Thirteen-year-old Flossie and her sister, Bea, fifteen, had their pony-mad dreams come true as dad James fitted out their new stables.
“I thought, I must be mad” said James, “we had just moved into the new house and were having carpets fitted indoors, while I was busy putting new rubber matting into the stables so the girls’ ponies could move in".
James, his wife Katie and their three children moved to the new property in Cheshire in early December, and quickly priorities were established. Katie’s experience led her to focus on keeping their three Welsh ponies, Riley, Millie and Brennin, off the grass to reduce the risk of laminitis.
Katie explains “There was a lot of grass when we arrived, and three greedy ponies could’ve quickly got into trouble. I knew I needed to restrict grazing as it has been such a warm, wet year and grass sugars were high, but was also conscious that the ponies being stood in on concrete for long periods of time wasn’t ideal for their joints. Riley is 17, and has arthritis, so that made me think we needed to invest in some decent, thick rubber matting.”
Previously at a livery yard with thin strip mats, Katie also knew thick interlocking mats were high priorities - and essential to stop bedding and muck working under the mats.
“As well as being easier to sweep up, the Animat matting has saved us time in mucking out, and is already reducing bedding costs and leaving a smaller muckheap. They’ll pay themselves back within a couple of years.” Katie notes.
Animat’s purpose-made rubber compound provides several equine benefits, including reduced joint concussion and warmer stables. “The team at Intershape were great, despite the short turnaround times, they made it happen as they are a small and friendly team who wanted to bring the ponies home for the girls”.
James goes on to explain the fitting process.
“We have two 12ft x 12ft stables, and one 12ft x 18ft. It took about half a day to fit all of the stables out. I started at the door of each stable and worked back, cutting the mats to shape with a Stanley knife. Because they are interlocked, there’s no messy seal to sort out – I’m pleased with the result.”
Flossie and Bea have noticed the ponies love the mats too. The sisters often pop out to see the ponies before they themselves go to bed, often to find that the ponies are lying down. “We haven’t heard them snoring yet!”
Animat rubber mats are available to buy online from Intershape, and come with a 7-year guarantee.
