Mucking out

liz_scarlet

Active Member
Jun 6, 2011
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Roslin
I am loving Scarlet being back in, the smell of shavings, hay and warm cosy pony :biggrin:

Am I the only one who enjoys switching their brain off and sieving shavings???
 
Yippeee at not being alone, a few people at yard grumping about it already but I love arriving to a fluffy pony head sticking over the door shouting a greeting....she is also very cuddly and happy just now :-D
 
Even though I have 16 boxes to do every day, yes I do enjoy mucking out! I just put on my Ipod and zone out with some good music - or if there's clients around, and it would be impolite for me to be wearing headphones, I chat merrily to the horses instead :giggle:

I'll tell you when I don't enjoy mucking out though. When I've been up since 4am, working non-stop at a show all day, get home at 6pm and still have 16 boxes to do. Then it's not such a pleasure :poop:

ETA - though I'm afraid I can't agree with the "sieving shavings" part of the OP. I HATE mucking out shavings. Horrid things to deal with. Wood pellets and rubber matting all the way!
 
I don't know if I'd love doing 16!!! but 1 pony stable is great LOL

We have rubber matting so not deep shavings plus she is pretty clean...not like some of the mares on the yard who have very mushy beds *boak*
 
I too hate shavings! Sawdust and/or woodpellets all the way!!!

I don't mind mucking out unless Rubic has decided it'd be fun to trample all the :poop: through every last bit of her bed. Then its not so much fun. Generally that only happens at weekends when I decide to have a lie-in and she knows I'm usually up earlier.... that is my punishment for sleeping!
 
I like mucking out, but Cracker obviously doesnt move all night, three poos directly opposite the haynet, one big wet patch. Takes about 10 minutes. Cheap on bedding too :biggrin:
 
I love mucking mine out and snuggling them in at night.

It takes me ages though, I think I am to 'picky'. Winter usually turns into one long round of, get up (around 5am) sort the house, sort the hens, walk the dog, turn out, muck out, nap, or work, bring in, feed etc, go home feed family, conk out!
 
Nope none of mine live in, but when Moët was on box rest I did enjoy going up there twice a day and mucking out.

Now though I have just started winter poo picking (it's harrowed in summer), and I love it!! It's so satisfying clearing poo from my paddocks and seeing it all clean! People on the yard often mention why do I do it? (not a requirement on our yard but the amount of horses on tiny acreage would be horrendous poo amount if left, that's why)....but I often say its my 'mucking out of stables' and I would much rather clean out the field with no bedding to contend with and do it whatever one of day suits me, they understand then :)
 
Heheee! I LOVE fresh straw smell - and at night (this is REALLY sad) I love seeing them both in a nice clean bed with a net each. Love poking my head over their doors and having a good long sniff!!
 
Little coblet has been in on a night for about a week now, was on straw but it was horrendous so hes now on shavings which im finding so much quicker and easier!

hes even started waiting in the spare stable from 4:30pm onwards ready to come in haha :)
 
Dors is on part livery - the yard staff muck out, turn out, hay/water Monday to Friday and we do our own on a weekend though they do still put out (if we aren't riding) and bring in for us but i still skip out on a weekday evening and refil hay nets and love arriving on a weekend morning to see left over hay and shavings strewn across the stable floor and neat-ish piles of poo! and see it clean and swept when i leave - I'm that particular about my stable that the yard manager often comments he could live in it! :smug:

It's a good work out too and soon gets you shedding the layers you piled on just to step out of your front door!

I kept my horses on DIY for about 13 years and loved seeing them at 6 on a dark winters morning before work - really set me up for the day.

'Oss people - stark staring bonkers......:giggle:
 
After having mine on straw for years, this year I am trying shaving for the 1st time. Last night was the 1st night in and I love shavings!

Less than a barrow out and love the smell! So quick and easy compared to straw. Sonny was a bit confused by the new choice of bedding, but fingers crossed he won't get a snotty nose this winter.
 
I can't abide leaving any droppings in his bed, they all have to come out, and a clean sprinkling of bedding on the top.. this is how I like to leave his bed... OCD alert! first full bed (moved him recently so started from scratch - thoroughly enjoyed doing this :giggle:

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After muck out...

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I still see a few bits :furious: but I have to learn to accept no one's perfect :biggrin:
 
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Boys came in tonight for the first time. I do love to see them tucked up and their lovely clean deep straw beds and love the comments from others on the yard. But I can't say I enjoy it. It hurts by back (arthritics) and not helped that I like it perfect which was fine with one horse.

But I did prefer seeing the the field poo free and all the dead hay cleaned up every morning and evening. So now for me it's two perfect stables and one perfect field. Great life is over for for the next 4 months.
 
You're not alone. I used to love it too.. even when complaining about having to get up early, or back when I was working in an office 9-5 (work for myself from home now) and rushing to get it done beforehand. The smell, the comfort, the thinking/ relaxing time, and also the extra bit of time spent getting to know your horse's routine, and best of all catching her with shavings in her mane, just getting up all sleepy in the morning :) If it wasn't so darn expensive and less healthy for the (my) horse, I'd go back to it.
 
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