Airlite cardboard bedding and Thymox botanical disinfectant are the foundation of healthy animal environments throughout much of North America. But their availability in the West has been spotty.
Until now….
Lifelong horsewoman and entrepreneur, Jaime Nyheim, became an Airlite cardboard bedding devotee after discovering it on the East Coast competition circuit. When she moved to Oregon she was determined to bring it with her. The same for Airlite’s companion in healthy animal environments — Thymox botanical disinfectant.
Jaime’s Sherwood Stable, in Cottage Grove, OR, is now an official distributor of Airlite dust-free cardboard bedding and Thymox botanical disinfectant.
Airlite Bedding & Thymox Disinfectant
Both products are produced by Green Horse Brands based in Lexington, KY. Green Horse Brands is dedicated to creating healthy animal environments and supporting a healthy planet.
Made of pre-consumer cardboard, Airlite bedding is a clean, comfortable, dust-free foundation for horse stalls and enclosures for any animal – from pets and farm animals to livestock and zoo exotics.
Airlite is up to 5X as absorbent as traditional wood bedding, and it neutralizes harmful ammonia odors. Its long life and structural durability translate to savings in cost, labor, and time.
Airlite meets Green Horses Brands’ mandate of supporting a healthy planet. After its long life in the stall, the bedding is ideal compost material. In just a few months it decomposes into quality black dirt, years faster than wood bedding.
Thymox Botanical Disinfectant is derived from the plant thyme. It kills up to 99.9% of disease-causing bacteria and viruses – including those that cause strangles, vesicular stomatitis, EHV-1, equine influenza and even COVID-19.
Rated in the Environmental Protection Agency’s safest disinfectant category, Thymox kills these virus and bacteria without toxic or harsh chemicals. It also deactivates mold, a common contaminant in animal habitats.
Thymox acts fast on almost any surface and is easily applied without dilution. Key biosecurity measures are effective and easy with Thymox, including those mandated at competition by the International Equestrian Federation.
Happy Homecoming
Jaime’s Sherwood Stable is based on her tree farm owned and operated by her family for five generations. She grew up riding and competing Arabians in the Pacific Northwest and is confident the region’s horse and animal owners will warmly welcome Green Horse Brands products.
While competing in amateur jumping competition, Jaime learned of Airlite bedding through a friend whose horse was “allergic to everything, including shavings.” Airlite’s dust-free properties were critical to managing his sensitivities to the many allergens present in a typical stable.
“Dust” from bedding and hay can contain microscopic bits of mold, bacteria and other particles that trigger allergic responses and irritation in the respiratory tract. The horse’s stable manager swore by Airlite cardboard bedding, so Jaime gave it a try.
Allergies were not an issue for Jaime’s horse, St. Olaf. But the pure white jumper was hard to keep clean, even with fastidious stall management. His legs stocked up often, especially in the small stalls typical at competitions.
It’s Amazing!
“It’s magic!” Jaime laughs of her first experience with Airlite. Like many hunter/jumper equestrians, Jaime likes to bed her horse’s stall very deeply. Even doing so, she was shocked how much less material that required when using Airlite versus wood shavings. It’s loft and structure created a bed into which St. Olaf immediately “nested and made himself comfortable.”
And he didn’t stock up, likely because of the cushion and give in the new surface.
As her own horse’s groom, Jaime was equally excited about the lack of shavings and stains on St. Olaf’s coat. Airlite’s absorptive properties draw fluids to the base layer and leave the top layer of bedding dry. Its cardboard pieces don’t stick to coats or tails and there’s no dust residue left behind after the horse lies down.
“It’s amazing,” Jaime concludes. Hence, her desire to bring Airlite and Thymox with her to Oregon.
Entrepreneurial Insights
In addition to a lifetime of hands-on horsemanship, Jaime brings diverse experience, insights and success to the Green Horse Brands distributorship.
She served in the U.S. Navy as an Operational Specialist, earned a degree in Finance, and co-created the Sherwood Show Series. After 20 years away, moving back to Oregon means winding down her thriving real estate business developed through Jaime’s years living in Virginia Beach, VA.
She and her husband, Erik, have a 10-year-old son, Gunnar, who inherited Jaime’s horse-crazy gene. Their horse and pony live at Sherwood Stable, hauling out to train with Karianne Boyce-Lockhart. Jaime and Gunnar look forward to competing throughout the Pacific Northwest and, likely, in California soon.
Show horse retirement is part of Sherwood Stable’s business plan too. Understanding the unique needs of retired campaigners, Jaime will provide a healthy environment for horses to transition from show life to retired life. With graduated turnout options, horses will learn to enjoy ample pasture time after resting comfortably in their 12×16 mattress stalls. An arena and trail system support the physical transition needed for horses step down from showing under the lights into a lifestyle where learning how love just being a horse is the goal.
For more information on Airlite cardboard bedding and Thymox botanical disinfectant, visit www.GreenHorseBrands.com. To order throughout the Pacific Northwest, contact Jaime Nyheim at [email protected] or (619) 651-3621.
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