I too have picked through deep bedding and shoveled out macerated yuck(that had to be pitched every day). I don’t have many fond memories of cleaning stalls, but while at it I had plenty of time to think about what techniques or tools might speed up the job or make it easier. As it turns out there was and is a tool that I only dreamed might exist… Something every career mucker has probably dreamed of.. it’s called the Brockwood Stall Shi*fter®.
The Stall Shi*fter® (Use your imagination about what the * replaces) was invented by Mr. Harry Hopkins in 1996 and was demonstrated at the Hoosier Horse Fair in Indianapolis in April of 1997. A large screen connected to an electric motor spinning at an optimum rpm automatically shakes clean bedding through the screen, landing between the machines four bicycle tires, while poop and hay shake to the end of a channeled ramp and fall gloriously right into your muck bucket.
Several evolutions of Hopkins original Stall Shi*fter® dubbed “Woody” have improved the longevity of the moving parts and increased the efficiency and aesthetics of the Stall Shi*fter® since 1996. The latest model is nicknamed the “Deluxe Hybrid Woody” and currently sells for $2249 in the US.
The Brockwood website boasts that the Stall Shi*fter® will save you up to 50% on bedding costs and reduce your stall cleaning time by up to 65%. You can find out more about the Brockwood Stall Shi*fter® at the Brockwood Farm Website, www.brockwoodfarm.com.
“Stall Cleaning Tools and Equipment – Brockwood Stall Shi*fter®.” Stall Cleaning Tools and Equipment Brockwood Stall Shifter. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Jan. 2014.