Stable Health Tips – Get Your Stable Ready for Winter

With the sunshine month’s coming to an end and half of us holding out for an Indian summer, we’ve decided to turn our thoughts to stable health. Here we’ve listed some great tips and products to help you get your stable ready for winter.

Why clear out?

Stables are dark, damp places that attract mould, fungi and other harmful organisms. Ammonia in particular can cause upper airway problems breathing problems in horses, as well as having an awful smell! Regular maintenance and a good overhaul a couple of times a year, often at the start and end of each winter, will help maintain stables and assist in the prevention of poor health.

First things first….it’s time to clear out!

1. Empty any old bedding onto the muck-heap
2. Remove old rugs, stable treats, toys, water buckets, haynets etc
3. Pull out any mats and lay flat on the yard
4. Dust away any cobwebs and give the stable a good brush out
5. Disinfect to your heart’s content – Dilute (as directions) in a bucket and grab a good stiff-haired broom
6. Splash a small amount on the floor and walls
7. Scrub stable walls and floor with a broom/stiff brush
8. Repeat with any stable mats – on both sides
9. If available, jet wash if not grab the hose
10. Brush excess water out of the stable
11. Finish jet washing/hosing the mats on both sides
12. Leave to dry

Safety first

1. Check how secure rug racks, haynet/tie loops, and separating walls and windows are
2. Take note of any rot around the base of the stable and in the corners. It’s always best to notify yard owners sooner, rather than later. Ask the yard maintenance person to check for blocked drain pipes and gutters
3. Check the entire stable door for stability and rot. Pay attention to the fitting of the kick-bolt and upper door bolts
4. Check for sharp edges in, and out, of the stable
5. M.O.T any yard equipment, make sure wheelbarrows are in good working order and other items are fit for purpose

Ongoing maintenance for stable health

There are a number of tasks you can do to help ‘maintain’ that healthy new environment, including:

1. Turn a bank a day – this keeps the bed clean, free from mould and helps prolong the condition of the stable
2. Refresh bedding at least once a week
3. De-cobweb once every two-weeks
4. Lift mats and brush away any debris every 6-8 weeks. If you have a particularly wet horse a spray on disinfectant may be useful
5. Check for rot once a month
6. Thoroughly clean water buckets at least twice a week
7. Wash each feed bowl and utensils after use, every day
8. If you use deep-litter completely clear it out once a week or every other week
9. Regularly replace any ties for haynets and rugs etc

Keep your stable as dust-free as possible. This can be done by following the points above and by purchasing good quality bedding, which in the long run with assist in preventing stable coughs and well as other unwanted conditions.

Great Products for Stable Health

Anti-Bacterial Stable Paint from Stable Shield 

STABLE Shield has launched a new range of anti-bacterial stable paint which helps prevent the spread of bacteria by up to 99.8%

It is easy to apply on walls and ceilings, and the paint is adhesive to most surfaces including wood, steel, plastic, concrete and brick. Stable Shield is ideal for all yards including stables, tack rooms, feed rooms, newly built yards and hay barns.

Stable Shield Paint is water-based and non-toxic. It is hard wearing and durable. Not only is it long lasting, but it is easy to apply in the first instance. It is available in white, black and clear.

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