Is cedar bedding safe for horses?

Asked by: Jeremy Unruh

It’s best to avoid maple bedding. Cedar shavings: While not necessarily dangerous, its oily nature can stain your horse’s coat and irritate their skin. Some horses experience an allergic reaction to this type of bedding. The potent smell can also be too strong indoors.

What bedding is toxic to horses?

Black walnut shavings

Black walnut shavings are a toxic bedding for horses. The innermost wood of the black walnut causes toxicity after oral or skin contact. Bedding containing as little as 20 percent fresh black walnut shavings made from old or new wood can cause toxicity.

Is cedar bedding toxic?

Cedarwood produces natural insecticides known as phenols and acids, both of which are aromatic hydrocarbons. When mice and other rodents are exposed to cedar shavings, harmful phenols enter the bloodstream via the respiratory tract, causing liver damage that can be fatal.

What bedding is best for horses?

Best Type Of Bedding For Your Horse

• Wood Shavings. …
• Wood Pellets. …
• Wood Chips. …
• Sawdust. …
• Straw. …
• Rice Hulls. …
• Stall Mats. …
• Paper Shavings. Some people like to use paper shavings as bedding for their horses; they are dust-free and highly absorbent, so this could be a good choice for horses with allergies.

What wood chips are best for horses?

The most readily available wood shavings are made from pine or fir trees. These shavings cost less than other types of wood, and are sufficiently fragrant to help mask the stench created by urine and feces. Other softwoods, such as spruce, also work well for stall bedding.

What wood is toxic to horses?

AEC Client Education – Top 5 Trees Toxic to Horses. The top five trees poisonous to large animals are the RED MAPLE, OAK, BOX ELDER, CHOKECHERRY and BLACK WALNUT.

What type of wood are horses allergic to?

Toxic Shavings for Horses

• Softwood.
• Black Walnut.
• Sawdust.
• Maple.
• Pellets.
• Cedar.

What animals can use cedar bedding?

Pest Control: Cedar chips or sprays can be used in and around the house as a natural way to keep fleas, ants, mites, moths, mosquitoes, and other insects at bay. The chips are also effective in repelling termites, rodents, scorpions, spiders, and snakes.

Why is cedar toxic?

Cedar wood that contains these extractives is the most suited for flavoring food. As the tree ages, the levels of colored extractives increases and too much can produce a bitter unpleasant effect on food (these extractives also have anti-fungal properties and protect the trees from disease).

Can fleas live in cedar chips?

Fleas are often found in warm, shady and moist areas. Keep your lawn free of debris like grass clippings and leaf piles. Since fleas hate the smell of cedar, cover areas you found fleas with cedar chips.

Is pine or cedar better for horses?

Pine shavings or pine pellets seem to be the best and safest type of bedding to use for your horse.

Are wood chips toxic to horses?

Wood chips or shavings containing as little as 5 percent black walnut have been found to cause laminitis (founder), which can result in debilitation or death of the horse.

What bedding is best for wet horses?

Sorbeo is perfect for the muckiest of horses – and the wettest. Horses and ponies which suffer from Cushings disease do really well on Sorbeo as they are generally wetter in their stables.

Are shavings better than straw?

In conclusion, straw is cheaper than shavings but more difficult to muck out and makes your muck heap huge in a small amount of time. Shavings are more expensive and it is important you use a high quality brand so you don’t overwhelm your horse in dust and keep your bed tidy and mucked out.

Is straw better than hay for bedding?

Straw—Not Hay—for Outdoor Cat Shelters



They look similar, but while straw makes excellent bedding for outdoor cat shelters, hay becomes a soggy mess. Hay is typically used to feed animals, like horses. It soaks up moisture, making it cold and uncomfortable for cats—and has the potential to get moldy.

How many bags of shavings do I need for a 12×12 stall?

Each 12×12 stall requires approximately 5 bags of shavings per week, at $6 per bag.

How deep should a horses bed be?

6 to 8 inches

Vets and equine professionals agree that horses in stables need a good covering of at least 15 to 20 cms (6 to 8 inches) of bedding across the whole stable floor. This depth of bedding should be provided on all stable floors, including rubber matting.

Should horses be stabled at night?

For horses that need a restrictive diet, you may want to get them off the grass and in a stable overnight. If you’ve just moved, stabling at night may help the transition. It takes time for a horse’s digestive system to get used to new grass or hay from a new area.

What is the best base for a horse stall?

A well-drained sand or gravel base under the concrete is desirable, but not required. – Impervious floors require a level evenly compacted sub-layer. Sand or fine gravel may provide structural support and underground drainage. Solid rubber mats are often laid over concrete or well-packed road base mix.

What do you put at the bottom of a horse’s stall?

Common materials include shavings, straw, or sawdust. Shavings provide good cushioning for your horse, but they tend to be bulky and difficult to discard. Straw is cheaper, but it can be flammable when dry and slippery when wet.

What should be on the floor of a horse shelter?

Flooring For Mobile Field Shelters

• Road Planing. An alternative to wood chip is to lay down road planing/scalpings that you can easily source from a local road works firm. …
• Grass Mats. Grass mats are rubber honeycomb textured base sheets that you can lay down as an optional under layer. …
• Stable Mats.

What should horse stall floors be made of?

Soil, Sand, or Clay



Sand is frequently used for stall floors. It is easy on the horse’s legs, non-slip, and requires minimal bedding material over top. It drains well and is replaceable once it becomes very soiled. Sand-bedded stalls may need “topping up” as sand is taken away each time the stall is mucked out.

Should I put drains in my horse stalls?

Stall matting can be installed on any hard non-moving surface such as concrete, wood or asphalt for increased draining and horse comfort. For stables with dirt floors, using a combination of French drain and matting will drain best. French drain systems drain moisture quickly from a level, compacted soil surface.

What is the best material for a horse barn?

Concrete Block or Brick Barns



Barns built from concrete blocks or clay bricks are excellent for low-maintenance durability.

Should a barn have a concrete floor?

Concrete Flooring



Concrete makes a great base for keeping your floor level, clean, and easy to remove any new dirt or debris. Concrete flooring is best for: Agricultural, livestock (between stalls), and storage barns.

Is pea gravel good for horse stalls?

Pea gravel is often praised for its softness on unshod hooves and many people feel that it helps keep bare hooves rounded and filed. As a paddock footing, it has some challenges though. It’s extremely unstable and if it’s not enclosed in a small area with high edges it quickly migrates downhill or spreads out.

Can a horse barn have a dirt floor?

But it also can produce messy mud in cases of a stall-bound horse or a spilled water bucket. Dirt floors often trap urine, which leads to an unpleasant ammonia smell. Dirt also needs to be laid over gravel, for drainage. Even so, it will need to be dug out every couple of years, because so much urine will get trapped.