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This sounds horrible but..

13K views 76 replies 52 participants last post by  Dartanion 
#1 · (Edited)
I blanket my horse everynight if it gets below 75 degrees we put a slinkie on her head and neck, a sheet, and a full body heavy blanket, AND she has a light on her at night,....arggg these crazy ways just so that our horses dont grow a coat!And i live in Florida!Do you guys every do anything like this Just so that your horse doesnt grow a coat?
We do not put the heavy blanket on her if its 75-65 just a sheet and slinke below 60 the heavy blanket goes on
 
#4 ·
this is done up here in wisconsin too, haha. but to us 65 - 75 degrees is nice weather
haha
in the winter here (BRRRRRR...) the horses sometimes wear multiple heavyweight blankets with hoods and are under lights

and some of them still grow coats :shock:
thanks mother nature lol
 
#5 ·
My ponies are in Sydney, Australia and we rug them all year round. They have different weight blankets but we hardly have two nights in a row below 0C in winter and in the summer we use light weight blankets during the day for flies, sweat and fading. They do spend a fair bit of time without rugs too, probably 50/50 but we don't have stables, just bush.

So I think it is normal :D
 
#6 ·
O.O are you serious? You put on all of that in Fla? We used to blanket if it dropped below 40deg but 75? I'm surprised they havn't over heated. Fla isn't THAT windy. I know that the horses at Dixie were soaked in sweat by 8am when it was around 60deg and blanketed. The blankets were built for snow but still. o_O
Lol wouldn't it be easier to just shave them and blanket as needed? =P
 
#11 ·
Yep! Everybody is entitled to their own opinion Inst that why people have a membership here?And i wanst trying to prove a point simply making a statement. Some people manage and take care of their horses differently.
 
#12 ·
when i lived in TN we used to have warm blankets on in the barn if it got to around 65-70. It is more the climit that your horses are accustomed too that is the point on wether or not they will be cold - they live in FL, someone who trudges through the snow may not understand how you may think that 65 is cold but i would have the warm blankets on him for sure.

i would likely not leave the lights on ALL night though because it will confuse their body clock and defeat the purpose of having them on in the first place. Set them on an 18hour timer :wink: and try putting heat lamps in the corner of the box for when it gets below about 55.

And you could always try a good old fashioned method that has proven over time to be the ONLY reliable way of keeping a nice coat - BRUSH HIM EVERY DAY :lol:
 
#17 ·
when i lived in TN we used to have warm blankets on in the barn if it got to around 65-70. It is more the climit that your horses are accustomed too that is the point on wether or not they will be cold - they live in FL, someone who trudges through the snow may not understand how you may think that 65 is cold but i would have the warm blankets on him for sure.

i would likely not leave the lights on ALL night though because it will confuse their body clock and defeat the purpose of having them on in the first place. Set them on an 18hour timer :wink: and try putting heat lamps in the corner of the box for when it gets below about 55.

And you could always try a good old fashioned method that has proven over time to be the ONLY reliable way of keeping a nice coat - BRUSH HIM EVERY DAY :lol:
yeah i definatly brush them everyday, i mean i just really care for my horse becasue it's like my prized possetion :)
Btw i Love your horse ;)
 
#13 ·
If you really think about it, 75 degrees to that horse is like 30 or 40 in the northern states because of the fact that all animals blood is thinner and does not help to hold heat as well as say a horse that lives in michigan. The same goes for people who live there all the time. I know when I went on vacation last year it was 45 degrees one night and some of the people were dressed up like eskimos and here I am in jeans and a t shirt, I thought it was great weather, considering it was 10 degrees and snowing in Ohio.

Her horse is use to the hot weather and its body is better at keeping cool in hot climates, or manmade hot climates such as heavy blankets and lights.

LOL, I love lane, we posted almost at the same time and said very similiar things.
 
#14 ·
Over here in New Zealand, my horses tend to be rugged mostly all year round. They live out 24/7 and only have a few trees for shade and a shelter break that fulls up with mud over winter (which I normally don't use). Therefore depending on the horse, they can have up to three rugs on over winter. Normally all are double rugged over the hardest part of the winter... but my gelding who was a big pansy before I got him feels the cold and loses weight easily too over the colder months so when it snowed he had his "in between seasons" rug on top.
Some people may think I'm crazy but my guys all seem very happy in their jarmies when its cold! I do make a point however to let air at their backs... horses do need to be horses... but only on the warmer days in winter.
May seem nuts to some people, but I'm actually pretty good compared to some :P
x
 
#16 ·
I'm definatly guilty of over rugging. In winter my horse in rugged 24/7, I only ever take it of to ride, I have resently started rugging 24/7 in summer to so my horse can have his tail bag on as I am trying to grow his tail.
 
#19 ·
I'm the same as Pinto Pony, here if you want to show then the horse is rugged all year round! Otherwise they bleach/get dirty etc in summer and shaggy in winter, plus it protects them from most cuts and scrapes. My horses have cotton rugs on atm and its getting up to 34 degrees. (celcius)
 
#20 ·
I don't really show in the winter so I don't really care if they grow a coat, but I do start putting at least a sheet on when it starts dropping below 60-50 at night.

If they grow a pretty heavy coat and I'm riding a lot I just go ahead and clip them and then rug 'em accordingly.
 
#21 ·
Lol much be just the beachy wind then. Although it has been windy the past few days, central Fla isn't uaully all that windy. I also have never shown but when I do, I'm probably just going to skip out on showing during the winter. Lol it sounds like waaayyy too much trouble. =P

btw..29* in Fla just shouldn't be possible.
 
#34 ·
Lol much be just the beachy wind then. Although it has been windy the past few days, central Fla isn't uaully all that windy. I also have never shown but when I do, I'm probably just going to skip out on showing during the winter. Lol it sounds like waaayyy too much trouble. =P

btw..29* in Fla just shouldn't be possible.
Acctually these past days it's been about 32 at night , when i wake up im the morning my sheep pen has a inch of ice on the top, its possible
 
#22 ·
I am in south MS, my friend shows AQHA and doesn't keep her horses blanketed that heavy. Seems like overkill to me, but every horse is different. She also sets her lights on a timer, doesn't leave them on all night, just extends the light to an 18hour day as was posted earlier. As you said- to each their own, and all horses are different as well. My friend turns hers out naked on warm days like that. No winter coats.
 
#23 ·
Wow! And I thought horses should just be horses....didn't know we had to play dress up to make them comfortable, happy, and beautiful....My horse is GORGEOUS and has won every show she has been in ....all WITHOUT rugging/blanketing....hhhmmm. To each his own, I suppose!
 
#24 ·
wow... lol... i hate having 1 cover on my horses, i cant imagine putting any more on at one time. My 2 are oldies( 19+ ) that live out 24/7 so deffiently need one in winter to help them out. I dont show so dont really care about beautyful shiney short coats all the time, my 2 get hairy and dirty as much as they want. Plus.....im one who likes my horses to live as natural as possible.

But like others said....each to there own, as long as the horse is happy.
 
#26 ·
Hi, I'm the one that lovemyfinny was referring to. Unfortunately, the show world rather have slick and sleek coats during the winter. I agree, blanketing is a pain in the butt. My outside horses do not get blankets at all. My two show horses are under lights that go on at 5 am and off at 10 pm. If it's 75 and breezy, they may not have anything more than a light sheet. When it's 20, they are double blanketed and have hoods. When I can get away with no blanket at all, I cherish those days. I hate blankets!
 
#28 ·
Ugh you have the boots I want from Saddlery Warehouse!
But yeah I agree... although I don't rug for awesome coats, I do think they look lovely. I rug over summer to stop bleaching though as I own a dark chestnut who would majorly bleach and turn into a pumpkin and I like her dark ;)
Plus her rug protects her from UV rays and flies.
x
 
#30 · (Edited)
My boy has a heavy blanket, slinky, and a neck warmer on all the time unless it gets hot out. In the summer he has a sheet on and a slinky on at night.
We show almost all year round so thats why I put all of the layers on because I dont want him to get a winter coat. Welcome to the show horse life!=)
My boy loves his clothes. When its really cold he tries to put his clothes on himself lol=)
 
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