FAQ about stable hygiene

1. What helps against the smell of ammonia in the stable?

Ammonia is produced when faeces and urine combine. You can recognise the gas by its pungent smell and by the fact that the bedding turns orange. Ammonia is also toxic and has a negative effect on the respiratory tract. If the gas cannot escape and is trapped in the stable, in the worst case it can lead to ammonia poisoning in the horse. If the stable begins to smell unpleasant, action is required.

The easiest and safest way to prevent the formation of ammonia in the stable is to muck out daily. A thick bedding that absorbs most of the urine and prevents mixing of the horse droppings as much as possible can be helpful.

If you use deep litter bedding, you should remove the horse droppings daily, ideally several times a day, and provide a good, thick layer of bedding. When the stable needs to be fully mucked out is a matter of judgement.

Good ventilation of the stable is also crucial to keep the ammonia concentration in the air low. You can read more about the stable climate and how to achieve good air quality in the stable here in our guide.

2. How often does a horse’s stable need to be mucked out?

This question cannot be answered in a general way, because the answer depends on various factors. The longer the horse is in the stall per day, the more manure accumulates, the more often it also has to be mucked out, for example twice a day. In most cases, horses are turned out for several hours, so that less manure accumulates in the stall. It is usually sufficient to muck out the stall thoroughly once a day. This means poo picking, removing wet bedding and replacing it with clean, dry bedding.

In the case of deep litter straw bedding, as is often used for large group housing, it is sufficient to collect the horse droppings on top daily and leave the basic bedding in the stable for a longer period of time. A deep litter bed sounds very easy to care for at first, but its maintenance is nevertheless connected with effort. This is because this bedding is only good if the horses do not stir it up, which can produce ammonia and lead to mud fever, thrush or respiratory diseases. A deep litter bed that is too high/soft should also be avoided, as this has a negative effect on the horse’s joints.

3. How do I disinfect a horse stable?

A horse stable is never germ-free or even sterile. Nevertheless, good hygiene management is important to keep horses healthy for a long time and to contain infectious diseases. To ensure that pathogens have no chance to spread, the stable should be dry, clean and well ventilated. These are points that support a good stable climate.

Proceed as follows when disinfecting the horse stable:

Clean the stable thoroughly with water

Allow stable to dry
Select disinfectant
Read the product information carefully before use
Do not use too little or too much disinfectant.

If the stable is to be disinfected, it must first be thoroughly cleaned. This means that the stable must be completely emptied, dust and dirt must be removed with a broom and then with water. If you are doing a deep clean, it may be useful to clean the walls and grill bars with a high-pressure cleaner.

After the water cleaning, it is important to dry the stable. Only when everything is dry can the disinfectant be used.

Which disinfectant is used depends very much on the area of action. In general, a good disinfectant should be effective against as many pathogens as possible. These include agents that contain alcohol, acids or alkalis, but lime can also have a great effect.

Attention!

Some disinfectants belong to the so-called biocide products. These are often not biodegradable and therefore harm aquatic organisms. Therefore, always use disinfectants with caution and do not overdose them. It is best to talk to a veterinarian beforehand about which disinfectant is best suited to remove germs and other pathogens from the stable. Also, read the product information carefully before use.

4. How can the spread of worms be prevented?

Worm infestation is not uncommon in horses. Nevertheless, an excessive infestation of worms should be prevented, as it is detrimental to the horse’s health. Endoparasites can be transmitted from horse to horse, although the means of transmission are different:

orally via feed intake
via the mother’s milk
through skin contact, for example when mutual grooming
via infected intermediate hosts in the grass, for example mites

Worms develop mainly in the intestines and are eventually excreted with the faeces. Therefore, the best way to prevent a worm infestation is to muck out daily and also poo pick the turnout areas. Good manure management is crucial, especially in group housing.

Worming is both a treatment and a prevention measure. Worming can be administered strategically according to a fixed plan two to four times a year or selectively as needed. Important: After worming, the horse excretes a massive amount of worm eggs over two to three days. Therefore, the stables and paddocks should be thoroughly cleaned and mucked out every day. This is the only way to prevent a direct new infestation with worm eggs. After that, the horses should be moved to a new field.

Note:

As worming treatments are medicinal products for animals, we do not carry any such products in our range.

5. What helps against flies in the stable?

Ensure good stable hygiene to keep fly infestation in the stable as low as possible.

Good ventilation
Regular mucking out
No buckets of water, feed residues or the like sitting around.
Do not allow dirt to accumulate
Fly traps to be hung up

Natural fly repellents are swallows. If they are offered a quiet and attractive nesting opportunity, barn swallows and house martins like to settle and catch a large proportion of the flies buzzing around – especially during the nesting season.

6. What makes a good stable?

Well ventilated, no unpleasant smell of ammonia when entering the stable
Temperature adapted to the outside temperature
High level of light
Humidity between 60% and 80%.
Dry and clean bedding, as stalls are mucked out daily.
Horses receive sufficient clean forage
Constant access to water of drinking quality
The stables are adapted to the size of the horse
Contact with other horses is possible

Of course, a good stable also includes well-maintained turnout areas, the size of which is adapted to the number of horses. You can find more about pasture management in our guide.

7. How can I store carrots in the stable without them quickly going bad?

Carrots are a popular snack, both among horses and their owners. Nevertheless, storing carrots in the stable can be difficult. This is because the vegetable turns brown very quickly, becomes wrinkly and mouldy. Therefore, carrots should never be stored in a plastic bag, where condensation occurs and accelerates the rotting process.

If you don’t want to take carrots from home every day, but want to store them directly in the stable, you can do this with a carrot bucket. This has generous holes in the walls that allow the condensation water to escape. The air circulation prevents premature spoilage. Nevertheless, carrots, apples, etc. should not be kept in the feed room/tack cabinet for too long, as they can also attract rodents.

If you want to learn more about storing feed, you can find helpful information in our horse feed guide.

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