Why Hemp Bedding is the Superior Choice for Horse Stalls?
The ground your horse spends most of his time standing and sleeping on can impact everything from his respiratory health to your farrier bill. For years horse owners have turned to straw, peat moss, and pine for horse stall bedding. But what if there was a better option? Enter Hemp Bedding.
Dakota Hemp is proud to provide you with high-quality hemp animal bedding, manufactured right here in South Dakota. From horse stalls to chicken coops, read on to learn about why hemp is taking the farm by storm. When you make the switch to hemp bedding, you’re switching to a cleaner, dryer option for your horses (and your wallet).
Why Hemp Works So Well: The Science Behind the Plant
Planting, growing, and harvesting hemp is a science. To fully understand how remarkable hemp is for animal bedding, you must understand the hemp plant itself.
While wood shavings are flat and thin with no real porousness to them, hemp stalks are made up of microscopic “pockets.” These pockets have the ability to trap ammonia and moisture like no other! Our hemp hurd alone can absorb up to 4 to 5 times its weight in liquid. That’s why at Dakota Hemp, our premium bedding is made from 100% hemp hurd. Whether you’re concerned about your horse’s hoof health or you just hate mucking stalls, our guide will tell you how hemp can help.
Top Horse Health Benefits
1. Respiratory Health
Horses spend a majority of their lives stalled in—what do you think they keep breathing? That’s right, their lungs. Second only to hay, horse bedding has the potential to cause tremendous harm to your horse’s airways. Dust from pine shavings and mold found in straw can lead to deadly Heaves (RAO).
At Dakota Hemp, we run our hemp through a unique decortication and cleaning process that includes triple screening. This ensures all of the tiny “fines” and dust are removed from the hurd, leaving you with a super clean and heavier hemp product. By switching to hemp bedding, you’ll drastically reduce the amount of dust in your barn, which means happier, healthier horses that won’t hack up a lung every time they eat hay off of the ground.
2. Odor Reduction
We all know that amazing smell of fresh-cut wood shavings. It’s wood-y, right? Well, ammonia smells like nothing remotely pleasant. When urine breaks down, it releases ammonia. This, combined with moisture, creates the “smelly stew” we all know too well.
Hemp’s ability to reduce smells doesn’t stop at being highly absorbent. Because our hemp absorbs urine before it has time to spread across the stall floor, we also lock the ammonia in at the source. The result? A fresher-smelling barn and healthier horses and humans.
3. Hoof Hardiness
As the saying goes, “no hoof, no horse.” Spending excessive time standing in wet bedding can cause thrush, rotting hooves, and white line disease. Bacteria found in urine and moisture softens the hoof wall, making it easier to damage.
Urine-soaked shavings and straw stay wet long after a horse urinates. Instead of soaking your horse’s feet, hemp fiber and hurd absorb the liquid, leaving a dry “floor” for your horse to stand on. Less moisture equals healthier hooves and fewer trips to the farrier.
Time & Cost Effective: A Better Annual Analysis
Sure, switching your horse stall from straw to hemp will cost you more up-front. But when you do the math, you’ll quickly realize that hemp outperforms any traditional material when it comes to annual cost analysis. Here at Dakota Hemp, we’ve broken down how hemp can save you both time and money.
Trim Costs Almost In Half
The average farmer can reduce their bedding budget by almost half simply by switching to hemp. How? Unlike straw and shavings, you won’t need to strip your stalls down and start from scratch every month. Less material used = less money spent.
Muck Faster
Not only will you use less hemp over the course of the year, but you’ll also spend less time mucking stalls. Straw likes to cling to itself and manure, creating big messy piles that take ages to sift through. Hemp bedding doesn’t stick to waste like straw or wood shavings; it flows right through a manure fork.
Step-by-Step Guide: Transitioning To Hemp
Bedding your horse’s stall with hemp is easy and similar to how you would use straw. Here is how to get started:
Step 1: Stop Using Cheap Straw/Wood Shavings Using traditional stall bedding is costing you! After hours and hours of stall cleaning, you may begin to think your horse enjoys your pampered existence. But if you’ve switched to hemp bedding, we’ve got good news. Since hemp absorbs urine and stays dry for weeks at a time, you only need to pick out the spots your horse peed on.
Step 2: Clear the Area By now you should have a perfectly clean stall. Using a pitchfork or shovel, scoop out long strips of hemp animal bedding. The more surface area you can expose, the better.
Step 3: Apply Nylon Cowstring (Optional) If you notice your horse tends to poop in the same spot every time, add the nylon cowstring along the perimeter of those spots. Similar to urine, poop will stick to the string instead of the horse.
Step 4: Maintain Like Normal Once you have your base set, you’re ready to start. If you notice your horse poops frequently in certain areas, use the string method to help “train” them. Since straw often absorbs urine as well, poop can become soaked and sticky—hemp keeps it dry and easy to manage.
Environmental Benefits
Not only is hemp amazing for your horse, it’s also fantastic for the planet.
4. Better Composting
When it comes to composting, hemp wins by a long shot. Not only does hemp take half the time to compost than traditional wood shavings (6-9 months vs. 2-3 years), but it actually adds nutrients to the soil as it breaks down. Need your pasture to be nutrient-dense? Spread it on the fields!
5. Thermal Comfort
Hemp naturally insulates, meaning it keeps horses warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Not only that, but hemp has a natural springiness to it. When packed in large blocks, compressed hemp sheets can reduce the stress on your horse’s legs as they lie down. This added give makes it a popular option for senior horses and horses with injury.
6. Improve Your Farm’s Ecology
Another great reason to switch to hemp is that it will improve the overall nitrogen balance in your soil. Have lots of green, leafy growth and not enough heartier plants to balance it out? Spread some hemp hurd bedding on your fields.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Hemp Bedding Safe for Other Animals?
Our hemp bedding is SAFE for all animals. While our products are specifically designed around horses, chickens love laying their eggs in it. It’s also a great bedding for goat pens and rabbit hutches.
Is Hemp Better Than Peat Moss?
Peat moss can cause staining on light-colored horses and is extremely dusty. Hemp offers the same absorbency as peat moss without the cons.
Is Hemp Bedding Flame Retardant?
Yes! Hemp is actually more flame resistant than straw and wood bedding.
Does Hemp Attract Pests?
No. It doesn’t attract insects or flies like straw does. Because hemp locks in moisture and urine at the source, there isn’t any fermentation like you would find with straw.
Is Hemp Bedding Grown in the U.S.?
Yes! All of our hemp is grown by certified American Farmers and manufactured in South Dakota. Visit our mission page to learn more about our local roots.
How Much Hemp Do I Need For My Horse?
To get started, you’ll need roughly 6-8 bales for a 12’x12’ stall.
How Much Does Hemp Cost?
While hemp may be more expensive than straw up front, it will save you money in the long run through reduced labor and material waste.