I know this probably gets discussed often and I don’t wish to reinvent the wheel, but a search is not getting me to the nitty gritty.
Anyone care to give me some links to threads or good references with some science 
on the pros and cons of various beddings for a foaling stall? Thanks. 
Straw is the first choice and the reasons are one: the foal is wet when born and straw doesn’t stick to it as much as sawdust, two: it gives the foal a cozy place to lie down. I used straw for a few weeks after we brought home mom and baby and then switched back to sawdust. There maybe other reasons, but these are mine as well as the place that foals out my mare.
I know that’s the party line. But I’ve foaled 4 on shavings and never seen anything but a scant few pieces stick to a newborn foal, really, and they seem to be perfectly “cozy” in their shavings when they sleep. Still I feel guilty (a little) when I hear statements that “straw is THE BEST”. And am looking to find out WHY, if that is actually the case. Conventional wisdom doesn’t do much for me. 
Maybe there isn’t anything new on the topic? Any good studies?
As I see it:
Straw PROS:
“It’s the way it’s always been done”
It’s warmer
It’s fluffy
Not as many particles to inhale (really? straw can be INCREDIBLY dusty)
The whole study on klebsiella that always crops up
Straw CONS:
Dusty
Slippery
Harder to clean the stall
Hard to find good straw (around here)
Doesn’t absorb diddly
Did I miss anything? Yes, I certainly have my own feelings and preference but am always willing to let myself be influenced and to have my mind flat-out changed with good evidence that a change is for the better. 
You missed the fact that shavings harbor pseudomonas, a bacteria that can cause major problems. That is the main reason for not using them. Link below (pay particular attention to what Equine Repro has to say.
http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-196368.html
While I do agree straw is best, if I couldn’t get nice clean straw, I would bed on grass hay before I’d use shavings with a newborn. Lots of TB farms will foal out on straw, but switch to grass bedding after a week or two because it’s cheaper and works just as well. Yes, some horses eat it…but if you have quality alfalfa in the corner, they won’t touch much of the pooped-on grass at their feet.
Grass is more absorbent than straw. Real grass bedding-- basically just overripe hay, not much nutritional quality, and/or has been bleached and rained on (but then dried)-- is great stuff. We baled thousands of bales for KY TB farms the last few years. They just let their pastures grow out and get ripe; cut it, ideally let it get rained on once, dry out to a crisp, and bale it. It’s not very tasty, but certainly won’t hurt horses if they choose to nibble.
If you can’t find anyone to custom bale your own, see if anyone is selling last year’s hay for cheap. So long as it isn’t moldy or full of bad weeds (thorns, etc) it makes fine bedding. Grass does compact and press down more than straw, so you may need to use more to make it fluffy. Around central KY, it costs about $2.50-$3.00 a bale, so it’s affordable.
If bedded well, I don’t find straw or grass nearly as slippery as shavings. Straw or grass will “mat” together to create a layer on top of the floor, usually with the absorbent chaffy pieces at the bottom to soak up pee. Even when wet, this layer usually holds together as foals struggle to get up and down, even on top of mats.
I would not like to use shavings for a newborn. Bedding always ends up in their mouths and nostrils as they try to stand and fall and suck on everything. You’ve spent so much in stud fees and vet bills, what’s a little more to pay for good straw or grass bedding to ensure the health of your investment?
The link I posted recommends hay if you can’t get shavings. :yes:
How about splitting the difference and using the pelleted bedding under the straw?
We use Clean straw to protect foals navel from bacteria. After a week or so when then navel stump is closed and dry, we use shavings under the straw.
I have used a very small amount of shavings under the straw sooner, but only to pick up the mares wet spots. Foals have so many things that can go wrong in those first few weeks, bedding them on shavings is just increasing the risk.
Dang, I though it was klebsiella, not pseudomonas. That reference has floated around since my LAST mare was pregnant.
No supporters of shavings, huh? Clean, kiln-dried, not having sat around in a field for weeks getting covered with who knows what?
Anyone ever done a culture of straw? :lol:
Never mind, doing my own looking:
Hay that’s unsuitable for eating has an excess of respiratory allergens.
Reduced bacterial counts in calf bedding when using sawdust vs. straw
Slightly fewer calves on straw needed antibiotics in this small study
My vet had me put my mare on straw when she got a bad cut on her leg that involved the joint. He said that some of the worst bacteria is found in sawdust/shavings and was very concerned about joint infection. It seems to me too risky to chance it with a newborn foal’s open umbilical.
Shavings is a big no no, I have asked three vets and all of them explained the risk of bacterial infection. Also asked on the equine repro facebook group and same thing. Same thing in all my reproduction books. No way it is worth the risk.
Yes, I know that is the conventional wisdom. I like to dig into these things and see where the dogma comes from. Not being argumentative to those who have responded–it’s just how I roll. I like to find out WHY things are accepted as “the way it has always been”.
The Ohio State study, I believe, is the source from which the dogma comes. But I am going to have to keep digging–some of the other studies simply don’t agree with that one WRT bacterial levels and there are other factors to consider.
30 years ago it was KNOWN that you never, ever, EVER use beta blockers for people with heart failure because it would make them WORSE. Only a pure idiot would do so. But people kept thinking about it, and not just swallowing whole the conventional wisdom. Now, beta blockers are the standard of care and if you aren’t using them (barring an excellent reason) you’re pretty much guilty of malpractice.
This kind of thing is what I love to dig into.
I second either clean, bright straw or grass hay
And the only single reason is there really isn’t anything more fluffy and inviting that a deeply bedded straw stall, whether you’re foaling or not.
Good straw used to be cheap and plentiful. It isn’t any longer, I’d use grass hay for foaling before I’d use shavings. I almost always have leftover, last years, grass hay. If the boys get caught out during a winter storm and come in wet, instead of just shavings, I’ll fluff out a couple of bales of last years grass hay in the stall, on top of the shavings, so they can get a good roll in, snuggle down and dry off. Yes, it’s a pain to clean for the next couple of days, but there’s nothing better than walking in the barn and having everyone napping.
As far as the science goes, unless you tested the specific stuff you’d be using, I don’t think there’s much difference.
My DH hates the “but we’ve always done it that way” argument.
At least I know my hay is clean, not dusty, and has been stored properly. It’s a good thought, and Bonnie in particular will think that’s just about the next best thing to heaven–food EVERYWHERE! :lol:
I feed everyone outside and HATE hay mixed with my bedding, though. I may need to take up drinking when I see hay all over a stall like that. 
You only need to use the hay/straw for a brief period of time. I deeply bed with it at foaling and then, starting about day 3, rather than adding more when I clean the stall, I will add shavings to the middle of the stall and toss the hay/straw to the stall edges. The hay/straw gradually gets replaced with shavings. By about day 7 it is all shavings, except for a small area bedded with hay/straw that gives the foal a lovely soft bed. For me tossing a few bales of hay into a foaling stall is worth my peace of mind. It is a little more work, but not as much work as a sick foal.
But is your peace of mind legitimate or simply a myth, that’s what I’m asking.
(please, please, nobody get offended. This is what I DO. Question the status quo and try to figure out where it came from. I am not telling anyone to change their mind or their preferences!) :sadsmile:
The “lovely soft bed” aspect is certainly a “pro” for straw, I guess. But I remain unconvinced that straw is cleaner and less likely to cause infection than shavings. Too many conflicting studies. Too many bales of dusty, icky straw. Maybe we have bad straw locally, but at least with shavings I know one bag is going to very much resemble the next.
Was hoping there had been something new and revealing on the topic since my last own homebred came along.
More airborne endotoxins in straw-bedded stalls compared to sawdust and paper.
Sawdust reduces bacterial counts in fecal sludge.
An article referencing availability of bedding cultures, and talks about pine oil suppressing bacterial growth. (confirmed by other sources)
[URL=“http://images.vancepublishing.com/pdfs/dairyherd/mastitis_prince.pdf”]
Nice, long article (dairy) mentions straw has higher streptococcal counts, whereas sawdust higher in coliforms.
(streptococci being the main cause of navel infections, no?)
Clean straw if used in a very nice thick pack is very comfortable, will aborb, and it’s cleaner since it will not stick all over the foal and umbilical stum like shavings will. It’s the physics in addition or likely more important then the actual bacteria counts and species.
I also prefer straw for the mare for days prior to foaling since it provides a very secure bed, and will encourage her to rest and get up and down more easily. This makes monitoring their foaling behaviour via camera easier. More ups and downs and a few rolls will also aid her in positioning the foal correctly. I have a very large foaling stall…25X30 ish and I like them to be quite active for days prior to foaling. A change in sleeping/resting pattern is very evident when they are comfotable.
And really with the right equipment…a good pitchfork and a bit of practice it’s not a big deal to clean out.
Oh, I cut my teeth on the track . . . mucking straw (although I’m not wild about it) is familiar territory.
25 x 30 foaling stall–that’s an indoor arena! :lol:
Good point on the sleeping/lying down patterns. Something to add to the list of things to ponder!
Yes, my foaling stall is huge…love it!! I do need a wide angle foaling camera to get 80 percent of the stall and hope she doesn’t walk out of view:) It was my father’s idea after he struggled with a mare that kept putting her back end against the wall during foaling in an 18x12…he didn’t even want to go through that again so insists we now we foal out in a section of our old driveshed:) It doubles as a run in shed for part of the year when we aren’t foaling mares.
Good for you for questioning the status quo (another example of how Science changes it’s mind every few years), but in this case I don’t think you need it.
Simply lie down with the side of your face on the shavings. remember, a foal is going to have one nostril pressed right up against it’s bedding. See how much dust you get.
I agree, straw IS a PITA, but what I do is use the pelleted bedding (I actually use the stuff made for wood stoves - it’s SO much cheaper), then for the actual foaling and the first 7-10 days I use straw on top.
After that, I feel the foal is smart enough to not eat more than 1-2 pellets:D and after that they “get” that the stuff doesn’t taste good. So we switch completely to the pellets and supply a small “bed” made of straw or less than steller hay. The foals WILL go to that as their bed (after peeing on it, of course) – they like that nice, soft cushion.
I agree – I worked on the track for years too, and did enough mucking of straw to last me a life time! That’s why I try to get my moms/babes out in the pasture ASAP!
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