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Location: Alabama | Do you recommend using shavings in your trailers?? |
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Veteran
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Location: Chillicothe, Ohio | We generally use hardwood sawdust..the same bedding we use in our stalls here in southern Ohio. Usually line just the business end of the horses, enough to soak up the urine. On a long trip usually put in about 2 inches over the entire floor. Have used the dried pine shavings, but these tend to be really dusty with the wind blowing around in the trailer...there have been several posts re this subject and many opinions. Using some bedding seems to keep the urine soaked up and the horses would seem to be able to keep their footing better..plus the urine does not splash up on their legs etc. Thats my 2 cents worth. |
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Location: Northern Utah | YesI use shavings. (Not sawdust) I keep it about 4" deep. I pick the apples out every trip or two. About 3-4 times a year, I sweep everything out and start fresh. I tried once throwing some hay on the floor once when I didn't have any shavings. But it got slimy as the horses pee'd on it. Made the floor too slippery.
Edited by Painted Horse 2007-11-11 5:05 PM
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Member
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Location: Alabama | Thanks for the replies...just wondered what everyone else did. I have used shavings off and on and now I have a mare that pees in the trailer every time we go somewhere, so wanted to start using them again regularly. I have heard some say they are not good to use because the horses inhale the dust and it gets in their eyes and such, but I can get pine shavings that have very little dust from my feed store. |
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Expert
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Location: michigan | have used both shavings and straw...personally I don't have a preference. Good fluffy straw works good in a trailer as well as shavings. But I do like to have something on the floors..... |
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Location: Western WA | I use shavings and pick out the trailer after every trip. I know some that strip the shavings out after every trip. Since I don't, am I shortening the life of my floorboards? I just don' see the need to dump out perfectly good shavings. In fact, I had just put new shavings in before my last trip, and am getting ready to store my trailer for the winter. Anyone see any problem with storing my trailer over the winter with the shavings in it? |
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Expert
Posts: 5870
Location: western PA | Shavings will trap and hold moisture against whatever they are placed. It would be better saving them separately in a feed bag and allowing the floor to completely dry out after you have washed it down for the last time of the year. Another thing many people do is to put blocks under the mats to allow air flow to the flooring. This will reduce corrosion. Gard |
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Location: Home of Wild Turkey Whiskey | I used to use shavings on the floor until I rode in the back of my trailer one day, I really wanted to know how much air was moving back there so I could get a feel for how many vents/windows to have open. With windows dropped and roof vents open shavings were flying around everywhere, I mean it wasn't choking me or anything like that, but they were getting in my eyes so I haven't used shavings since. Everyone should get in the back of thier trailers and go for a ride at highway speeds. |
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Elite Veteran
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Location: La Cygne, KS | I also put a fly mask on the horses when trailering. This prevents both internal and external debris from contacting their eyes. |
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Location: michigan | Getting stuff in your eyes is different than a horses-they can bury their heads in straw or hay and are fine. We can't do that. So its not a fair compairison. I do like to clean out the old straw/shavings when they get dirty and wet. I just add some new bedding after since I use the trailer year around. |
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Location: Southern New Mexico | |
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Location: Southern New Mexico | they can bury their heads in straw or hay and are fine I don't know about your horses, but if mine tried to burry their head in the hay they would get it stuck in the hay bag. I don't use shavings and I don't give hay unless its a LONG ride. |
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Expert
Posts: 3853
Location: Vermont | http://www.woodypet.com/index.html |
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Location: West Coast | I don't use shavings for local hauling, but for longer trips, I do use shavings. |
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Posts: 2615
| I remove shavings and the mats (what a job!!) at the end of the season,wash the floor and let it dry and wash off the mats.I know some people use their trailer all year,tho,so I would take out the wet shavings,rinse the floor underneath the mats,block it with something to dry and then add new shavings before I use it again.But I'm a fanatic about that kind of thing so that might be a bit much for some folks. |
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Expert
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Location: michigan | The point wasn't about the hay bag but the horse eye in general. While we might get shavings and dust in our eyes, horses generally don't.They are different so its hard to compare our reaction to something and assume its the same for the horse. |
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 Regular
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Location: Youngstown, OH | I always use some shavings in my trailer, but I'm not a proponent of stacking a ton of shavings in there. I just like to have a little in there to soak up the urine. Of course, I always pick out the piles and wet shavings after I unload the horses. Once a year I like to get the mats out and hose off the floor, but it rarely happens more than that. |
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| I use cardboard animal bedding for horses in my trailer and it works great. It absorbs a lot of fluid and is almost dust free. |
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Location: NY | I stop using shaving when I rode in the back and saw how they fly around |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 350
Location: Newton, NJ | I agee with Terri - don't feed hay while in transit and don't use shavings because of the dust/debree flying around. I have a question, though regarding Martyg's comment about hardwood shavings -- I am under the impression that there are some hardwoods that are toxic to horses and can cause laminitis if used for bedding, specifically black walnut and possibly cherry wood. Anyone else know of anything about this? ... and a question to Paul Christensen; I do use woodypet in my stalls in combination with softwood shavings, but in a trailer, how long would it take for them to become effective at urine absorbtion and would they not create a somewhat slippery surface until they break down? Also, once they break down, do they not become just as susceptible to blowing around in the wind as regular fine shavings? |
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Expert
Posts: 5870
Location: western PA | I do a lot of woodworking in my shop and collect the wood shavings that we use for bedding. In conversations with our vet, he agreed with your knowledge of Black Walnut causing problems. He disagreed with the Cherry and in fact we have been using this wood species for many years with no difficulties. My cabinet making involves mostly Cherry and it is the greatest bulk of my sawdust. Whenever I work with Walnut, I have to dispose of it in an area not accessable by our horses, and cannot mix it with any sawdust that will be used as bedding. We purchase wood shavings in 20 yard amounts and prefer oak for bedding. We get it dry and delivered, very nice to work with and not as dusty as some other types. Popular, Pine, Spruce and Ash also work well. BOL Gard |
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Expert
Posts: 3802
Location: Rocky Mount N.C. | Yellow pine is my choice (because that's about all I can find) about 4"-8" deep mostly on the pooping end. Spray down with a little water before the trip to hold down the dust that is present. The shavings are a good insulator from the heat reflecting up from the asphalt in the summer months. Touch an aluminum floor after you've been parked on black asphalt, in the sunshine, on a 90+ degree day, at the rest area for five minutes, it gets hot in a hurry, shavings helps hold back some of that heat.
Edited by retento 2007-11-13 9:06 AM
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Member
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Location: Lowell, MI | Wood Pellets are the best! $5 bucks for a bag and you would be surprised how well it absorbs and lasts! I don't use this in stalls but for the trailer - Absolutely!! |
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Expert
Posts: 3802
Location: Rocky Mount N.C. | "Wood Pellets"? You talkin about the kind that the Tractor Supply sell to burn in a wood heater? |
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Member
Posts: 40
Location: Lowell, MI | No.....See Paul's post above. I buy mine from Tractor Supply and their brand is Equine Fresh. Try it....you'll like it! |
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Posts: 40
Location: Lowell, MI |  |
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Veteran
Posts: 196
Location: WI | Originally written by retento on 2007-11-13 1:59 PM
"Wood Pellets"? You talkin about the kind that the Tractor Supply sell to burn in a wood heater? Well, they are the same, but different. Pellets for horses are broken down much smaller to alleviate the sliding and the "marbles on the floor" effect that the larger wood burning pellets could cause. Regardless, both types are great products for bedding - super absorbent and easy to work with. I don't use them anymore because I get 6 yards of shavings for $30 delivered now.  |
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Veteran
Posts: 216
Location: Chillicothe, Ohio | Saw the concern re species of trees for the sawdust. We use only oak or maple. We have been warned to never use walnut. The local mills only saw oak and maple so its not a problem and its course sawdust because of the circular saw blades. Bandsaw mill sawdust is way too fine.
Thats all most use here locally for stall bedding. Its cheap, 5-10bucks a full pu truck load and that is enough for 4-5 stalls for a few weeks if you keep them clean every day. It makes good liner for the horse trailer although if you keep the same bedding (of any kind) there for a long while it gets dry/dusty/moldy etc. We usually change it out every long trip. You can also dampen it down with a water hose a little to cut down on the dust. |
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Expert
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Location: Vermont | Its BLACK Walnut that is the dangerous wood... Black walnut shavings and wood chips contain the toxin juglone that is suspected to be a principal agent in causing laminitis. This is a problem to horses if they contact or eat the shavings. However, the toxicity apparently only occurs if the black walnut shavings are fresh. If they are well seasoned, then the toxicity is negligible. http://www.thehorse.com/Search.aspx?tbKeyword=Which+Trees+are+toxic Oak Trees Oak trees--more specifically, their acorns, buds, leaves, or blossoms--are toxic to all livestock, including horses. Oak poisoning is not very common in horses, but is seen more commonly in cattle and sheep, which are less discriminate eaters. The acorns, leaves, and blossoms contain tannins, which when digested are converted into toxic metabolites inside the gastrointestinal tract of ruminants and horses. Horses with oak poisoning can develop colic and bloody diarrhea. They also develop renal disease as the toxic metabolites of the tannins damage the horse's kidneys. Treatment of oak poisoning is aimed at maintaining hydration with intravenous fluids and protecting kidney function. The good news is that horses must eat a large quantity of acorns to become ill. Prevention is better than treatment--remove oak trees from your pastures or paddocks. http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=3058&kw=poisonous%20plants Then scroll thru the list for the following... Poisonous Plantsby: Marcia King | | May 01 2001, Article # 3058 |
Edited by PaulChristenson 2007-11-14 1:17 AM
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Regular
Posts: 71
Location: Northern CA | I use the Mallard Creek Pellets. My experience is that the pellets have much less waste, absorb the ammonia in the urine and are easier to pick through than shavings. In my opinion, they are far superior, but you must follow the directions on the bag. I have a 4H GN and I put 6 bags of pellets in the trailer and when you get them wet and fluff them up, it results in about a 4-5" layer on the floor. No complaints. |
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Member
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Location: Lowell, MI | Hank --- wish I could get 6 yards of sawdust for $30 Our closest mill will still delive. 10 yds and now is $75! I think I need to buy my own trailer and go get it myself. $20 if you pick it up yourself! |
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Shavings in trailers
