# Animal bedding pellets vs. Woodstove pellets?



## Clayton Taffy

I just went to farm supply store to buy bedding. The wood pellets for stalls were $6.29 for 40 lbs, and the wood pellets for stoves were $3.69 for 40 lbs. Does anyone know the difference? Can I use Wood pellets for stoves in stalls? Has anyone tried it? Thanks.


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## Speed Racer

No, do not use wood stove pellets in place of pelleted bedding.

Pelleted bedding is made of compressed pine _only_, while wood stove pellets are made from ANY types of wood waste left over from sawmilling or other wood manufacturing.

It's not safe for your horses, period.


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## Darrin

Taffy Clayton said:


> I just went to farm supply store to buy bedding. The wood pellets for stalls were $6.29 for 40 lbs, and the wood pellets for stoves were $3.69 for 40 lbs. Does anyone know the difference? Can I use Wood pellets for stoves in stalls? Has anyone tried it? Thanks.


Parents have been using wood pellets for years with no issues.


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## Clayton Taffy

Darrin, this is interesting, you mean the pellets specifically meant for a wood stove, and have had no problems? I would like to ere on the side of caution, but saving 50% on my bedding bill is huge.


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## Sharpie

I know several people who use wood stove pellets for cat litter AND animal (horse, rabbit, etc) bedding. I've never had of anyone having issues, though I probably wouldn't use them with an animal that tried to eat them.



Speed Racer said:


> No, do not use wood stove pellets in place of pelleted bedding.
> 
> Pelleted bedding is made of compressed pine _only_, while wood stove pellets are made from ANY types of wood waste left over from sawmilling or other wood manufacturing.
> 
> It's not safe for your horses, period.


Why? I know black walnut can cause problems, but why would other woods? Assuming the horses aren't eating them of course.


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## Darrin

Taffy Clayton said:


> Darrin, this is interesting, you mean the pellets specifically meant for a wood stove, and have had no problems? I would like to ere on the side of caution, but saving 50% on my bedding bill is huge.


Yep, pellets for a wood stove. They pick them up a pallet at a time.


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## SarahAnn

Do pellets for a wood stove break up and turn into saw dust like the bedding does? Does it absorb when wet? This is VERY interesting.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Sharpie

SarahAnn said:


> Do pellets for a wood stove break up and turn into saw dust like the bedding does? Does it absorb when wet? This is VERY interesting.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Interesting? I always thought that the people who bought the 'horse bedding' pellets were the ones getting scammed on price for over-marketed wooden pellets. Now I hear that there might be a problem with using stove pellets.  

New things on both sides!


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## SarahAnn

Is there a problem?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Sharpie

Not that I can find, This guy: O2Compost -- Horse Bedding explains the essential difference. Basically fuel pellets can be dustier than bedding pellets, and there are rumors that fuel pellets contain sawdust from facilities that process laminate, which potentially means (if the rumor is true) that there might be tiny grains of plastic or glue residue in fuel pellets. Even if that IS true, so long as the horse isn't eating them, I still don't see the big deal. If a horse has COPD or something, the dust may be a very valid concern though.

This is all I found. Speed Racer sounds very certain that fuel pellets are dangerous though, so I await further enlightenment.


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## SarahAnn

:lol: okay. The Woody Pet pellets that I use now are pretty dusty. Although "misting" them does help a little. My horses eat their hay off of the floor in their stalls, so would that matter? If they aren't directly eating the pellets themselves?
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Sharpie

It is not something I would worry about myself, though if you look at my risk evaluations compared to some others, I seem to be less of a worrier. As small as that wood (or potentially even plastic) is ground, I can't see it causing a problem if they ate a little here or there in the course of a day. Now if they were eating like it was their job, then yeah, maybe it would block things up, but I bet even then they'd be able to ferment it a bit since it's so finely ground and actually get a little bit of fuel out of it themselves. JMO. And not that I am advocating feeding horses wood, finely ground or not. Actually, convincing some horse NOT to eat wood is a problem...


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## Clayton Taffy

I'm on the fence now. I think I will go to the farm store and read the ingredients in the wood stove pellts. Even mixing half and half would be a significant savings. My boys don't eat the pellets per say, but like Sarahann's they do eat hay off the stall floor. How much black walnut shaving and dust does it take to cause laminitis?


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## Saddlebag

The pellets come in different qualities. The ones that provide the longest burn make poor bedding as far as absorbing urine. The cheaper pellets do not provide as good a burn so might work for bedding. All you can do is try a bag and see how it works. If you can find a small sawmill in your area, most will give the sawdust away if you bag it yourself. Pine or spruce is safe, a product of large sawmills.Any mill processing these woods don't want other species as it means more handling of the wood to keep it separate.


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## Beauseant

Personally, I wouldnt use the wood stove pellets. But then, unlike sharpie, i AM a worry wart....an ULTIMATE worry wart, to be honest.

Anyone try the corn cob pellets? They don't smell good like the pine ones, but they do their job well. Are a tad cheaper also.

We don't use them, though because Epona eats them. I mean, great mouthfulls of them. I wonder if she thinks they are a type of "grain" or if she just loves corn products!?:?

Anyhow, when we tried to use them, we had to completely strip her stall bare of them, she was gulping them down in alarming amounts. She doesn't eat the pine pellets though...just the corn ones!:lol:


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## Speed Racer

_*If you can find a small sawmill in your area, most will give the sawdust away if you bag it yourself.*_

Nope, not anymore. They've found a lucrative market for all that sawdust. Why give it away when it can turn a profit for them? 

For all of you who use the wood stove pellets as bedding, that's your business. I'd rather err on the side of caution than use a potentially harmful substance.


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## Ray MacDonald

I'm lucky that my dad owns a saw mill! I get free sawdust! But you could still look in your area for individual people with sawmills to take their sawdust.


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## Rich

Hi,
I work for a company that makes both animal bedding and fuel pellets. Depending on where you are located, it may or may not be OK to use fuel pellets for horse bedding. 

Bedding pellets are usually made using only kiln dried softwood (pine, spruce, fir etc.) fiber. The softwoods are far more absorbent of both liquid and odors than the mixed hardwoods often found in fuel pellets. Also, as someone else pointed out, hardwood pellets can contain black walnut which can cause laminitis in horses. 

Some of this depends on where you are geographically and what type of fuel pellets are offered for sale. In areas where softwoods are prevelant (Canada, the Pacific northwest, New England), they are often used for fuel pellets as well. If the fuel pellets in your area are 100% softwood, then I don't see any reason why you couldn't use them for bedding. But in the eastern part of the U.S., where hardwoods are the most common species used for fuel pellets, I would steer clear of using fuel pellets for bedding. 

I hope this helps.
Rich


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## Clayton Taffy

Rich, This helps alot. I live in central US mostly oak and hickory forests. I will see where the pellets around here are made. Thanks!!


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## SarahAnn

Rich said:


> Hi,
> I work for a company that makes both animal bedding and fuel pellets. Depending on where you are located, it may or may not be OK to use fuel pellets for horse bedding.
> 
> Bedding pellets are usually made using only kiln dried softwood (pine, spruce, fir etc.) fiber. The softwoods are far more absorbent of both liquid and odors than the mixed hardwoods often found in fuel pellets. Also, as someone else pointed out, hardwood pellets can contain black walnut which can cause laminitis in horses.
> 
> Some of this depends on where you are geographically and what type of fuel pellets are offered for sale. In areas where softwoods are prevelant (Canada, the Pacific northwest, New England), they are often used for fuel pellets as well. If the fuel pellets in your area are 100% softwood, then I don't see any reason why you couldn't use them for bedding. But in the eastern part of the U.S., where hardwoods are the most common species used for fuel pellets, I would steer clear of using fuel pellets for bedding.
> 
> I hope this helps.
> Rich



Do you consider New England to be where soft woods are prevalent, or where hard woods are? You said New England in one and then the Eastern US in another. I understand New England to be in the Eastern part of the US...

And this is helpful. Thank you. I am wondering if there is a number I can call for manufacturing questions on pellet stove pellets.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Rich

Hi SarahAnn - you make a good point - New England is in the east, and there tend to be a variety of products and species available, even though the most prevelant species that grows in New England are the softwoods.

I would be happy to answer questions about pellets, but I want to be careful about not appearing to try to use this site to sell my products. 

My company's name is American Wood Fibers. Our website is www.awf.com and our phone number is 800-624-9663. 

Administrator - if this violates any rules of the site, I apologize - just trying to help horse owners with accurate info.

Thanks,
Rich


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## Darrin

Thanks Rich, that info is nice. I live in the Pacific NW and most of our lumber is douglas fir and black walnut is fairly rare. Helps explain why it hasn't been an issue for my parents.


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## Corporal

Speed Racer said:


> No, do not use wood stove pellets in place of pelleted bedding.
> 
> Pelleted bedding is made of compressed pine _only_, while wood stove pellets are made from ANY types of wood waste left over from sawmilling or other wood manufacturing.
> 
> It's not safe for your horses, period.


AGREED. Even though I use them a lot from November to April, my horses STILL nibble on them a little bit the first time they get stalled.


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## starlinestables

So I did some quick research and in Texas... wood stove pellets are MORE expensive than horse bedding... am I missing something?


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## Darrin

starlinestables said:


> So I did some quick research and in Texas... wood stove pellets are MORE expensive than horse bedding... am I missing something?


Probably just a regional pricing difference.


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## AllegroAdante

The cost is about the same for the horse pellets or the stove pellets here through TSC. I'm in KS.


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## OuttatheBlue

Here fuel pellets run about... $3 and horse pellets are $6+ depending on brand.

I used fuel pellets for a while, since they were so much cheaper. A lot of people at my barn use fuel pellets too. I never had a problem. If I was worried about my horse eating them, I would stand the bag up, open the top, dump a bunch of water in and let it soak. Once the bag expanded, I spread it around and it was more powdery and no actual pellets. 

Fuel pellets are a bit dustier than horse pellets, but as long as I wetted them down every once and a while it was never a real problem.

Now that my horse goes outside and doesn't poo or anything in his stall (he has a run attached to his stall) I am using the horse pellets, just because then I don't have to worry about wetting them down.

In the summer when I go back to stripping his stall before shows and adding up to 10 bags of bedding (it's a nice big stall), I will probably go back to fuel pellets.


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## RitzieAnn

i use fuel pellets in my horse stall, and sometimes in my cat boxes. The thing I've noticed that's the biggest difference, is that the stove pellets take a little bit longer to absorbe. Which makes a difference in the cat box. However, my mare will pee wherever her butt happens to be. Which makes for a dirty stall. I dump several bags into her stall (still in pellett form) and she does a great job of relaxing them herself  I dont' have issues using them. They are much cheaper. I don't really notice a difference in dust.


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## loveduffy

from what I know there are some woods that if the horse is exposed to could cause foundering ( cherry,black walnut,)


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## BigGreyHorse

Our TS is now stocking the pellets labeled for wood stoves in the horse feed section right beside the corn cob pellets.


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## Rapunzil

I bed on straw and pellets. I use the woodstove pellets and place a 1/2 bag pile in the center of the stall where my horses urinate. I then cover the entire stall with a thick layer of straw. I like straw bedding because its cheaper than shavings and IMO easier to pick. The pellets underneath absorb the extra moisture.


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## xxBarry Godden

In the UK wood pellets are used for both stoves and horse bedding. No mention was ever made by the supplier of the composition of the wood powder from which they were compressed. Sales tax at 20% is levied on pellets used for bedding, when used for fuel there is no tax levied. The bags are the same.

The pellets absorb water readily and in doing so they expand and break down into powder. The powder is heavy enough to lie on the ground
It is better to lay down rubber matter to make cleaning easier.

After using the material I would say that it makes mucking out easier. 
But there are two things to watch out for - the dust can in dry weather irritate the horse's throat unless the powder is kept moist.
The hooves of the horse will dry out in hot summer weather. 

A big advantage to the barn owner is that the muck heaps are significantly smaller.

Compared with the use of straw, wood powder is 21st century technology. Straw was traditionally used because it was in years gone by freely available on the farm. 
But straw has little moisture absorption capability and is bulky.

Note that wood chips do not have the absorption capability of wood powder pellets

I'd use wood powder again but I'd regularly sprinkle the bed with a watering can.
I might try blending powder with wood chips.

Note in the UK, muck heaps are coming into increasing inspection by the environmental agencies. The use of wood powder reduces the size of the problem.


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## The Copper Kid

A friend of mine at the barn uses stove pellets with no issues. She told me there is just one ingredient you need to look out for and most stove pellets don't have it... I can ask he tomorrow what it was for you.


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## chriscat65

A friend of mine has used wood stove pellet bedding in her stalls for years and years! No problems. I use it under my pine bedding to help soak up urine. It's just as good as the more expensive horse bedding. I haven't yet heard of anyone having a problem. I would say that, if you have a baby or a horse that might eat the stuff, go with a different bedding. I have yet to meet a horse that eats it. I also use it to soak up muddy spots in the paddock. It works great because it's cheap and turns into sand, which allows water to drain more easily.


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## flyingchanges33

I researched this a bit as I have a pellet stove along with 3 horses. Basically you just need to buy the right soft wood (pine) pellet that has very minimal additives. Better for horses, stove, and the air we breathe. Hearth.com Forums Home and other locations have reviews. Well into my 2nd year with no problems. In my experience there is the same amount of dust as with horse stall pellets. I wet them because my horses pee in their paddocks (yeah!) Kitty likes them too ;-)


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## Sahara

Just to be clear, a horse does not have to eat black walnut to get sick. Some are so sensitive that just standing in it can cause fatal injuries.


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