When you're able to bath him put a cotton rug on him when he's turned out. If he rolls, he's not going to get anywhere near as dirty as he would naked.
Wash the rug every few weeks as well to get all the dirt and hair out.

 

okay. Are there any lightweight ones for the summer I can buy?

 

There's heaps of different rugs you can get.
During winter on my arab I use a cotton one and in summer I use a fly rug. There's also Jute rugs and that will act as a grooming tool as well. It makes them super shiny and removes loose hairs etc. I think that might benifit you a lot with your allergies and asthma not having to spent so much time grooming.
It's an Australia website, but that's what I'm talking about anyway
Horse Rugs, Jute: Buy online at Horse Supplies Direct

 

OOOH! Thanks!!!!!

 

So they can be turned out in the Jute rugs?

 

Yeah most that will happen is they'll get ripped but they're easy to fix and not very expensive if you need to replace them.

 

Before I buy one I will see if anyone else has any ideas

 

I had the same problem with my gelding. I threw a lightweight ripstop sheet on him after a bath or an intense grooming session and he never got as dirty!

I've used Jute rugs and they are BRILLIANT! I would recommend you buy one, they really help!

 

Yep all you can do is chuck a rug on him. He'll still get a bit of dirt on his belly and legs but definitely won't be as bad as he is now. My boy is rugged head to to, and in the 2 months I've had him I haven't had to wash him once... and he's grey!!!

 

You could also try a horse vac, I bet your guy would appreciate getting to keep on rolling naked

 

LOL Naked pony XD

 

Dumb quesiton time! I am afraid to turn my horses out into the pasture in a blanket. Can't they get tangled in them when they roll?

Rhonda

 

Oh stop it! The only stupid question is the one not asked and especially so when it comes to the welfare of your horse. I don't know the answer so I will ditto your question LOL. I have never experienced this with my horses

 

My mare is older so anytime it gets windy or rainy I throw a waterproof rain sheet on her. She LOVES to roll and I've seen her roll while wearing the sheet. They should be fine out in the pasture with a blanket or sheet on. You just have to be careful that the leg straps are tight enough that they do not hang low but still loose enough to give the horse room to move. Also, the belly straps should be just touching the horse's belly (but not pulled tight!). This ensures they won't tangle their legs in any straps. Should the sheet snag on a tree branch, fence post, etc., most will just rip away.

 

Yeah, they are definitely just fine rolling with the blanket as long as it is properly adjusted. When I keep a horse in pasture I try to leave them naked, lol, when possible, and always allow them some time to roll bare but they always end up rolling in their blankets and sheets, too. They do just fine.
I keep my belly straps somewhere around a full side hand (like with the top of my thumb on his belly and pinky horizontal to the ground and just resting against the strap) and hind straps around the center of the top back of his legs (the part between the bottom of his butt cheek and his hock)
I hope that makes sense, haha

 

Do horse vacs work really good?

 

Unless you don't adjust the straps properly (too loose and the horse can easily put it's leg through a strap and get tangled, too tight and the poor thing will have a big horse wedgie :P) a rug won't become tangled when the horse rolls. Obviously if you have an ill fitting rug then your increase your chance of it getting tangled though.

 

Does anyone else get BEYOND annoyed with ill fitting blankets? It's like my personal pet peeves when it comes to horses - going to these fancy boarding barns, and seeing these animals wearing torn and shredded blankets with gaping holes and dangling straps. Like, what's the POINT of it if half the body is exposed anyway? It just drives me nuts!

My mare is blanketed all winter and I have never had an issue. She somehow managed to get a leg strap undone once without breaking it - not sure how she did that. Her blanket fits, is in good repair, and I ensure all my straps are fitted snug - you will constantly see loose leg straps and belly straps and it's just asking for disaster, or at the very least, a destroyed blanket.

Pics of Zierra in her properly adjusted blanket. She's ripped it twice now, and I promptly stitch the rips up with a heavy fishing line. It doesn't look fantastic, but it prevents the rip from extending and curls the edges under so nothing can leak in. Proper blanket maintanance is paramount to equine safety and comfort IMO!

She lives all winter with this, anywhere from 4-6 months and she's constantly outdoors with trees! I've not had problems yet and I've managed to keep the blanket in proper working order even 5 years after purchasing it!

 

Winter rugs are generally a lot hardier than cotton's though. I expect a lifespan of about 3 years from my cottons unless I want to go all out and purchase a super expensive one. But my cotton's are used all year round, as sheets in summer and as under rugs in winter so they certainly get used!

 

Oh definately. But would you continue to use them if they were torn to shreds? Same principal regardless of seasonal capabilities.

 

I get very frustrated too.
my horse is a TB off the track and he constantly sweats causing heaps of dust, plus he is large and loves to roll.
I spend a long time grooming him before a ride just to ensure he is looking and feeling clean..
but all I can do to make it any easier is chuck a summer cotton on him and it does make a huge difference.
so I'd chuck a light weight rug on to reduce dust...

 

My other question: how clean does a horse have to be before you can saddle and ride him. I never pick hooves when I ride on the road because the hoof patties fall right out

 

As far as the horse vacs, I have not personally used them (no asthma and don't show) but I hear they're excellent and sworn by for use in show horses.
I'd definitely read more about them in your situation.

Then as far as how clean a horse has to be, well, it depends. Some people will pull a horse out and saddle him right up, some spend hours. Personally I just make sure there's no bunched up hair or mud and brush over pretty quickly with a dandy brush if I don't feel like doing much.

 

that is a relief, I usually spend hours!:shock:

 

As said above, just make sure that there's no clumps of mud and hair under the tack, then you're fine. Having some dust isn't going to kill him, and a bit of mud over his backside/neck isn't going to make him sore Some people just feel the need to have a perfectly clean horse.... I must admit I am one of them, but rugging keeps him clean enough so I only give hi a quick once over with a brush before I hope on.

As for hooves, well I like to do them twice a day, but my paddock has a lot of clay in it and a lot of small stones so I like to have a look and make sure there's no rocks wedged under his shoe or next to the frog. Even if the bulk of the mud falls out on the road, if there is a stone wedged in there it's not going to fall out with the rest of the mud, so I'd definitely give them a quick once over before you ride.

 

^Thanks!

 

Another thing that you can do to get rid of some dust in a quick way is to get a towel wet and wipe your horse down. I do this with baby wipes all the time in the summer

 

Kinda like a sponge bath! Okay! Thanks!

 

I use a vacuum, and I LOVE, LOVE it. It cuts down on the dust, but if your asthma/allergies are that bad, I would use it in conjunction with a sheet or blanket.

 

what I do

I use EZ-ALL on my horses......if they want to roll or whatever....so be it they are horses....but when I want to ride them I just haul them up to the wash area and tie them up.... I can wash three or four of them spotlessly clean in about 5 minutes with this product. It is a sprayer you attch to a hose. First you soap them down let me stand for a few minutes then hose them off.....then I just use a water whip and a curry comb. I then put them in the trailer and off we go.....I do not brush mane or tail until dry, it even detangles for the most part. It is so easy. Other then that it does drive me nuts that when the horses suspect that I am coming to get them to go somewhere they roll and get a fine coat of dust on them before they come running over to me.......they have made the perfect spot right in the middle so they can hit it coming from any direction........so I just break out the ez all and spray them down and wash them off and I am done....if they had blankets on they would fight and pull each others blankets off one another and it would just be a mess....I never blanket them unless they are hot and sweaty and not cooled down good in the winter and I put them on a trailer...