Mats
Where to start? The best point of departure is a question. “What type of mats do horses have in the wild? NONE. With that FACT, why do we use mats for horses. There are lots of reasons:
1. It makes us feel good!
2. It does help with the cleanliness of the stall; however, there are no stalls in the wild.
3. Helps prevent rain and wind erosion in and around a stall or well traveled area.
4. Gives us yet another opportunity to spend our hard earned dollars on our horses.
Mats come in various molds, makes and styles. So to help you determine what type of mat to use, ask these questions:
1. Do I want the fluids, urine, rain etc., to go through the mat or run off the mat?
This helps you to determine if you want solid or perforated mats.
2. What is the square footage of the area I need to cover?
This helps you to determine how much matting you will need.
3. How many pieces do I want to put down?
Mats come in various sizes, 1′ x 1′, 3′ x 3′, 4′ x 6′ and in rolls 6′ to 12′ wide. Hint: If you do not have a lifting vehicle like a tractor or fork lift, rolls of matting may not be an option. The smaller the size the more pieces you will have to put down; however, each small piece weighs less. If you plan on moving the pieces often, smaller pieces may be the best option. If you plan on not moving the pieces, then larger pieces might be the solution.
4. Are mats really necessary or will bedding be adequate?
In some stalls we did not place any mats, just put bedding on top of the ground. This has worked well.
5. Do I want to butt the mats together or do I want the interlocking pieces.
Interlocking pieces are more expensive, but keep the mats from sliding apart.
6. Will the mats be used indoor or outdoor?
Most mats are not affected by sun light, but be sure if the mats are going to be placed outside, they are outdoor mats.
7. Will the mats be placed on dirt/gravel or on a hard surface like a concrete floor?
Solid surfaces can use both perforated or solid mats. Again it goes back to the purpose of the mat. If you want to provide traction on a concrete floor, a thin, solid mat may be the best option. Remember, perforated mats collect debris in the holes.
8. Can I find the product I want at locations other than a horse supplier?
Often times a horse store will have higher prices for products that can be bought at other locations. You can purchase mats directly from a mat supplier.
We chose 4′ x 6′ solid mats for the 12′ x 12′ stalls. We also used solid mats for Andrew’s 18 x 24 stall.
We choose to put the 2′ x 2′ perforated (w/ holes) just outside the front of the stall, as the rain water would go through the holes and keep the area in front of the stall from turning into a mud pit. Hint: We dug out the area and put in #57 gravel with some drain tile to drain the water from under the mats to a run off area. We had to do this because the rock strata (base) here in Nokesville varies from bring on the surface to about 5′ to 10′ down. This means the water would percolate to the rock bed and sit.
We are considering redoing the stalls with perforated mats, but you must be vigilant in treating the urine as it will go into the soil that fills in the holes and be retained and develop a bad smell.
We are considering the perforated mats for the stalls, but we will have to engineer a good base and drainage because of the shallow rock strata here.
The first picture shows the 2′ x 2′ perforated mats in front of Andrew’s stall. We used zip ties to hold the mats together, but should have purchased the interlocking mats. 
The second picture shows the perforated mats by the waterer to prevent the ground from turning into a mud pit during a rain.
