by: Erika Street

Although few of us would let our horses miss their yearly tetanus shots, we often overlook another important aspect of disease prevention: Disinfection. While vaccines go a long way toward averting disease, none are guaranteed to be 100% effective. More importantly, none are even available for organisms such as Salmonella, even though the infectious disease it causes can spread quickly through a herd, wreaking havoc on a horse farm.

Fortunately, regularly disinfecting barns and equipment can help keep such flare-ups at bay. While regular disinfection might seem labor-intensive and costly, you must consider the consequences of not disinfecting.

Last year’s outbreak of Salmonella newport at the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center serves as a grim example. Sixteen horses had tested positive for Salmonella either before or at their time of death, but it was unknown how many of those deaths were caused by the bacterium as many of the animals were critically ill upon admission. To control the disease’s spread, the George D. Widener Hospital for Large Animals was forced to close its doors to new patients last May and to sandblast, disinfect, and repaint the facility.

As the saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Routine disinfection is not just good horse management–it is a necessary component of an adequate disease prevention program.

Know How Diseases are Introduced

When planning a program to prevent infectious disease on your farm, you must first consider the most common ways diseases are introduced and transmitted. “Knowledge is power,” says John Poe, DVM, MPH, veterinary medical officer with the USDA, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), and former medical epidemiologist with the Kentucky Department of Public Health.

Once you understand how a particular disease is spread, you can create a targeted strategy to control the relevant factors in the environment. For example, if a particular disease common to your area is spread via insect bites, you must focus on controlling the mosquito and fly populations on your farm. On the other hand, if the disease you are concerned about can be transmitted through contact with bodily discharges or other substances in paddocks and stalls, disinfection of your facilities is an indispensable method of control.

Diseases such as strangles and salmonellosis are caused by bacteria that can survive and multiply outside living animals, particularly on moist surfaces and in the presence of organic matter. “Therefore, in addition to being spread by horse to horse contact, strangles is also frequently transmitted by fomites (objects on which pathogens can stick and infect other animals) such as contaminated twitches, lead shanks, grooms, and common watering tanks,” says Poe.

“The most common routes of spread of respiratory viruses such as influenza, equine rhinopneumonitis, and equine viral arteritis (EVA),” he continues, “are direct nose-to-nose contact, contact with nasal secretions, and aerosol transmission.”

This clearly illustrates the need for surface disinfection. Eliminating viruses and bacteria that survive in barns and stalls keeps diseases from being spread by environmental contamination.

Challenges for Disinfecting

Because of the complicated interactions between pathogens, disinfectants, and surfaces, there are many variables to consider before disinfecting your barn. The concentration of the disinfectant, the duration of its contact with the surface, the ambient temperature, the characteristics of the surface being disinfected, the presence of organic matter, and the target organism’s resistance to the disinfectant all affect how successful the process will be.

“Non-porous, smooth surfaces are the most readily cleaned and disinfected,” says Paul Morley, DVM, PhD, director of biosecurity for the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at Colorado State University. “The more organic material such as dirt or manure that is present, the less effective your disinfectants are going to be, and the more you’re going to have to use good old-fashioned soap and elbow grease.”

The fact that many disinfectants are deactivated by organic matter explains why the cleansing step of the disinfecting process is so important. According to a review by V.J. Fotheringham (see Disinfection of Livestock Production Premises in the March 1995 issue of Revue Scientifique et Technique), cleaning alone removes about 90% of bacteria, while a further 6-7% is removed by disinfection. In other words, spraying a dirty wall or floor with disinfectant won’t be very effective at killing pathogens.

Unfortunately, the design of many barns is not conducive to thorough cleaning–most stalls are lined with porous raw wood and have sand, dirt, or compact clay floors. These types of floors cannot be sufficiently cleaned and are impossible to disinfect with commercial disinfectants. While you do not have many options for improving dirt floors short of pouring asphalt, you can take steps to make porous walls easier to disinfect.

Roberta Dwyer, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVPM, of the University of Kentucky’s Gluck Equine Research Center, suggests that after thoroughly cleaning walls you patch knots with wood filler and seal the walls with a varnish or polyurethane. The result is a smooth, waterproof surface that you can easily clean and disinfect.

Choosing a Disinfecting Solution

First, consult your veterinarian to see what pathogens are of particular concern in your area. Then when you are evaluating a disinfectant, take into account its efficacy in the presence of organic matter and hard water, its germicidal activity against your target pathogens, and its cost, as well as how safe it is to use around animals and humans.

For routine disinfection, you will want to combat a wide array of organisms and will therefore need a disinfectant with a broad spectrum of anti-microbial activity.

“On the other hand, if you’re going after a specific disease or agent,” says Morley, “you have to consider what you’re dealing with. For example, rotaviruses are non-enveloped viruses and they are only susceptible to a few kinds of disinfectants–these may not be the ones that you’re using for general disinfection.”

Commercially available disinfectants fall into ten major categories: Aldehydes, iodophors, hypochlorites (bleach), alcohols, chlorhexidine, quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs), phenols, alkalis, chlorine dioxide, and peroxygens.

Aldehydes (e.g. formaldehyde) are highly toxic compounds and are therefore not recommended for use in horse barns. The 10% iodophors, which are virucidal and bactericidal, are generally used for washing hands and cleaning equipment, not disinfecting equine facilities. Bleach, alcohols, and chlorhexidine are readily available and effective on most surfaces, but are quickly inactivated by organic matter. Because most equine pathogens are found in some type of organic matter–be it feces, urine, or nasal secretions–this renders such disinfectants useless in facilities where there is a significant amount of dirt or manure. QACs, which have a moderate activity level in the presence of organic material and a good hard water tolerance, are therefore a slightly better option for surface disinfection. These are commonly used in restaurant dining room and kitchens.

Phenolic disinfectants, however, have an even higher level of activity in organic material. Because they also kill rotavirus and Salmonella, two of the most difficult-to-control infectious diseases, phenols are generally considered the best choice for disinfecting horse barns. Their biggest drawback, however, is that they are caustic to skin, mucous membranes, and even metals. Therefore, if you decide to use a phenolic disinfectant (and when working with any chemicals) make sure to wear protective clothing and eye goggles!

Peroxymonosulfate, a peroxygen, and sodium hydroxide, an alkali, are also very effective in the presence of organic material. While sodium hydroxide is highly caustic, peroxymonosulfate has a low toxic potential when it is diluted with water (the powder form is extremely caustic)–an important characteristic if you are working in the presence of animals.

No matter what disinfecting solution you ultimately choose, make sure that it is EPA-approved and read the label instructions carefully. Do not mix chemicals under any circumstances!

Proper Cleaning and Disinfection

When preparing to disinfect your barn, allow lots of time, as there are several steps and drying time involved. Don’t plan on finishing in an hour!

The first step is to dispose of any manure, feed, and debris. Then thoroughly scrape and clean all surfaces in buildings and on equipment.

Once you have removed as much organic matter as possible, completely clean all surfaces by scrubbing them with a detergent and spray-washing them with a low-pressure hose.

After cleaning, rinse carefully from the top downward, making sure that all traces of the detergent are rinsed away. Then allow the surface to dry completely. Thorough drying ensures that the cleansing agent and water will not mix with the disinfectant and dilute it.

Once the surfaces that you plan to disinfect are clean and dry, dilute your disinfectant according to its instructions. Spray the disinfectant on all non-porous surfaces and allow it to dry. Do not rinse it off! Allowing the disinfectant to dry maximizes the contact time of the chemical with pathogens.

Do not neglect your shovels, pitchforks, or grooming equipment. This type of equipment can be soaked for 10 minutes to loosen any organic material, then scrubbed clean, sprayed with disinfectant, and allowed to dry. All buckets and feed tubs should be cleaned, sprayed with disinfectant, and rinsed with potable (drinkable) water.

Daily Biosecurity

While annually disinfecting your barn can help control the spread of disease, it is also important to take steps to minimize your horse’s health risks on a daily basis.

Good separation procedures are vital to preventing disease on your farm. “All horse operations that board transient populations should have two groups of horses,” recommends Poe, “the resident population that never travels off the premises and the transient population that travels to shows, exhibits, and trail rides. These two groups should be housed, handled, and grazed separately–permanently.”

Lyda Denney, DVM, New York State Horse Health Assurance Program Coordinator, recommends that when introducing a new horse to your farm, you isolate him for 30 days. “A quarantine area should be established prior to the arrival of new animals that is well-separated from the other animals on the farm,” she says. “The area should contain separate utensils, and separate clothing and footwear should be worn while inside.” Visiting or sick horses should also be kept there so they do not come in contact with or share air space with resident horses.

Even if you don’t have enough space on your farm to create this type of quarantine area, you should still keep new and sick horses separate from the rest of the herd. The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food suggests that if space is at a premium, you designate a stall near an outside door as the isolation area and feed and handle the animal there last. After a horse leaves the quarantine area, make sure to thoroughly clean and disinfect the stall and any equipment that was used on him.

While such biosecurity precautions are important, the general cleanliness of your barn is paramount. Because the survival time of a microorganism outside the host body is increased by the presence of organic soiling such as manure, the most effective way to keep disease from spreading throughout your farm is by keeping it clean and disinfecting it annually.

Cleaning After Infectious Horses

If you should ever have to clean up after an infectious horse, you will need to create a targeted plan to get rid of the disease in question. “First consider talking to an expert on infectious diseases like your veterinarian,” recommends Morley. “They can provide invaluable advice.”

Disinfection, although important on a routine basis, becomes urgent when you are caring for an infectious horse. During this time, the aisles must be swept, cleaned, and disinfected on a daily basis, and the stall of any diseased animal must be disinfected as soon as the horse has recovered.

Other horses in the barn must also be considered exposed and potentially incubating the disease. “You need to think very carefully about who you will expose by moving animals after they have developed signs of disease,” warns Morley. “What you could be doing is just spreading the disease around.”

While disinfection is effective at controlling the spread of disease, it cannot eliminate infections if carrier animals are continually added to susceptible populations.

It is also important to limit movement in and out of the isolation area. Footbaths containing a phenolic disinfectant should be placed outside each stall and at the entrance and exit of the barn, and all people who enter the isolation area should wear coveralls, caps, and rubber boots.

“Perhaps one of the most important–but overlooked–precautions is hand washing,” says Morley. “Sometimes your ability to wash hands in the field is limited, so I recommend using hand-sanitizing products and washing your hands both before and after handling a sick animal.

“You also need to be concerned about the potential for zoonotic infection,” cautions Morley. “Some agents like Salmonella can infect people. Make sure that you’re avoiding hand to face contact, and that people are not smoking or eating around these animals or their environments.”

Finally, Morley recommends that you think about the type of transmission when attempting to control the spread of disease. “Is it a respiratory disease, in which case you need to think about separating the air space? Or is it oral-fecal spread like rotavirus so you need to be concerned about where their feces go and the cleaning tools?”

By understanding how the disease in question is transmitted, you will improve your ability to control its spread.

Take-Home Message

By keeping your horses’ vaccinations up-to-date, maintaining a clean facility, instituting several simple biosecurity precautions, and regularly disinfecting your barns and stalls, you will be better able to prevent and control disease on your farm.

Source: http://www.thehorse.com

To learn about a vital addition to your newly disinfected stall, click the link below to learn more about how the use of Stall Genie products can improve the health of your horses and stall environment.

Stall Genie products offer a serious solution to Horse Odor in Stalls, promoting a healthier environment for your horses, and less maintenance for you.

Even great bedding cannot reduce age-old problems such as moisture and odor in your horse stalls. Stall Genie products offer a solution by helping to eliminate odor and moisture, which in turn has the effect of eliminating parasite and fly populations, and you will end up with a healthier horse due to the elimination of harmful ammonia odor.

Ammonia fumes caused by the buildup of urine, produce that pungent smell that overwhelms you when you enter your horses stall – now imagine, living and sleeping with this smell! Ammonia is also known to cause heaves in foals and other lung conditions which can reduce the performance and health of your competition horses. Stall Genie Products absorb harmful ammonia fumes and moisture, which result in peak performance from your horse and lower veterinarian bills.

To learn more about how Stall Genie Products can help your horse please click the banner below

Horse Health
In general most peoples veterinarian bills are going up each year, with the cost for most horses around $200 a year – but if any health issues occur your bills can easily shoot over $1000 dollars in no time. Heeding these general horse health tips can help your horse stay healthy year round and avoid those costly vet bills.

Tip 1: Dental Care
A typical horse has 44 teeth. A simple test to check the oral hygiene is to give 4 to 5 kg of hay to the horse on an empty stomach. If the horse can eat continuously with both sides of its teeth, then the horse is having healthy teeth. If it does not eat, then it will be mostly due to pain in the teeth. In which case, it is better to show to a veterinary doctor. As the horses chew, their teeth gets worn out. This is not a problem as they keep growing teeth. But the wearing down action could result in pointed teeth, which may be filed down to prevent injury to the gum. It is advisable to learn the proper method of examining the teeth from your veterinary doctor. This will prevent last minute damage controls which can be rather painful to the horse, to you and to your pocket.

Tip 2: Exercise & Turn Out
Make sure you give your horses as much exercise as possible. Imagine, how you will feel if you are kept in one place for 18 to 20 hours. The major effect of not getting proper exercise for a horse can be colic, gut ulcers, limb issues, behavioral problems. Horses are gregarious animals who love moving and grazing around. They have to keep moving in order for breathing in fresh air, for circulation and for proper digestion. Pasture and company of other horses give a sense of safety and mental stimulation. Exercise gives proper lower limb circulation. Give exercise as much as possible. A horse should be taken outside its stable for at least 8 hours in a day. Younger horses will require at least 10 hours of turn out.

Tip 3: Healthy Stall
A healthy stall environment must have an excellent cushioning for animal comfort, a fresh water supply, ample room, it should be clean to reduce bacteria borne wet spots. The horse urine has harmful ammonia fumes leaving foals who sit close to the floor especially vulnerable; using a product such as Stall Genie can reduce harmful ammonia fumes and keep a healthy stall environment for your horses.

Tip 4: Get Educated on Breed Requirements
Learn about your horse’s special needs. Each breed has its own unique need. Breeds, susceptible to laminitis should be given less access to the spring grass. Appaloosas, which are little night blind may run in to a fence at night. Some are more resistant to cold weather. Some are less resistant to colic. Also take in to account the behavior and medical history of the horse.

Tip 5: Quality Food
It is very important to give natural food as much as possible. Pasture grass is very important. Hay can be given in winter. Digestive system related issues crop up in horses fed mainly on grain or commercial feed. Oat meal with apples and sugar is a good combination. Many horses like watermelon, pear, mango (no seed), papaya and guava. But first give a piece and see whether your horse likes or not. Berries like raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, and strawberries are good. Vegetables like carrots, celery, beet greens, peas, sweet potato greens, lettuce, plantain and green beans are also good. Few horses, after a little persuasion, starts eating these food items. Man-made food like Performance pellets must be given as per the direction of the veterinary doctor. Proper vitamins and minerals are needed for energy generation, muscle protection, maintaining immune system etc. To improve appetite it is better to give Vitamin-B rich food. Bran mash is recommended for working horses who does large amount of exercise. Not all horses like vegetables and fruits.

Tip 6: Check On Horses Regularly
Check your horse each day. Know its normal daily behavior. Like, whether it is a quiet grazer or runs around more. How much does it eat daily? Any symptoms of being unwell like drastic changes in daily routine, stopped eating, should be investigated. Colic, initial lameness can be easily treated if you are watchful. Daily watch and prompt treatment can reduce cost of treatment. Remove stones and other items from hooves daily. Check the horse for injuries and abnormalities during regular grooming.

Tip 7: Safe Pasture Area
Barb wired areas should be avoided. It can cause cuts and bruises. Take care for poisonous plants around the pasture area. Pasture with lot of green juicy grasses will be always welcome. It also is a place to meet fellow horses which will improve its communication skills reducing boredom and provides a sense of safety. This will reduce behavioral issues.

By Laurie Lawrence, PhD

One of the irritating compounds that can accumulate inside a horse barn is ammonia (NH3). High concentrations of ammonia in the air can irritate the mucous membranes of the eyes, nose, and mouth and possibly increase the susceptibility of animals to respiratory infections. In animal buildings aerial ammonia arises from urine and feces, so ammonia concentrations are usually highest near the floor.

Researchers at the University of Kentucky have examined the usefulness of an ammonia-absorbing compound applied to floors to control ammonia concentrations in horse stalls (Pratt et al, 2000, J. Eq. Vet. Sci. 20:197.) A commercially available ammonia-absorbing product (Sweet PDZ, Steelhead Minerals Inc.) designed for daily application to stall floors was tested in a four-stall barn containing mature Thoroughbred geldings. The dirt-floored stalls were cleaned every morning and bedded with straw.

All stalls were tested in the control condition (no ammonia-absorbing compound applied) and in the treated condition (ammonia-absorbing compound applied after cleaning in the morning). The researchers measured aerial ammonia concentrations expressed as parts per million (ppm) in two locations: near the horses’ heads with a device attached to their halters, and near the floor in the morning before the stalls were cleaned.

The ammonia-absorbing compound did not completely eliminate ammonia from the air in the stalls. However, stalls treated with the ammonia-absorbing compound had lower ammonia concentrations near the head and near the floor than the untreated stalls. At the end of two weeks, ammonia concentrations near the floor were about 25% lower than in the untreated stalls.

The researchers suggested the extent of the reduction in aerial ammonia might have been greater if measurements had been taken closer to the time of application instead of the morning after application. For example, when ammonia concentrations above three urine spots were measured before and 15 minutes following application of the ammonia-absorbing compound, ammonia concentrations were reduced by 60% or greater.

In addition to evaluating the effect of the ammonia-absorbing compound, the researchers in this study also documented changes in aerial ammonia concentration over the two weeks the geldings were kept in the barn. Ammonia concentrations remained relatively low during the first few days horses occupied the stalls, but then they increased rapidly, particularly near the floor. In the untreated stalls ammonia concentrations near the floor exceeded 200 ppm after seven days, even though the stalls were cleaned daily. The level of aerial ammonia that is unhealthy for horses is not known, however levels of 200 ppm ammonia are higher than those found to produce negative effects in other animals.

In this study ammonia concentrations measured near the halter remained relatively low in both treatment groups. Thus, it seems likely these normal adult horses were not exposed to a high level of ammonia. However, for foals or sick adult horses that spend significant amounts of time lying down, high ammonia levels near the floor might present a respiratory challenge. Application of an ammonia-absorbing compound to stall floors might reduce the ammonia exposure and possibly enhance well-being.

Article Source: http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=15077

Ideally a healthy horse should be outside in all but the worst weather; however, for horse owners who don’t have pasture to turn their horses out on, often face a huge battle facing health problems due to urine build up in the stable which releases harmful ammonia fumes, which overpower most people’s sense of smell as they enter their horses stable. These owners need a way for horse urine odor smell removal, and this can be achieved by using an ammonia absorbent.

Don’t risk the health of your horse by neglecting to use an ammonia absorbent product such as Stall Genie, which acts to absorb not only harmful ammonia but also reduces moisture reducing parasite and fly populations. Ammonia has been linked by several studies to cause respiratory diseases such as Heaves in horses, especially in young foals, you can read several of these studies by Clicking Here to visit our Education Resources.

Stall Genie Products can help you lower veterinarian bills and have a healthier horse:

• Absorbs Harmful Ammonia
• Absorbs Moisture
• Less respiratory problems
• Reduces fly/parasite population
• Non-toxic
• Easy to use

By using Stall Genie Products you will have increased the health of your horse, resulting in a healthier, happier horse, and lower veterinarian bills due to respiratory diseases caused by harmful ammonia exposure.

This video outlines just how deadly common ammonia is, and the many risks involved with ammonia fume inhalation; now imagine, living, sleeping and breathing these harmful fumes in all day long – that is what your horses and foals are exposed too if you are not using an ammonia absorbent product such as the Stall Genie system.

Ammonia is a deadly gas which enters the lungs of your horses, causing harmful health conditions such as heaves in foals, and many other problems which result in costly veterinarian bills and poor performance from your horses. By using the Stall Genie system you can absorb and eliminate harmful ammonia fumes, along with the added affect of moisture absorption and parasite/fly population reduction.

Recently reported by horseandcountry.tv, recent research has revealed a link between ammonia exposure in horses and lung problems.

The presence of ammonia in stables, which is caused by the decomposition of a horse’s urine and faeces, has long been a concern of horse owners and yard managers, and DIY liveries leaving stables un-mucked out until the end of the day has been the cause of many complaints. But there has been little scientific research to back up the link between respiratory problems and ammonia until now.

Research funded by The Horse Trust has found that stabling, regardless of bedding or forage types, results in increased levels of environmental ammonia and respiratory inflammation.

The research, which was led by Professor Sandy Love at the University of Glasgow, studied eight yearling Welsh Mountain ponies, who were serially alternatively housed then grazed for periods of three weeks. Three times each week, a variety of substances were monitored, including dust, endotoxin and ammonia within the environment, and the level of various gases and pH of the horse’s exhaled breath. The forage and bedding within the stables were varied to test whether this had any impact on the pony or the stable environment.

Love found that the stabling of horses resulted in increased exposure to environmental ammonia and that this was associated with an increase in the pH of the horse’s exhaled breath. Under the study conditions, no significant differences were found in ammonia levels under the different grazing and stabling conditions. Love was also able to confirm earlier research, that stabled horses are exposed to dust and endotoxins.

“Horse owners have long worried about the ammonia smell in stables, but there has been little scientific evidence to back this up. These findings confirm that ammonia is linked to poor respiratory health, although further research is needed to confirm whether and how ammonia causes respiratory problems,” said Love.

It is unclear at present how ammonia impacts respiratory disorders in horses, but in other animals exposure to ammonia has been found to result in increased mucin production and reduced pulmonary clearance.

In the next phase of his research project funded by The Horse Trust, Love’s team are carrying out a large-scale field study to quantify the environmental risk factors – such as bedding, feeding and ventilation – that predispose horses to respiratory inflammation. The results from this field study will be available next year.

“We are pleased that the research we have funded has improved understanding around the causes of respiratory problems in horses. We look forward to receiving the results from the final stage of Professor Love’s research, which we hope will give horse owners practical advice about how to reduce the risk of this distressing condition,” said Paul Jepson, Chief Executive and Veterinary Director of The Horse Trust.

To lower the levels of ammonia in your horses stalls and increase overall horse health, read 4 Indoor Horse Health Tips – and consider the purchase of an ammonia odor absorbent and odor blocking product such as the Stall Genie system.

If your horses are kept in a stall, there is a chance that they may be suffering from harmful ammonia exposure – even if you cannot smell it. If you are looking for a simply, easy to use product to absorb harmful ammonia fumes and promote the health and performance of your horses, then Stall Genie products are definitely your best choice.

Benefits of Stall Genie Products
Application of Stall Genie allows the Capture of Ammonia, which over time will allow your horse to perform better by having fewer Non Noticeable respiratory problems. Why do you think you can see blood coming out of Race Horses nostrils while running…bleeding from the lungs…use of our system over time will reduce or eliminate that, and will allow all equine Athletes to perform better with fewer vet bills.

Stall Genie Works With Your Choice of Bedding
Stall Genie works WITH your choice of Horse Stall Bedding, to reduce ammonia levels, with the added affect of absorbing moisture which works to reduce fly and parasite populations.

Easy to Apply
The application of Stall Genie is simple and straightforward, you can read the complete Stall Genie Application Guide Here; however, the basic process is spray Stall Zyme liquid spray on the floor of your stall or trailer which acts to eat residual ammonia even after drying, once this is done you will spread Stall Genie granules over the floor, and next you simply lay down the bedding material of your choice – its that simple!

Reduce Veterinarian Bills and Improve Horse Health
By taking these simple steps and applying Stall Genie you will have increased the health of your horse lowering costly veterinarian bills, resulting in a healthier, happier horse.

In an article by horses-and-horse-information.com, entitled “Clearing the air: Reducing harmful stable odor is easy”, Rebecca Colnar covers the basics of how an Ammonia Absorber used in your horse stable can reduce ammonia odor making your horse happier and healthier.

As your eyes meet, there is a compelling attraction. Without loss of eye contact, you stride to his side, tears welling in your eyes. You love your horse, but you realize, as your nostrils are assaulted by ammonia fumes, that these are not tears of endearment.

These are the harmful smells of Ammonia Fumes that are being described; now imagine eating, resting and sleeping in these fumes all day long as your horse does.. fortunately there is a way To Reduce Harmful Stable Odor.

As annoying as they can be, the smells associated with barns — especially ammonia smells — are often the least significant problem from prolonged exposure to ammonia inhalation. Ammonia poses a threat to health — yours and your horse’s– when the smell becomes noticeable.

Fortunately, a regular maintenance program that draws on common sense

with products to control odor will handle the threat. Daily cleaning of stalls is a must. But how you control odors does matter. For example, hydrated lime, which is caustic, can cause problems for mature horses and is very risky with foals. The substance can burn the soft part of a horse’s hoof, and lime dust poses difficulty for the horse’s respiratory system and eyes.

Natural desiccants that absorb water without breakdown — thereby extending bedding life — make good sense.

The better ammonia-absorbing products effectively eliminate the odors at their source by locking up the molecules of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide — or, in some cases, changing the bacteria population — so less ammonia is released into the air. Several products on the market are natural, non-toxic and non-caustic. One either sprays or sprinkles the ammonia-absorbing products on the stall floor, concentrating especially on the wet areas.

Besides better smells, you’ll enjoy the added benefit of lessening the fly population in the barn and adjacent areas by creating an inhospitable environment for insect egg-laying and maggot growth. When buying an ammonia-controlling product, consider your objectives — less dampness, less ammonia, safety (non-toxicity), economy and environmental compatibility.

Stall Genie Products offer the ammonia and moisture absorption that the author refers to, by applying Stall Genie you will have increased the health of your horse lowering costly veterinarian bills, resulting in a healthier, happier horse.

As reported by petplace.com, every horse owner has a horse stall bedding preference sometimes based on tradition, some like the smell of sweet cedar shavings, some the traditional look of a deep straw bed, while others prefer the softness and absorbency of peat moss. But which bedding is really best for your horses?

Best Bedding for Your Horse

In a study conducted at the Equine Research Centre in Guelph, Ontario, Canada, five different beddings were put to the test. The main criterion was absorbency. Theoretically, the more absorbent a bedding is, the lower the levels of moisture (promoting mold growth) and ammonia (a noxious gas that irritates the airways) there should be in the barn. This should improve the respiratory health of the horses. Absorbent beddings also tend to be less dusty and easier to muck out because the soiled bedding clumps together, aiding removal and perhaps allowing less bedding to be used overall.

Researcher Susan Raymond compared straw, shavings, peat moss, hemp fibers and shredded paper in her absorbency test. When water was added to 10 grams of each bedding material, shredded paper came out the clear winner, absorbing 100 milliliters, as compared to hemp (45 ml), shavings (30 ml), and peat moss (30 ml). The most traditional bedding, straw, was the least absorbent of the samples, soaking up only 25 ml of water.

Bedding and Respiratory Health

Paper, being the most absorbent substance, might protect the horse from ammonia. To do so, it must “hide” and “trap” ammonia. It will take further testing to confirm this feature of paper.

Molds, on the other hand, thrive in moisture so paper bedding should reduce molds if it is removed promptly. Herein lies one of the problems of a highly absorbent substance for bedding. Because it is so absorbent, the moisture accumulates in spots, exposing the horse to clumps of moist bedding, unless it is meticulously managed.

Maximum Absorbency Brings Added Weight

Of course, with maximum absorbency comes a downside: added weight. Anyone who has mucked out a truly soaked stall can attest that it can become backbreaking labor. In this regard, shredded paper might be a liability because Raymond’s study showed that at maximum water absorption it could increase its weight by a staggering 900 percent. By comparison, hemp – at its maximum absorption level – increases by 400 percent, peat moss by 300 percent, shavings by 250 percent and straw by 225 percent.

Also, you can make your straw or shavings just as absorbent as paper, by adding three times as much, which is typically done. The use of more straw adds other benefits of course, such as greater floor padding, less direct contact of the horse to the moisture, and a “thermal barrier” from the ground.

Molds in Bedding

Other studies performed by the ERC’s respiratory health research team have indicated that when it comes to mold, straw comes out the loser, harboring hundreds of times more mold spores than other beddings even when it appears clean and bright.

Mold is incorporated into straw at baling time, originating from the natural environment and the grass itself. Moisture present at baling time increases mold growth. Straw that was bailed very dry will harbor much less mold than straw that was baled damp. You can’t smell or even see the mold in many cases, as the spores (dormant stage of the mold) are microscopic. The significance of mold of course is that it can be breathed in, causing inflammation in the airways, leading to cough, exercise intolerance, and worse, heaves.

Bedding Mares and Foals

Straw is still the bedding of choice, however, for foaling mares. Most farms find that straw is far less irritating to the mare and newborn foal and the stall much easier to clean afterward. The foals like to sleep in the straw and get some thermal protection from the cold ground when it is thickly bedded. Straw allows the moisture to seep through, so there is less direct skin contact with urine on straw. Within a week of foaling, many farms switch the bedding to wood shavings or another clean, absorbent bedding.

Horses That Eat Bedding

Straw is a favorite snack of some horses, and because it is so dry, the horse needs to drink more water. If a horse really goes for the straw, it may promote digestive problems (e.g. impactions) if they’re not used to it. It may also substitute for more nutritious feeds.

Disposal of Beddings

In terms of compost, straw breaks down faster than other types of bedding, with the possible exception of hemp. Shavings and shredded paper, in particular, may not significantly change their composition on your manure pile for months or years.

All of these factors may have a bearing on which bedding you choose. But you also will have to take into account local availability, cost, your storage facilities and the type of horses you’re housing.

To lower the levels of ammonia in your horses stalls and increase overall horse health – consider the purchase of an ammonia odor absorbent and odor blocking product such as the Stall Genie system, which can be used in conjunction with your chosen type of horse bedding. To learn how Stall Genie can work with your chosen bedding read How to Apply The Stall Genie System.