I’m a peat moss user and I’ll never go back, but its not for everyone. I waxed poetically not too long ago on this thread: https://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/f…es-incessantly
My post:
I’ll throw this out (only targeting the bedding question, not speculating on excessive peeing, I have an excessive pee-er who is healthy as a … horse)
Perhaps consider peat moss bedding? It can be a challenging PITA, it can be a saving grace, all boils down to management and tolerance.
Pros:
Its absorbant qualities are unsurpassed
It neutralizes odor on contact
It keeps the top layer dry or dry-ish so feet don’t get soggy
Its cheap
Depending how you set it up, it can be very low maintenance
Can be found at most well-stocked garden stores
Creates an incredibly soft, springy ‘bed’
I have found it good on bare hooves
Discarded peat will almost instantly improve any dry paddock or grass areas, makes incredible compost
Cons:
It requires an open mind
It doesn’t look or smell very nice (unless you like the aroma of fresh clean “earth” which I happen to)
May not be able to be sourced in winter
It is dusty as all get out, thick, billowing heavy dark dust - dust must be managed
It is not the type of bedding you want to “pick”, its a set-it-and-forget-it type bedding
While its low maintenance, on the occasions it does need to be tended to, you might need a pick axe (only partially kidding)
It may stain white markings (though I’ve not found it to be the case and my entire herd has chrome)
I’ve been using peat moss as bedding for a couple of years now and I’ll never turn back, but it was a learning curve at the beginning. The dust was the only main issue I had.
Basically, you put down enough to create a thick deep bed, from wall to wall, dampen it and then I cover it with uneaten hay. I’ve tried shavings on top, but as the horses move around, it churns and mixes and creates a dusty mess. Uneaten hay knits together and creates a blanket that doesn’t churn as much and keeps the dust down significantly. Long stemmed straw I imagine would do the same.
Urine falls through the straw, is immediately absorbed by the peat. Poop lays on top of the straw blanket and can be picked. If a spot of peat gets squishy, it can be shoveled up and fresh peat pulled in.
Picking piles out of straw is no fun for the uninitiated, though its a skill that comes with time. Straw will need to be replaced on a fairly regular basis.
The peat mattress stays in place and does its job until its fully saturated or becomes thin from removal of squishy spots. I have 3 geldings that pee in their peat bed in their run-in shed several times a day (why I will never know, the world in their urinal, they choose the shed, le-sigh). The bedded area is roughly 12x8. I pick squishy spots about once every 2-3 weeks, and strip the stall about 2-3 times a year.
I pay $16 for a 3.8cu ft. bale of peat, it takes 2 bales to bed a 12x8 area about 3" deep and 10" banked on the sides. I spend less than $100 on bedding a year. But I also free-feed quality hay, and have plenty of uneaten straw-type bits for the blanket on top. If I didn’t have waste hay, I’d probably be going through 2 bales of straw a week.
After 3 horses have been walking over and peeing daily on this organic material for a few months, the bottom-most layer becomes quite compacted, almost petrified. It requires a bit of muscle to break through and dig up. I use a spade shovel on the toughest parts. But I only have to do it 3 times a year.
For me, its so low maintenance its ridiculous.
And then, I get to throw it directly on the dry, sandy, over grazed portions of the paddock and watch the grass come back in lush and thick.
Also google “deep bed method”, that might be an option for your friend.
