Straw

Warrior in his run-in paddock

I was trimming an old retiree, named Warrior, this afternoon in a sort of indoor paddock.  He was a wonderful old man and stood like a statue without even a halter.  However, the oddness of the situation and the somewhat less than desirable state of the bedding made me realize that the thing I find most strange about working here is the smell- it isn't bad, just different.  This makes sense, of course, because everything from the feed to the environment is different, but the straw bedding, I think, is the biggest difference.  I don't see that it is cleaned daily the same way that shavings are at home.  Instead, there will be a very deep bed, up to a foot or more, and the soiled bit is mucked somewhat and then covered with clean straw, the whole thing being changed after a time.  I can't say how long because I don't know, but I would think about a week, based on the state of the stalls.  I don't want anyone to take this as a criticism, because it is not.  After all, the horses are always standing on clean bedding when managed properly.

Hot fitting in a box full of straw still makes me nervous, though.