for the horse at all times.
Chips are virtually germ-free and do not tend to dust. Because they are pressed into bales, they do not require much space for storage. When bedding, however, these bales must be loosened and evenly distributed in the stable.
The disadvantage with shavings is that they cannot be used for fertilising and for this reason must be disposed of in the waste.
Forest soil as bedding is particularly low in dust and is very durable. It is healthier for the hooves due to its PH neutrality and binds urine in such a way that no unpleasant odour is produced. Because forest soil is a natural product, it is easy to compost and can be used as fertiliser.
However, forest soil is quite expensive, requires a lot of space for storage and can possibly cause discolouration of your horse's coat.
Straw chaff is a good alternative to conventional straw because it is chopped, degerminated and dedusted wheat straw. They are also free of binding agents and preservatives, more absorbent and can absorb any liquid, horse droppings and urine.
For mucking out the stable, you need a boll fork or a boll collector, a pitchfork, a wheelbarrow and fresh bedding.
The stable should be mucked out every day, which means that the stable must be cleared of horse droppings and wet spots every day, as horses defecate at least 1-2 times per hour. If the stable is not mucked out regularly, the urine and faeces produce ammonia, which is toxic for the horses and can cause respiratory problems.
In addition, a dirty stable can lead to illnesses such as coughs, colds, mallenders, infections or hoof problems.
Per horse, depending on the type of bedding, you will need about XY kg of bedding for the basic bedding of the box for a box size of 9 - 16 m². After that, you will need to add about XY kg per day.
The amount of straw needed when filling for the first time is 1 - 2 round bales (approx. 220 - 450 kg). After that, you should refill about 7 kg of straw per day during daily mucking out, as you have to remove wet straw daily.
If you want to fill the horse stable with wood pellets, you will need 12 - 15 bags (approx. 180 - 225 kg). Afterwards, if pellets need to be removed after some time due to wetness, refill a new bag (approx. 15 kg). This does not have to be done daily, however, as no wood pellets are removed during mucking out, only horse droppings.
When the stable is first filled with flax straw, about 3 - 7 bales are needed, which correspond to a total of about 60 - 140 kg. Depending on how much the horse stands in the stall and the size of the stall, you will need approx. 1 - 2 bales per week for re-bedding if you muck out daily.
If the horse box is to be filled with shavings, you will need 3 - 7 bales of shavings, depending on the size of the box, which corresponds to approx. 60 - 140 kg. Depending on your needs, you should then refill 1/2 to 1 bale per week (approx. 10 - 20 kg) for daily mucking out.
For a stable size between 9 and 16 m², you need about 1 - 2 big bags of forest floor bedding, which corresponds to about 600 to 14000 kg. This results in a layer thickness of approx. 25 - 35 cm. You need about 100 litres (28 kg) of forest floor per week.
For the basic bedding of a box, you need about 100 kg of straw chaff, which corresponds to 5 bags. With daily mucking out, you need about 20 kg per week, i.e. one bag of straw chaff for refilling.
The following 5 things should be considered when mucking out.
There are two variants for mucking out the stable: alternating litter, i.e. the regular exchange of the entire litter, or the layer system, also called "manure mattress".
The manure mattress consists of several layers, which are created when the bedding is only re-spread and not completely replaced. Thus, one can offer the horse a dry lying surface. The surface of the mattress must be kept clean at all times, otherwise toxic gases can develop. However, the bottom layer of the mattress should not be damaged. The conditions for this variant are an absorbent bedding as well as emptying the entire stable after 12 weeks at the latest.
With alternating litter, on the other hand, the entire litter is removed at least once a week and replaced with fresh litter. The advantage of this is that both the surface and the undersurface of the box are dry throughout and horses cannot stir up any wet spots. The disadvantage, however, is that the amount of litter needed is very high, and regularly digging through the litter releases ammonia and heavy dust.
The wheelbarrow used for mucking out manure, i.e. the horse's apples and urine, should only be used for transporting the dirty manure. Fresh bedding or horse feed should never be transported in the same wheelbarrow as the excrement and dirt of the horse stable.
If you only have one wheelbarrow, for hygienic reasons you should always clean and disinfect the wheelbarrow before transporting food in it.
Deep litter, which is not cleared, but only new bedding is poured over it, saves time and effort, but should not be practised when keeping horses. Deep litter is a box with bedding up to 50 cm high, in which a large number of parasites and germs build up after some time. It is also detrimental to the horse's health.
Since daily mucking out can be harmful to the back, it is important to make sure that you always have a straight back when mucking out, lift the pitchfork with the help of your leg strength, i.e. bend your knees, and do not jerk your back when carrying it. Also try to consciously tense the abdominal and back muscles while continuing to breathe evenly.
If your horse has access to pasture in addition to the box, you should make sure to remove it from horse droppings at least every three days as well, so that the bacteria in the droppings cannot settle on the forage plants that are ingested by the horse when it eats.
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