# Paddock Maintenance & Designs



## caseymyhorserocks (Apr 5, 2010)

I would go with some type of gravel, birds eye and pea gravel are best. Wood chips will decompose and turn into dirt, just making issues with mud worse. inches of mud + one more inch = how much gravel you need. Do not expect any grass if you add footing, and even if you didn't add footing there really wouldnt be anything.


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## TrojanCowgirl (Jun 1, 2012)

How often would I have to replace the footing and where might I call to look for it? Can horses eat hay directly off the ground with this footing or would they require a feeding bin?


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## Annanoel (Mar 29, 2011)

TrojanCowgirl said:


> How often would I have to replace the footing and where might I call to look for it? Can horses eat hay directly off the ground with this footing or would they require a feeding bin?


It depends on how rough your horses are on it, a friend of mine had the gravel and her horses would kick it everywhere, depending on how much she put in she replaced it or just moved it around every few weeks. You also have to remember with the gravel if your horses have shoes or not you always have to check for stones. Even the littlest piece can get stuck, BUT it is GREAT for drainage. 

I would think a landscaping center would have it, here they have the small stuff and give a farm discount as well if you buy enough. We always put a wooden "bridge" out to put hay on or in big buckets just so they didn't eat the gravel.


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## caseymyhorserocks (Apr 5, 2010)

I would not feed off the gravel. I would recommend having a feeding station with mats and a big tub for hay. You can also save a great deal of hay feeding it in a tub as horses cant trample it.


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## TrojanCowgirl (Jun 1, 2012)

Alright, I'm going to look into the gravel. Hopefully it'll be in the budget.


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