What bedding is cheaper? straw or shavings?

Question

all in the question

thanks :) :)

Answer 1

I prefer shavings.  I love the fresh pine smell of a new bag of shavings in my horse's stall.  LOL  But if you have young horses or newborn foals I would use straw for the time being.  Baby horses try to eat the shavings and this will cause a health problem.  They just don't know better.  They think anything is meant to be eaten.  Once their older you can use shavings.  

Where I live shavings are like 7 dollars a bag, and one bag works for like two 12X12 stalls.  But that's where I live so it depends. Straw is probably cheaper but shavings are easier to store.  

Answer 2

Straw! =]

Answer 3

shavings i think

Answer 4

Straw  x  

Answer 5

I live in North East England and the average price of a bale of shavings is £7, the average price of a bale of straw is £1.50

I have switched to straw for this summer and am looking forward to a winter with a little bit of money in my pocket! I use 5/6 bags of shavings per stable to make up my stables from scratch, as opposed to 2.5 bales of straw (I split 5 bales between my 2 horses). I like BIG beds even though I have matting.

Answer 6

Idk

my BFF jill

omg i crack myself up!

Answer 7

Well, straw is cheaper, but it is very wasteful and you will go through a lot more straw than you would shavings. I think in the long run, shavings will be cheaper, less wasteful, and a lot less work (straw is a pain in the butt to clean!!)

BTW: Bulk shavings are way cheaper than bagged shavings, if you have a place to keep them.

EDIT: Val - No Fair!! I would LOVE to get free shavings. You are lucky to find such a deal!!! We pay almost $300 a truckload! But are they sawdust shavings or curls? Sawdust tends to be a little too dusty for me.

Answer 8

If you have a saw mill near you they should give you the shavings for free as it helps them get rid of them. it might be worth your while checking your local pages. we have one where I live and we often get the shavings for free

EDIT: Amy it can be whatever you like. they just bag it up, big stuff in one bag, little stuff in another and dust too. I'm sure if you look around your area you will find something similar, well I hope you can:)

Answer 9

Shavings  

Answer 10

hahaha...sorry for a second I was going to comment on what century you are living in but I see you mean horses...

straw

Answer 11

Straw

Answer 12

It depends if you have a sawmill near you. I prefer shavings as you can take out the dirty bedding and leave all dry and manure-free shavings. Straw is not good if your horse has asthma and spreads bacteria more. Straw is cheaper than shavings(If you don't have a sawmill near you) If you have a sawmill near you and they want to get rid of shavings then shavings will be cheaper. It's all a matter of circumstance.

BTW: Shavings (if you build banks) means that your horse won't get cast(stuck when lying down)

Charlotte x

Answer 13

Wood pellets.  Not the kind used for wood stoves but those that are made for equine bedding.

Your initial outlay of cash is a bit more but your bedding lasts a long time  - you simply sift through it with a special rake and the clean, dry bedding falls through and dirty bedding is disposed of.

It's clean, absorbent, economical and it's as comfortable for the horse as shavings.

For our stalls, which are 10x10, we use about 5 bags initially and then about one bag a week after that.  

Answer 14

straw but paper shreadings are even cheaper

Answer 15

Probably shavings since you use a lot less of it.

One caveat to getting free shavings from the sawmill:  you need to make absolutely sure that you know what kind of wood the shavings are from.  Some varieties, like black walnut, could be extremely harmful to your horse.

Answer 16

Straw is cheaper but you can waste more straw then shavings and its annoying to clean the stall more so then with shavings or sawdust. I believe that sawdust would be cheaper then shavings as well. You have to be careful to clean the whole stall well when you use straw as things fall through the cracks so to speak and also be certain that you bed deep. Sometimes if you have a horse on a diet he will also eat some of the straw. I have seen that time and time again. As for us we use shavings and sometimes sawdust. To us it smells better, it lasts longer, etc. I find that when we use straw however our horses lay down longer and seem to like their beds better but if you don't clean well it can turn into a big smelly mess. Heck thats in general for stall cleaning though, right? Good luck whatever you decide. Have you ever noticed horse people seem to have 20 different opinions? :-)

Answer 17

shavings

Answer 18

Where I am, straw is much cheaper.  We however use shavings.  Shavings are much cleaner and comfier for the animals.  Straw is very wasteful and good only for bulk bedding.

Answer 19

Straw is far cheaper where I am and goes further, cushions better, and despite what other people have said, is not necessarily messier. I get large straw bales for £1 each and I use fewer of them than of shavings, which around here are about £7. Be careful with free shavings as they can be contaminated (somtimes with nails) & dusty, never use sawdust.

Either bedding can be messy, wet & smelly if it's not laid properly, I've seen shavings get absolutely disgusting, but if they're laid deeply & tamped down the wet goes straight to the base & keeps the top clean (same with straw). Shavings are cleaner to move about if they're in plastic bales, but are harder to clean up if spilled. If your horse has a respiratory problem, it's far better to go for the more expensive shavings rather than a vet's bill, but if you need dust-free then flax-based bedding such as Aubiose are less dusty and more absorbent and doesn't cost much more.  

Answer 20

Straw is definetly cheaper outright, but you have alot of waste and it is harder to clean. Shavings are by far the most expensive bedding, but because you can sift them, you have alot less waste (and a smaller manure pile).

We prefer sawdust, it is very inexpensive, easy to clean, and has very little waste. We just make sure our horses dont eat off the ground when they are in so that they dont injest or inhale it.

Answer 21

shavings...and its much comfier for them :)

Answer 22

straw is generally cheaper, but is too messy for my liking. However, I do prefer straw in extreme cold and for foaling mares. Shavings get stuck in their noses when they are newborns.

Wheat straw is your best bet for cheapness, around here it goes for about $2 a bale. Whereas shavings by the bag go for $6-$12 depending on the brand and quality. Suncoast bedding is the best brand available as far as shavings go.. They are fluffy and cover more ground. You get more for the money.

There is also a bedding called Woody Pet, that starts off as a pellet, and you spread it out and wet it, then fluff it. Its more of a sandy bedding after it dries, which makes is better for absorbing urine, and easier to scoop out p**p. Its a little more expensive for a bag, but it goes a long way. You sift through the bedding and scoop out solids, then turn the bedding over and fluff it...only having to add a little more every week or so. We would completely strip the stalls after about 2 weeks (3 if it wasnt too nasty) and start over with fresh pellets at a Warmblood farm I used to work for.

Answer 23

Depends on where you get it. If you buy a large bail of straw it is compacted and will make more of square footage then a bag of shavings. If you do choose shavings, buy them at a feed store. Pet stores will charge you higher prices for actual pet shavings and its not necessary.