Stall cleaning can take up time – a lot of time!
There are a few things you can do to make cleaning your stalls easier and more effective though, especially if your horses are kept inside during inclement weather or if they are at a show and can’t get out as much.
The number one step is to get help. HA! wouldn’t that be nice?
If you are doing this solo, no worries.
Try out these tips to get your stall cleaning chores done quickly!
What you’ll need:
Manure rake/fork
wheelbarrow or manure bucket, tractor, etc (somewhere to put it!)
deodorizer (optional)
shavings/bedding (optional)
I like to time myself – it encourages me to move faster and makes it a sort of game, almost. If you don’t want to set an alarm or clock, that’s ok too. Some people find cleaning stalls therapeutic, or simply like taking their time. I’m almost always in a hurry and have a list of things to do so I tend to push through cleaning stalls a bit quicker.
Step 1 – Pick Up the Manure
Cleaning stalls is MUCH easier if you can let your horse out. This can be in a turnout, crosstied nearby, etc. It’s easier without a nosy or bulky horse taking up the space in the stall. If you can’t turn out, don’t stress. Simply park your bucket, tractor, wheel barrow OUTSIDE of the stall while you clean, and keep an eye on your horse. Some turn into amazing escape artists during stall cleaning time, and you definitely don’t need to add catching a horse to your list today.
***You can keep your horse occupied with a bit of hay in its feeder or hay net while you clean.***
I pick up all of the manure and toss it into my wheelbarrow. My aim has gotten pretty good, so usually all the apples make it in. Once you’ve completed that, it’s time to move on.
Step 2 – Toss the clean shavings aside
As you are cleaning the manure, toss the clean shavings aside. You can do this after you’ve picked up all the apples but I tend to combine both step 1 and 2 and start flinging the top layer, or the CLEAN shavings aside to get to the wet spots underneath.
You can scrape the top layer of bedding too instead of moving it aside. This will expose the urine spots too.
Step 3 – Remove the Wet Spots
Wet bedding can be heavy! Use caution when twisting and turning as you throw it into your cart or tractor for removal. If the smell is really bad, sprinkle some deodorizer on the areas you have removed and then place the clean bedding back on top of it.
There are lots of different stall deodorizers you can get from tractor supply, amazon, or even your local grocery store. Popular deodorizers used in horse or animal stalls are:
Baking Soda
Pure Nature
Sweet PDZ
StableFresh
SX All Natural Odor Eliminator
ScentAway
Odoway
Step 4 – Rake Clean Shavings and Fluff
After I do that, I add shavings from my bag I have ready and waiting. This isn’t something I do every time, but if the stall looks bare or if I removed a lot of bedding that was wet, I will add new, dry bedding to keep the stall fluffy and clean.
I rake all the bedding I pushed aside back to the middle and smooth it out, and then I am done and on to the next!
Cleaning stalls doesn’t have to take up your entire day. Adding shavings and a deodorizer helps immensely and keeps the stalls fresh for longer. Also, don’t be timid about slinging shavings, manure, and wet bedding around.
The goal is to get it clean and done so you can move on to other things, like time with your horse ❤
Every so often I remove everything and start fresh, but since I have added shavings when I clean, I don’t have to strip the stalls as often.
Happy cleaning ❤
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