Choosing the Right Bedding: Clean, Comfortable, and Healthy Options for Your Barn

November 5, 2025

A clean, comfortable environment is essential for the health and happiness of every animal in your barn, from horses and cattle to chickens and goats. But with so many bedding options for horses, poultry, and livestock, how do you know which type provides the best combination of comfort, absorbency, and odor control?

At Standlee, we believe quality bedding should do more than just look clean. The right material helps absorb moisture, control ammonia, minimize dust, and support better air quality - keeping your animals healthier and your chores easier.

Here’s how to choose horse, poultry, and livestock bedding that keeps your operation clean, comfortable, and sustainable year-round.

What to Look for in Livestock and Horse Bedding

Whether you’re bedding horse stalls, poultry coops, or livestock pens, the best bedding materials are:

• Highly absorbent, to manage moisture and control ammonia.
• Low dust, to protect animal and caretaker respiratory health.
• Clean and consistent, free from weeds and debris.
• Easy to manage and compostable, supporting sustainability on the farm.

Straw Bedding: A Smart Choice for Livestock and Small Animals

Certified Chopped Straw

Made from premium, certified straw that’s chopped, screened, and heat-treated, Standlee Certified Chopped Straw delivers a cleaner, softer, and more absorbent bedding option for livestock, goats, and small animals.

Because it’s certified, it is guaranteed noxious weed-free and the fine chop makes it easy to clean and reduces waste, while the natural fibers compost quickly for an environmentally friendly bedding solution.

Note: Straw bedding is not recommended for horses or mules that tend to consume it.

Key Benefits:

• Excellent absorbency and odor control.
• Lower dust for improved air quality.
• Easy cleanup and less waste volume.
• Sustainable and compost friendly.

Certified Straw Compressed Bale & Grab & Go Options

For operations that prefer a traditional straw format, Certified Straw Compressed Bales and Certified Straw Grab & Go Bales deliver the same certified noxious weed-free quality in larger, consistent packs.

They’re perfect for livestock bedding, poultry barns, and general agricultural use where straw is used at scale. Learn more about Standlee certified straw products.

Poultry Bedding That Keeps Coops Fresh and Dry

For chicken keepers and poultry producers, moisture and odor can build up fast. That’s where Flock Fresh Bedding stands out - a unique blend of premium straw, alfalfa, and Sweet PDZ, designed to balance absorbency and natural ammonia control and encourage scratching and movement within the coop.

Flock Fresh supports healthier, cleaner coop by:

• Neutralizing ammonia and odor.
• Extending bedding life.
• Reducing respiratory irritants.
• Providing a comfortable, compostable surface.

It’s ideal for chicken coops, brooders, ducks, and other poultry environments to help your flock stay clean, dry, and comfortable.

Odor Control and Ammonia Management: Sweet PDZ in Action

Even the cleanest stalls and coops can develop odor and ammonia buildup over time, but there’s an easy, natural solution. Sweet PDZ Horse Stall Refresher and Coop Refresher are mineral-based, non-toxic odor control products that trap and neutralize ammonia and moisture right at the source.

Use Sweet PDZ with your bedding to:

• Improve air quality in stalls and coops.
• Protect respiratory health.
• Extend bedding life and reduce waste.
• Keep barns and coops smelling fresh longer.

Sweet PDZ is available in powder or granule form for easy application. For backyard flocks, there’s Sweet Coop, formulated specifically for poultry environments. Learn more about Sweet PDZ.

Bedding Management Tips for a Cleaner, Healthier Barn

• Clean regularly: Remove soiled bedding daily to control moisture and bacteria.
• Add odor control: Layer with Sweet PDZ to extend freshness.
• Keep it dry: Maintain ventilation to prevent condensation and help bedding perform better.
• Compost smart: Standlee’s straw-based products break down quickly and enrich soil naturally.

The Bottom Line

From livestock pens to poultry coops and horse stalls, your choice of bedding directly affects animal comfort, air quality, and daily maintenance.

By choosing natural, certified products like Standlee Certified Chopped Straw, Flock Fresh, and Sweet PDZ, you’re creating a cleaner, more comfortable, and more sustainable environment for every animal in your care.