How to use FIVE STAR
FIVE STAR has a very high capacity for absorption, but just as you need to dampen a dry cloth before you wipe up a spill, FIVE STAR needs to be re-hydrated to maximise its rate of absorption.
For a 12ft by 12ft stable you will need eight bags of FIVE STAR. To create banks, add three or four further bags - along the walls.
Lay the bags out evenly across the stable floor where you want the bed, leaving roughly equal gaps between the bags, the front of the bed and the walls.
Cut an opening in each bag. Starting at the back of the stable, add 5-10 litres of water to each bag. After 10 to 15 minutes all the water will be absorbed, so return to the first bag you added water to and tip its contents out onto the floor. Repeat with the remaining bags.
With a rake, or fine-tined shavings fork, spread the bedding out evenly and make up any banks. The bedding will now have a soft, fluffy texture but some pellets may still be visible. This is normal as the FIVE STAR pellets will break down over the next 5 to 10 days, depending on how wet the horse is.
Once the bed is set up, one 15kg bag of Five Star is equivalent to about one-and-a-half to two bales of shavings. In other words, if you have been using 1½ - 2 bales of shaving per week you will only need about 1 bag of Five Star per week.
Rubber Mats
If you have rubber mats, the Five Star bed should be set up in just the same way as for any other stable floor, so ensure that the finished bed is 4” - 5” deep. The high absorbency of Five Star will prevent urine getting under the mats and from running out of the bed and across the stable floor.
Existing Shavings Bed
If you already have a shavings bed and do not want to throw out the whole bed when switching to Five Star you have two options.
Option 1 is to use all the clean shavings, having thoroughly mucked out, putting them round the side and back walls as banks. Then use Five Star only on the uncovered floor area – one bag per every square yard of floor that you wish to cover. Typically this will be six bags for a half bed in a 12’ x 12’ stable. If during use the banks fall down into the bed it is very easy to separate the shavings from the Five Star bed with a shavings fork and put them back onto the banks.
Option 2 is to make the bed using Five Star pellets as normal, then when finished add the clean shavings to the top of the bed. Waste volumes from mucking out will not reduce very much all the time there are shavings in the bed but the Five Star will keep the bedding a lot dryer than with shavings alone. Once all the shavings have become soiled and disposed of, the bed can be maintained by just adding Five Star, then mucking out time and waste volumes will fall dramatically.
FIVE STAR Maintenance
For best performance, the bedding should not be disturbed any more than necessary, as the control of wet and odour depends on the bed remaining in place.
On a daily basis remove solids. When doing so, be sure to shake the fork lightly and any dry bedding picked up with the manure will drop back to the bed - so less waste. Damp patches on the surface of the bed should be spread out across the top of the bed with the fork and mixed with dry bedding, but avoid turning over or mixing the bed too much. If there are any saturated patches on the surface, they should be very localised; carefully dig them out, without removing any dry material.
Once removed, level the bed by filling in with any remaining pellets and dry bedding material from the rest of the bed.
For dirty/wet horses
Twice a week, scatter half a bag of FIVE STAR over the bed, adding no water. For the wettest/dirtiest horses, or if the horse is in the stable for extended periods, add half a bag 3 to 4 times per week. Add the new bedding to the wettest part of the bed and mix the pellets into the surface of the bed.
For cleaner/drier horses
Once a week, scatter one bag of FIVE STAR over the bed. In wet/damp weather this should be added dry. In the drier months, add water to the bag in the usual way and allow time for it to be adsorbed before spreading the contents over the bed.
FIVE STAR will absorb ammonia, which is good for healthy hooves and will keep the stable smelling sweet. If you can smell ammonia, this will either be because the bedding has been disturbed too much or because part of the surface has become saturated. Removing saturated areas and filling with dry bedding, adding new bedding if required, will quickly solve this problem.
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