Chipper PTO Chipper chips - good for horse bedding?

SuperCobra · Jul 23, 2008

Looking at the PTO chipper threads got me to wondering if anyone uses the chips for horse bedding. Right now we go back and forth between shavings you get in the bag and bulk delivery of sawmill by prodcuts that range from sawdust to chips. Just wondering what the chip output is like. Would rather use brush to make bedding than burn it and buy bedding. Curious how many chips I can produce and the quality of the chips. I've got quite a bit of brush (mostly oak). I know a little about the dangers of certain type of trees mixing with horse urine. Anything else to be concerned about? Thanks,
Randy

ChuckinNH · Jul 23, 2008

I just got a Wallenstein BX42 wood chipper, and I love it, but I think the output would be pretty coarse for bedding. Some of the chips are pretty big. I can get pictures when it stops raining if you would like.

MarkLeininger · Jul 23, 2008

We stopped using any kind of bedding in our stalls. I put down a geotec fabric over limestone. The urine drains right through it and it's easy to pick up manure and keep clean. They lay down and sleep some of the time, stand up some of the time. They have free access in and out of the stall, generally only go in there when the bugs are bad and at night when they sleep. Strangely they often stand outside if it rains or snows, must feel good. They lay down in the pasture once in awhile, but not very often.

We used to use chips in the paddock but one of our horses almost died from colic after nibbling on the chips for a day or two. We think it probably had cherry or something that's toxic to horses mixed in. Gradually took out all the wood chips and replaced with crushed limestone. Works much better. The horses would just trample the wood chips into the mud when it rained and then we had mud and soggy wood chips. It was a mess.

Rara Avis · Jul 24, 2008

Not really...

dtd24 · Jul 24, 2008

I chipped a bunch of brush at the begining of the summer. I placed it in my arena. The bedding shavings are different from the the chippings. Works great for footing though.

AlanB · Jul 24, 2008

I know Jack about horses, other then my buddy has several and the barn etc.

From what I see he uses, compared to what I produce with my chipper, I would not see that as a logical way to go.

I use my chipper so I don't burn as much, I reduce the brushy waste we have and we get a useable byproduct (the chips) but if I was looking at it from the other end (to get the chips) it would not be worth it.