Spring Cleaning

Winter takes its toll, anc mow: that spring Is here it’s time to clean up the bam! Your spmime Geaning regime should include all surface areas im wour horse's stall and water drains. This year, instead of usime Saditomel cleaning agents, many of which are harmful to our environment, why not use environmentally friendly products to get your barn in tip-top shape?

Surface Areas

After a Some wmmier of beime mside, barn surface areas are burdened wilmim 2 [ast of bacteria which can lead to equine diseases Suis 2s Stameies and rhinopneumonitis. To keep everyone jeaiime © & important that we thoroughly wash and disinfect Gus Garses Smaronment including floors, doors, walls, bars, buckets you begin cleaning it Is imperative to remove all feed water and manure from the stall. Once the stall is sinipped peacsec Dy meshing, scrubbing, and pressure washing all surkaces waitin not weiter. 2 detergent, and a disinfectant.

Zeolite — What is it?

It is important to Choose a safe and effective disinfectant. Chlorines ae hypoctuce (bleach) are a popular choice, amongst mam Dery semers. to disinfect stall walls, troughs, buckets etc. However chlorine based products are not the best choice Sam yaw amc wour forse. Firstly, for a disinfectant to work in the bamm it must be able to penetrate organic materials such as Straw, shaping & manure Chlorine based products are inactivated when they come in contact with organic materials and Will Geet] Clomme ses when in contact with ammonia, whida & wey persomows. Secondly, chlorine is a corrosive chemical Geet alll Goerade metal surfaces and can cause burning of the S065 mS] amc Seoet 2s well as constriction and edema of the amma amc Semes mally, when chlorine based products are Gspasea Ge Wie Welter crains into the natural world, OfganGciaie=s ete Seteasec tat build up in the fatty tissues of fish and Gite axummals as we! 2s in water, soils, sediments and Organic Muar Ge Eames amd rivers. Biologists believe organochiommes smay B= sesponsible for mutations, sterility, immune Sistenn Geliarss amc loca! extinctions in many wildlife populaioms.

There at Guam 2eecawe Gisimfecting agents available that are safer i Gur Geaim Gur Rorses health, and are eco friendly. Instead of wae Colomme based >rocucts, use products with a ae: oo ey Seommpol i 2 colourless, odorless, perfume free, yet efficient active ingredient used in a host of cosmetics, fish farms and other enviro products and breaks down very quickly. It also free rinses easily, and can be used daily to whistle clean buckets and troughs, with no foaming or residuals.

Drains

As we all know, warm spring air brings shedding, and with all that extra hair in the aisle ways and wash stall, water drains are more likely to become clogged. The most common drain cleaning products on the market are acid-based products that include chemicals such as sulphuric acid and caustic products that are made of sodium hypochloride, both are hazardous. Acid-based and caustic products are designed to eat away at hair, manure, bedding, hay, straw, and other clog causing materials; therefore, both cleaners will also eat away at other organic matter including skin, eyes, and respiratory airways. In addition, similar to chlorine based disinfectants, these drain cleaners are harmful to waterways and wildlife.

Riding arenas, specifically indoor arenas, are beset with dust problems. The most common types of arena footing are sand, stonedust, wood products, and rubber. After time and traffic, these materials begin to break down resulting in a dusty tiding environment. Horses can breathe up to seventy-five times the amount of air that humans do and, obviously, a dusty arena can lead to a host of respiratory- related problems for everyone involved.

Enzymatic biological drain cleaners are a safer alternative. Biological drain cleaners make use of a natural bacterial and enzyme mixture to open and keep drains clear by using naturally occurring microorganisms, specifically cultured to digest non- toxic organic waste. Unlike acid-based and caustic products, enzymatic biological cleaners are non-corrosive and are safe for the environment. Biological drain cleaners are naturally occurring (occurs in nature, common to soil), non-pathogenic (non-disease causing), and non-opportunistic (will not cause disease in a compromised host). They do take time to work and the best advice is to put some biologicals down each sink, toilet, & drain at least once a week to keep the piping, septic tank and most important, septic bed, clear and free running.

With spring just around the corner, choose to be more environmentally mindful and choose to use products that are safer for your horse, staff and the environment. For more information about available equine eco friendly cleaning products please contact Bill Milne or Ellen Koch at alexmiln@idirect.com or 1-800-563-5947

(Alex Milne Associates Ltd. is an OEF Industry Member and Silver Partner. Partly owned by the Ontario government, Alex Milne Associates Ltd. is considered a leader in the global environmental industry and offers an equine line of environmentally friendly products called “Just Add Horses” through True Serve Hardware network and Country Depot stores.)