Well the title says it all I hate going up to the barn to so see him so dirty it takes me an hour to groom for a 30 min ride!!! I also ride all winter and he sweats and dosent dry I am the only one at the barn who doesnt blanket. My dad says blankets are dangerous and the barn manager doesnt live there So I want to but should I blanket him?
No. Horses are made to be able to withstand very cold weather and most do just fine. Learn to groom a little fasteror don't be so thoroughand let him be as nature intended.
Yes...When we take a spur of the moment ride or time is short, we just quick brush off the saddle and cinch area, pick the hooves, saddle up, and we're off in 15 minutes.
If you ride him alot during the winter, I would blanket him. I don't blanket my horse alot because I don't ride her more than once a week, but my friend blankets her horse because he is ridden alot. We live in WI where it gets extremely cold so, I blanket when the weather is bad enough to leave the horses shivering but then I leave it off. I does help with the sweat thing though becasue if they don't grow as heavy as a winter coat as the other horses, then the sweat will be less of an issue.
i blanket mine. she's in a pasture on turnout at my house. She does fine with it. It helps keep her clean. We had to blanket last year because she had foals(neglect case) in fall, and her clock didn't tell her to grow a coat. Now we blanket her anyway, since we already have a blanket.
I've never blanketed, and I ride all winter. I grew up in Northern MN, so I am familiar with cold!!! The only time I did blanket was if I worked them into a sweat; I would blanket, let him dry, and strip the blanket off, and rebrush and try to fluff him up again.
As far as dirt, focus mainly on his saddle area, and then you won't spend 'so much' time before your ride grooming.
Yes that is what I thought since I ride 3-4 times a week for 40-60 mins. I asked my coach he said I shouldn't and blanketing is more for my benefit than my horse.:-|
As for summer he has a fly mask and blanket
I would clip him in the winter if you're doing a lot of riding so he doesn't sweat as much but also blanket to compensate for the lack of coat!
Also the less coat means less time grooming
I really only blanket my horses if they get cold (shivering or "hunching" for lack of a better word) and during really bad weather. You could split the difference and get him a rain sheet so he doesn't get to hot with his natural coat and the blanket but still stays clean-ish, but I think horses really like their dirt
I blanket in fall and winter so my horses dont grow winter coats. Light sheet on cold fall day medium for winter. I do take it off if its 50 degrees or higher and if the sun is out and its really shining.
At my barn in the winter, the horses get their blankets put on at night when they go into the stable. In the morning they come off again and then they are out in the field.
Not blanketing this year sounds like a good idea. Just endure these few months and it will all be fine. Good luck and put that elbow grease into it. :wink:
I let our horses grow a nice winter coat. Then I put a blanket on. But I make sure to get a water proof, breathable one with no insulation. In other words a rain sheet. This keeps them clean and they can still roll and enjoy being horses. An old cowboy friend of mine said he would never leave a halter on a horse unattended but blankets break if they horse gets in trouble so do not worry about the safety issue. Be sure to keep the belly straps short enough and cross the one behind their back legs. Once the temps get to ten above zero or the snow starts pelting for days on end I put a blanket with insulation on. I often feel under the blanket because I do believe a horse would rather be a little cool than too warm. I make sure they never have any sweat. If it is for our convenience that is okay. At least our horses are out in a big field and can run around. This way we don't have soggy horses to brush on rainy days or caked mud to deal with and they do not grow as much winter hair so it is easier to not get them too hot when riding. Already the horses get hot at a walk going up hill because of their nice fuzz. The inconvenient part is the expense of multiple blankets and cleaning and repairing and storing them. But winter riding here is enough of a challenge with the cold and early darkness that blanketing works for me.
I let our horses grow a nice winter coat. Then I put a blanket on. But I make sure to get a water proof, breathable one with no insulation. In other words a rain sheet.
I would just like to comment, because I feel that you can go one of two ways.
Horses have a natural defense against cold - their coat. In order for it to work properly, it has to be able to stand up and not get matted down. The heat gets trapped by the big wooly coat, and stays closer to the skin. My understanding is that you kind of want to go one of two ways with colder weather:
1) Leave the horse unblanketed, and let the horse's coat ward off the cold. In this instance you do want to groom the horse on a regular basis (I'm not talking everyday) to keep the hair fluffy so it has maximum heat retention.
2) Blanket the horse with insulated blankets according to the weather. So you have on hand at least a mid-weight and heavy-weight blanket, and possible a light-weight, and you put these blankets on according to their temperature rating.
If your horse has a winter coat, you will be hindering the natural heat properties if you squash it down, even with a rainsheet. Rain sheets have their place, absolutely, but when you're talking about cold temperatures, you kind of want to go one way or the other with blanketing - you either want to leave the horse be, or blanket fairly heavily. A rainsheet will squash the hair down, so the horse's natural defenses (its fluffy hair) are pushed down, but the sheet itself offers very little warmth, so you're kind of defeating the point.
Does that make sense? I have this question all the time at my tack store, I hope I've explained myself well.. I haven't had my coffee this morning!!
I blanket horses Im riding consistently over the winter. Riding isnt natural... so you may need to take some unnatural actions, like blanketing. It can take up to a few hours to cool a fuzzy, sweaty horse off. And you should be using a cooler. If you're lazy or dont have the time blanekting is the way to go, if you ride consistently over the winter.
I use baby powder to help dry off Caleb. It works as long as he isn't sopping wet (like from running through water) baby powder also works well under saddles and girths.
P.S. If you're getting a blanket, Bacus are amazing.
The only time my horses are blanketed is in the trailer (just a habit I've gotten into, not too sure why.) and the occasional time when I have them in the cow barn paddock, since my uncle likes to lock them out of the barn and leave them standing with no shelter whatsoever.
I ride occasionally during winter, and all I do is rub them down with a towel if they get real sweaty and brush their fur the opposite way, to help it dry. It takes a little longer, but I don't have to worry about them getting caught up with a blanket.
Hello, I am so confused I have a winter blanket its older but quite breathable and a little rain sheet for yucky days. Maybe I should or maybe I shouldn't.???
depends on if there are ppl there to check ur horse or if u go every day to the barn- if so i would def blanket--- its easy for me coz my horses are at home i see them 2-3 times a day or more--- so while ur horse has a winter coat i would just put on the rainsheet... then next winter if u get on top of it earlier he could have a medium or heavy on and hi coat will stay shorter - thus making it easier for u to groom/ ride etc
Our vet had a great cheat sheet for blanketing. Wish I still had it. Maybe yours does. To make it simple: A rain sheet if the temps are over 30 degrees, a lightweight blanket 20-30 degrees and the heavy weight blanket under 20 degrees. However, every horse is an individual and you can start with that but check your horse at the warmest part of the day. If your horse feels too warm or any sweat then you have blanketed too heavy. If in doubt go for the lighter weight blanket. Since I let my horses grow some winter coat they still have only rain sheets on. They are happy and the temps are 20- 30 here right now. I make sure they have plenty of grass hay to munch on at night when it gets the coldest though. You will know if your horse is too cold because he will shiver or look all hunched up and miserable, then blanket heavier at that temperature. My husband is not a big fan of blanketing the horses because it is not "natural" and they are range animals meant to be out in the weather. But, lets face it, they are no longer wild, being the over bred Quarter Horses they are, and they do not live in a natural environment. He is a fan of how clean they stay and easy to cool out. I check the weather forecast every day to give me an idea if I might need to switch out their blankets. You need to remember that you will have to launder the blankets with special water proofing detergent and then re-spray them with a can of Camp Dry (from Walmart) to keep up the water proof quality. Nothing worse than a blanket that leaks and holds the wet against a horses body! So, blanketing makes your life more pleasant if you ride often in the winter but it is an extra expense and you must manage it correctly. Not hard at all once you get accustomed to the habit of it though. Also, once you start blanketing you must stick with it through the winter.
Correct, the hair fluffs and insulates. But my chunky Quarter Horses seem to hold their heat even with just a rain sheet and flattened hair until the temps really drop. Put anything thicker on and they sweat. The rain sheet does cut the wind and keeps the hair coat from getting saturated with steady rain. The thin skinned Thoroughbred at our barn is another story, he needs insulation in his blanket already. So you have to watch your individual horse and have different weights of blankets if you are going that route is what I am saying.
Yes, that's very true Juniper. I guess what I was trying to get at is that putting a rainsheet (with no insulation) on a horse in very cold temperatures can make a horse colder rather than helping. Experimenting is the best way to figure out what works best.
Hi everyone thank you for your help but I have decided not to blanket due to time issues... So I decided to try a small hand vac.
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