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What to do over the winter??

5K views 43 replies 13 participants last post by  Janasse 
#1 ·
Okay so my gelding is 17, will be 18 in March. He's always been a harder keeper, especially over the winters. He seems to already be starting to lose weight, even though it's only gotten down to the 40's at night. He does get more ribby when ridden a lot, he's been ridden about 5x a week, but not hard at all. He gets a little over one scoop of senior feed twice a day along with beet pulp. Right now he has free choice hay and probably (hopefully) will continue to have that through the winter. Should I start blanketing him to keep him from burning calories to keep warm overnight? Or is there something else I could do?
 
#29 ·
NDAppy, a horse begins his new winter coat before summer, based on daylight hourse. It has nothing to do with the weather. With our longer nights, being farther from the equator, Canadian horses, with some exceptions, grow coats like grizzly bears. And they are warm. I've looked out at -38 to see a bay horse appear snow white from frost on top of his coat. That is because of all the heat he is generating. It takes a lot of hay to create this balance so we feed more hay. The temps in N Geogia don't begin to drop this cold. Just because people feel chilly doesn't mean a fur bearing animal does. He likely is most energetic at these temps.
 
#30 · (Edited)
we choose the Cool Calories vs. oil because our boy is weird about his food, and he wouldn't touch anything slimey or wet....plus, I just didn't wanna deal with messing with the oil or spending time.

The cool calories works for us because it smells terrific and BOTH horses think it tastes fantastic and they gobble it right up....even our fat draft. In case you are wondering why a fat draft is getting cool calories, she isn't. But one day my son wasn't paying attention and accidentally put the scoop of cool calories into her feed bowl.....needless to say, she was quite pleased. She gobbled it up so fast we didn't have time to remove the feed dish...:shock:

And she is the worlds most picky eater.

So, I like the Cool Calories for the convenience, just scoop and done, and for the fact that our boy licks the powder off his feed bucket...so it's not wasted, nor is it a trial to try to get him to eat it. Oh, and because it really really worked for him......he is now a FAT PIG, thanks to Cool Calories and his probiotic supplement.
 
#31 ·
SAddlebag, I happen to live in North Dakota and get extreme cold weather right along with the Canadians. I know what a horse with a heavy winter coat looks like. I am not arguing that point. You are completely missing the fact that the horse's body is what is acclimated to the temperatures of their particular region. Just like with people. Hence why you thought the temps were wonderful when you visited down south in the winter, your horse would have found them to be too warm. What is cold to them is warm to you (the Georgia temps that is).

I would not expect any horse/human/whatever to be able to survive in extreme cold temps such as we have when they are used to the coldest it gets is into the 20s. So using the argument that "well my horses live in -35/40 so yours will be fine" is absolutely asinine. You don't know this horse personally. You don't know if there is something medically wrong with it. You don't know if the winter coat is thin or thick. You basically don't know anything other than what it's owner told you and when it comes down to it, sometimes that isn't even correct.

Blanketing can be done correctly without any damage to the winter coat or harm to the horse.
 
#32 ·
SAddlebag, I happen to live in North Dakota and get extreme cold weather right along with the Canadians. I know what a horse with a heavy winter coat looks like. I am not arguing that point. You are completely missing the fact that the horse's body is what is acclimated to the temperatures of their particular region. Just like with people. Hence why you thought the temps were wonderful when you visited down south in the winter, your horse would have found them to be too warm. What is cold to them is warm to you (the Georgia temps that is).

I would not expect any horse/human/whatever to be able to survive in extreme cold temps such as we have when they are used to the coldest it gets is into the 20s. So using the argument that "well my horses live in -35/40 so yours will be fine" is absolutely asinine. You don't know this horse personally. You don't know if there is something medically wrong with it. You don't know if the winter coat is thin or thick. You basically don't know anything other than what it's owner told you and when it comes down to it, sometimes that isn't even correct.

Blanketing can be done correctly without any damage to the winter coat or harm to the horse.

I agree with this 100%!!! Well said!!

It really irks me when people assume that their horse, who lives in say....Alaska or the south pole....can survive sub zero temps with no blanket, run in or any type of shelter so therefore Someone else's thin skinned TB with very little hair coat growth, having lived in the colorado his whole life can do the same. In their minds it's a one size fits all.

Example:. I don't blanket my 2,000 lb draft who lives in the arctic circle so you shouldn't blanket your 26 yr. old TB who lives in Minnesota.....HUH????


Well, here's a shocker: I live in southern PA where we rarely go below ZERO...and I blanket both my thin skinned OTTB and my big fat hairy draft when the temps go below freezing.

So shoot me!:rofl::rofl:
 
#33 ·
I would not expect any horse/human/whatever to be able to survive in extreme cold temps such as we have when they are used to the coldest it gets is into the 20s. So using the argument that "well my horses live in -35/40 so yours will be fine" is absolutely asinine. You don't know this horse personally.
If this comment is for me, Nobody said the OP horse would be fine doing the same has I do with my horse..., I was just letting her know what I do with my boy, the OP will probally take bits and pieces of everyones post and make an informed decision, ...
 
#34 · (Edited)
The fallacy of the " no blanket ever" mindset can be clearly shown by what happened last winter at our boarding facility.

A college girl from wisconsin had her horse trailered to the barn we were boarding at for the winter. It was a 14 yr. old paint mare, having lived in Wisconsin. The girl did not blanket her. The BO requested that she buy one in case it was needed. She did not . She stated that her horse lived in Wisconsin with just a run in all winter and never was blanketed. So she'd be fine here in southern PA, however...there was no run in.

So, the horse went unblanketed through rain, sleet, etc. She grew a lovely winter coat, the envy of all the boarders.

But one day, during a heavy snow and gusting winds, the BO's daughter went to throw the horses hay and found this mare.....shivering violently and seemingly near collapse.

The horse was brought in immediately. And the law was laid down by the BO. To continue boarding at this barn, the horse would be blanketed during bad weather, or she was free to find another barn.

The girl either couldn't afford a blanket or didn't think the BO was serious...but she didn't buy her horse one.

So the BO used one of her own blankets and blanketed the horse. Her barn, her rules.

So where this mindset comes from, I dunno.....but a horse from Wisconsin, transplanted to southern PA and grew a lovely thick winter coat almost died from this "no blanket is ever necessary" mindset. I can only guess that the college girl didn't think that since her horse had no run in here that it mattered....since the horse lived in wisconsin it could survive a PA winter, even without blanketing or a shelter
 
#39 ·
I actually decided to go ahead and order Cool Calories and start trying that out. :) so once he is started on that I will try to take pictures to keep track of progress. Right now it's not getting any colder than the 40s so I'm not too worried about blanketing yet, I will probably start doing so if it gets below about 35 or it's really windy overnight. I'm also hoping that with him starting to get more days off from lessons it may help a little! If only he wasn't a hard keeper!
 
#40 ·
Another Canadian weighing in here. Wintering depends upon the individual horse, the needs of the owner and the conditions. I live in an area where the climate is extreme. We can have a balmy day above freezing in February and then see - 40 with blizzard conditions for the next month. My number 1 piece of advice is check your horse daily. Keep a close eye on weight, coat, general health and any sign of chills.

With an older or underweight horse, I suggest a quick vet visit before winter. Rule out our deal with any existing problems including parasites, teeth issues or other health issues. Your vet will give the best recommendation on what kinds of extras and supplements your horse needs. Personally, I give mine quality hay and complete feed every day. For a horse that is harder to keep weight on, I add a grain mix that contains flax. (So far, my vet does not think my guys need anything else, but that's just my horses). Sometimes, I do add a small bit of corn oil (but will re-read the article that was posted) if I am worried about weight. When it is cold, everybody gets the extra calories in the grain mix and extra hay. I only feed free choice hay when it is very cold, as I found it isn't necessary most of the time and only encourages obesity.

I have had my horses blanketed and un-blanketed, stabled and pastured. I blanket if I am riding indoors on a regular basis. The horses don't grow as heavy of a coat, so they don't sweat as much when worked, and it takes much less time to blowdry before going back out again. When they are stabled, they must be blanketed during the day because the change in temperature from inside to out is too extreme. They can sweat in their stalls and then chill outdoors.

Now, my horses are at home and we have no indoor facilities and only ride outside, so I don't blanket them regularly. I am careful not to work them in the winter to the point of obvious sweating. I do watch for shivering and to make sure they stay dry. If we have a bout of rain (usually freezing rain), I put on a light rain sheet and let their winter coats do the rest. If they are shivering, I put on a winter coat, or a fleece cooler under the rain sheet to warm them up. It is very important they are dry first. Standing out in the freezing, cold temperatures blowdrying a horse isn't fun, but sometimes necessary. Once the weather dries and they are warm, it all comes off gradually, one layer at a time to give them time to acclimate and ensure they keep their winter coats. When blanketed, I check their body temperature under the blanket at least twice a day. As long as they are dry, healthy, grow a good winter coat, and have quality feed, they do fine in winter and don't have much of a problem keeping weight on. Good water is also very important in the winter. Horses should never rely on eating snow and should always have a good clean water supply.

I realize much of this is irrelevant to the O.P. who lives in a much more moderate climate, but hope it is mostly common sense and of some use. We all keep unique horses under different conditions and so there is no 'one right way', only some basic principles to follow.
 
#42 ·
My number 1 piece of advice is check your horse dailyQUOTE]
totally agree, I have seen myself get in my truck, drive to the barn during the night and checking my boy...Only to have him look up at me from the round bale with a look of what the heck are you doing here..But, Its up to us has humans to make sure our horses are not cold ...
 
#43 ·
I cannot make it out to the barn every day due to class and work, but I am there 3-4 times a week, at least. Monday-Friday the lesson girls bring all horses in, then decide which horses will be ridden that day by whom. They are all looked over before riding or being let out. The BO feeds every morning and checks the horses. By now she knows my horse well enough to know if he was acting off or anything.

Should I be doing anything about the drastic changes in weather we've had? Some nights are in the 40s and some days are up into the 80s, and he's got a decently thick coat right now. I've been out there a few times when it's been hot and I've never brought him in sweating, but he's definitely sweaty even after a ride. When it's warm enough I just hose him down after the ride.. While hosing he will tell me if it happens to be too cool for him and I will stop and rub him down to help dry him off.
 
#44 ·
I put all my hard keepers on smartdigest. It really makes a difference in them.
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