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22 ja n ua r y/ f e b r ua r y 2 015 U n tac k e d tEst Lab >> Green Shavings If your stalls tend to get damp or you have a horse prone to thrush, Green Shavings are for you, as they aim to keep your stall drier and inhibit the growth of fungi and mold. This soft, absorbent pine bedding is treated with an organic fungal inhibitor mixed with a colorant, used to verify that the shavings have been properly treated. (Yes, they are actually green, but no, the dye will not transfer to your beautiful white horse! The colorant doesn't run, even when wet.) The active ingredient, potassium sorbate, is primarily used as a food pre- servative, meaning your horse won't be in danger if he ingests some, and when used to treat wood, it inhibits germination and growth of a wide variety of mold and fungi. Green Shavings come bagged, just like regular pine shavings, in 26-lb. bales. Three bales in my 12' x 12' stalls was plenty to begin with, and my horses immediately dropped to roll the first time I put them in their stalls. Horse approved! The shavings themselves are cut quite large, but they were less dusty than other brands. They have a pleasant pine smell that's not overpowering. Unfortunately, with larger pieces comes more difficulty picking the stall. It's very easy to waste these shavings and I needed to add a half bag or more about every other day, depending on how messy each horse was. For one horse who only poops in the corner of his stall, they weren't as much of a hassle, but for my recently off-the- track 4-year-old Thoroughbred who paces his stall, I was practically stripping the stall each day. I ended up using a few bags in my trailer where waste isn't such an issue. Prices range from $7-$10 per bag depending on your area. Visit Green- Shavings.com for more info. Alternative Bedding: Cost Effective Or A Headache? We tested four different kinds of non-traditional stall bedding to see if they lived up to their claims. By lindsAY Ber r e t h lInDSay berreTH PHoTo lInDSay berreTH PHoTo

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