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Mud mud and more MUD!

5K views 38 replies 14 participants last post by  stevenson 
#1 ·
i dont know if this is thr right spot to post. if not move it or delete it.

my horses have been standing in mud since christmas eve (yay flooding!) i put an entire bail of straw in negras stall (about a 16x12 space under her shelter). and split a bail in rockets, odies and nottys stalls since their stalls where not as wet. well Arizona keeps getting rain and we are not drying out yet so they may not be sinking in the mud but there is not a dry spot either. i filled my truck with shaving and filled the 4 stalls (fonts only) and it hardly made a dent in the wet. they now all have thrush that is all but impossible to treat with it all being wet. what do people in wet muddy areas do? how do your horses handle being in mud for long periods? im worried about hoof issues. considering the least wet areas are the spots they like to stand in AND pee in so it not just water.
 
#2 ·
I am SO HAPPY I am now at a place that has good drainage. Even after tons of rain, the horses don't get sloshing mud.
The place I was at last year flooded really bad with those January rains we had. DH and I picked up a bunch of dehydrated wood pellets made for horse stalls (TSC sells them). While they didn't totally dry everything up, they did soak up an enormous amount of water and turned the stalls from sloshing mud to an actually compact mud they could stand on top of.
Also, trenches! Try to direct the water out and away from the horse stalls. This also really helped us.

Other than that, pick their hooves often. Good luck. I sympathize with you.
 
#4 ·
We get on average 40" in a five month period every year. Yes, mud. This year we are at around 200% of normal for this time, it is SO WET.

Last year I had a real hard time with thrush, plus standing in the wet all the time my horse's periople (the top layer of hoof growing out from the coronary band) would separate and start peeling up.

This year I did some things differently and so far so good. First, we dug out the stalls and replaced the soil with a layer of 2" granite rock and then a layer of about 6" of crushed granite 'base rock', and then rubber mats. Shavings on top. That was a LOT of rock. Some tons, for two 12 x12 stalls. We also trenched around the stable and even installed a culvert opening to lower ground. And gutters. And an awning over the doors. Despite some blow-in from windy rain storms the stalls now stay quite dry. So when the pasture is a lake, like it is now, I put the horses up at night so their feet dry out for 12 hours out of the day. If they would go in there by themselves . . . but nooooo.

Second, I had front shoes on my mare and I pulled them for the rainy season (not riding in this mud/rain anyway). This has made a huge improvement in her feet, as the shoes were getting packed with mud and manure and were not 'self-cleaning' like a well-trimmed bare foot.

It was a lot of work, but except for having to reset the mats from time to time, it is a permanent fix.
 
#5 ·
Do you have stall mats you could put on top? In a perfect world, digging out the straw and stuff would probably be best, but, as a quick fix, putting mats over what's already there probably won't hurt anything.

From what I understand, adding organic matter [straw/shavings/etc] to already muddy spots will only help briefly. Once the organic matter starts to break down, it only makes the mud worse.


Back when I kept my horse at home, the stalls had a concrete foundation/base so they were pretty waterproof, but the area outside the stalls was just dirt. Since the stalls were located at the bottom of a hill, in Oregon [who thought that would be a good idea??], it was only a matter of time before we were all knee-deep in mud.
I ended up putting mats down in front of the stalls and it worked surprisingly well. They have been "living" there for nearly 7 years and, up until November of this year, had continuous use from horses and goats. Mud is non-existent, and the mats are still in good condition. The first winter, they sort of "sank" into the mud a bit which helped anchor them to the ground. Now I don't think I could get them up without a lot of work! haha They are firmly imbedded!
 
#6 ·
The only real fix is to create drainage by either putting in field tiles or digging ditches or you can build up your horse area with something that drains well like what Avna did. What Wallaby said is correct too. Straw, shavings, wood chips or pellets will, in the end, act as mulch and retain moisture instead of letting it dry up. Unfortunately, either way you go will be fairly costly. Drainage would be a one and done hit to your wallet while building up has to be redone occasionally especially right at first until you get a good solid base built up.
 
#8 ·
all stalls are half covered and have gutters. i dont get it because my stalls are a good 9 inches ABOVE the rest of the property. sloping to the back of the stalls where i dont care if it floods. my mares feet are a mess and her legs are covered in scabs. i shaved her yesterday to get all the mud off and so she can dry instead of being wet under then blanket. its a massive mess. at least my stalls dont have standing water in them anymore. you cant find the straw anymore. its compleatly mashed into the dirt so it looks live the bail was never put in there 0.0' Might go and get more straw since its going to rain AGAIN! and Arizona dose not drain. we are right on top of clay so the water just hangs around. hence why 2inch or rain causes flooding.. all their feet are falling apart though. my mares one foot looks like the wall is rolling up and peeling like wet wallpaper...
 
#9 ·
i will look into mats. the issue is is that they are 1, to heavy for me to move most the time, and 2 hard to find and EXPENSIVE when i do find them. to mad just the front of one stall im looking at over $100 we will likley be moveing them in march so i wont have this issue again.
 
#10 ·
When you say "moving them in March", does that mean they are not on your property? If so, I would not waste money on heavy mats.

You are probably having record rainfall, that a partially covered shelter with a nine inch rise and sloped to the back of the stall, doesn't count for much of anything. Especially if you get more rain.

Is it possible to move them somewhere a lot drier right now, even if that isn't where you plan on taking them in March?

IMHO, you did the right thing shaving the mare's legs.

You might consider washing the shaved areas, as needed, with Dawn Dish soap, rinse thoroughly and pat dry.

I am a huge of fan Absorbine Hooflex Thrush Remedy, this time of year. It is oil base, so will not freeze nor will it dry out the hooves.

https://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail...=84506523403&gclid=CNbM95jtv9ECFdZXDQodezcCSA

Valley Vet has it for $12.95/bottle. I saw it on "All Vet's" web site for $10.95/bottle but I have never ordered from them.

My point is to buy a case since you have three horses and mud that isn't going away for awhile.

Throw your shoulders back, and know that you have 12 legs & hooves to be devoted to on a daily basis until you can get them to better ground. It is a far from ideal solution but, as my Ex used to say, "it beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick".

If you work and have children, this is going to be rough, unless the kids are old enough to stand up straight and help you by handing things to you. My son was at the barn, working with me, from the time he was three and he was a great little helper as long as I didn't forget he was only three by giving him tasks he couldn't handle, lollol

To me, there doesn't seem like there's a lot of choice until you can get the horses to better ground --- if they're let go, they are being set up for all sorts of stuff beyond horrible thrush ---- poor souls, white line disease, abscesses, and possibly even founder from all of the excess stress.

Wishing you the best and hoping you can get them moved sooner than later:)
 
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#11 ·
We board out horses and i hope to be moveing them to another boarding barn (that dose not flood and swamp like where we are). I am in Phoenix area az so ANY rain will cause some flooding for the most part. if it rains for 10 or 15 min there are puddles and they stick for a day.

so i am sol then lol. should i stick to my straw and shaving method to at least keep them above the wet as best i can?
 
#12 ·
Anything you do is going to get expensive. While the mats are gut-wrenching heavy, maybe look on Craig's List for some cheap mats, if you have a couple people to help you put them down.

We just laid new 3/4" 4 x 6 grid mats in the stalls. Grid mats had holes in the, for drainage and the guys that laid them for me, were huffin' pulling them off the truck.

Used mats and someone to do the grunt work of dragging them to them shed and laying them, is about all that makes sense. However, if your ground is nothing but that quick silver sand that rolls over when you look at it, you may do more harm than good to your horses.

For all that lost money and extraneous work on your part, I would rather see if there is some place else you could board them until your permanent place takes them in March.
 
#13 ·
i could move them now instead of march issue is money. its cheaper where we are at now and the cummins needs its transmission fixed soooo.... we could ride two and pony two. issue is my mares feet and they are all a bit out of shape for a 5 mile trek over a mountain. so we are trying to keep the board low to get the $500 needed for a new torque converter and then be able to trailer them over. easier on all parties. we will spend $30 on another truck full of shavings on Wednesday since we have more rain on the way.
 
#14 ·
I get that.

The best I can offer for the hooves is to keep after them daily. Keep them picked out and if you can see your way to at least buy a bottle per horse of Absorbine Hooflex Thrush medicine, apply it front and back every couple days.

Tractor Supply carries it but it's more $$ than Valley Vet:)
 
#16 ·
Use either one, every few days unless you smell thrush or see a deep crack between the heels bulbs, then use something once a day.

I've had four horses to keep an eye on their hooves so I know what a PITA it can be.

Do the best you can at keeping the hooves clean in a zero-minus-ten environment and hope the rain stops soon:)
 
#20 ·
Resetting stalls is heavy, difficult work.

1) Dig down to hard earth. 3-6 inches should do it.
2) lay down a layer of geotextile fabric. This separates the dirt from the material layers you will put down above it.
3) 3-6 inches of a mix of quarter crush gravel and M10
4) Level out the stone mix and lay your rubber mats on top of that.

Once this is done, You should not have to worry about mud again. Every few years you pull of the mats and level everything out again. Like I said, it's a ton of sweaty, difficult work, but it's pretty low maintenance once it's done.
 
#21 ·
Kiger .. did you get snow ? I saw a post from a friend and she in Phoenix and they got snow. ! I have a mud mess also. I try to keep all the poo picked out daily.
If you have liniment , you can pour some of that on the hoofs and frog to kill the thrush. I had used shavings in the past, but they just hold in moisture.
Home depot or lowes sells large bags of sand, 1100 lbs for fairly cheap, and they may be able to deliver it to you. Then shovel out the sand and then put the shavings down . Get cedar shavings not pine.
 
#22 ·
no snow as of yet though the snow line has lowerd so cave creek is getting snow. it would not supersize me if we get snow. its so cold i saw steam comeing off my dogs pee lol! and once it hits 9 normally i cant see my breath and i can. pony are going to stay blanketed today too. id prefer snow. it may get moddy after but its better than the sinking piss mud we have now. and i dont every remember colorado getting this muddy with horses after snow.
 
#25 ·
yeah she eats the shaveing and rocket tries to roll on the bag before we can even open it lol!

so i have some pics of the stalls. they are somewhat drying out. but they are all still in a bog.
 

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#28 ·
I'd scrape all of those shavings out of there, it looks like it's making it worse. The shavings will eventually turn to more dirt and muck.

The stall that I had for Laela to go in and out of during her pregnancy would turn into a bog. I went to Lowe's and got some super heavy duty geo textile (almost like a weed barrier but heavier), laid it down and then got a load of sand. The fabric was so the sand wouldn't just sink into the dirt and make more mud with sand in it. I put about four inches of sand on top of the fabric and it worked pretty well. That stall is still in good shape.
 
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