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 Expert
Posts: 1651
   
Location: The Land of OZ and TOTO! | When you run horses during the winter in the extreme cold like 10*-35* do you take any other extra precautions with your horses? Do you give them anything like airpower, oxygen or any other supplement? We are headed to Tulsa this weekend and we normally don't have to run in 14* weather but its really looking as if my daughter is going to, any suggestions. Wasn't sure if giving him something to open him up more would make it worse or better on him?
Edited by canchasenmom 2013-12-03 11:13 AM
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 Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9991
 
Location: Kansas | No, I've never had any issues with running a horse in below freezing weather. |
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 Best of the Badlands
Location: You never know where I will show up...... | Cold usually doesn't bother horses as much as it bothers people.
I've run at lots of rodeos in the winter when I have to warm up outside and it's subzero. Never given anything and never had a problem. |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 304
Location: Up and over to the right | A long warmup and you should be fine. People don't stop going for runs because it gets cold out, they just take a precaution to warm up for a longer period of time. I walk my guy 15-20 mins in the winter before running. |
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Expert
Posts: 1651
Location: The Land of OZ and TOTO! | Thank you everyone, usually our winters here in KS/MO/OK line are mid 30's so we normally don't have to run in the teens. Just hope it doesn't get to bad! |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 999
Location: Sunny So Cal | I would just make sure you give the horse a nice warm-up. I would do a little longer than usually. Hope the competition goes well! |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 473
| A nice slow warm up. Start with walking, then increase to trot, long trot, then canter. The cold air IS hard on lungs, but there isn't anything you can really do to prevent it or help it. Just slowly get the lungs used to it. |
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Veteran
Posts: 185
| I had to open this...I'm from Canada :P (-30c (-22 f) is not uncommon or even colder). I had to comment because cooling down is just as important in the cold. Especially if your horse is not clipped. If they are a sweater or just very hot after a run a sheet/cooler is probably a good idea to have on hand to throw over them. Old people blankets work great :) You don't want them to cool down so fast in the cold they get a chill. Those warm muscles may become sore if they become very cold to fast. A sweaty horse will get very cold quickly. Just like your warm up, cooling down should be gradual. If my horse is sweaty in the winter after a ride I untack and put a blanket on him and walk him out. Helps him keep warm and dry out faster. I know it sounds counter productive but its all about graduality.
P.S I don't live in an igloo 
It gets up to +30 (or more in the summer (86 f))  We get everything |
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Member
Posts: 26
| If I hit the outdoors immediately after a run I'll cover my horses nose with a towel. Helps to keep lungs from the initial blast of cold air. |
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 Ms. Elvis
Posts: 9606
Location: Running barrels or watching nascar | Except for the pro rodeo here, I shut everything down when it's this cold. I don't worry too much about my horses even though it's hard on their lungs and they are out in it more than I am. It's me who doenst handle it well. I've done it before but not much anymore. I can bundle up all I want n go to the race, if the arena is heated, but the problem is, I'm sick the next day. I hate to wimp out but I really don't handle cold temps well. |
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  Ms. Marine
Posts: 4627
Location: Texas | I don't give my horses anything except for a really good warm up and a good cool down. |
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 Am I really the Weirdo?
Posts: 11181
Location: Kansas | I agree with those who have said extra time to warm up, extra time to cool down and use a cooler if you can. Even a couple fleece blankets would be better than nothing. I really don't like the cold air hitting my horses' backs when they're still warm. At Carthage last weekend, I literally had Matt pull a cooler over Joker's back as I pulled the saddle off to minimize the cold air hitting him while he was hot. We threw his blanket on and made a beeline for the stall barn to finish cooling out and untacking. |
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 More bootie than waist!
Posts: 18425
Location: Riding Crackhead. | canchasenmom - 2013-12-03 11:04 AM
When you run horses during the winter in the extreme cold like 10*-35* do you take any other extra precautions with your horses? Do you give them anything like airpower, oxygen or any other supplement? We are headed to Tulsa this weekend and we normally don't have to run in 14* weather but its really looking as if my daughter is going to, any suggestions. Wasn't sure if giving him something to open him up more would make it worse or better on him?
10 to 35 isn't extreme cold. We've had -20 and colder and my horses are ripping around outside. |
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Miss Southern Sunshine
Posts: 7427
Location: South Central Florida | Cold is a relative term for me...we live in Florida, but our horse that bled, ran better and seemed to breath better in the cold weather (low teens to 60's) than in the heat. The heat is much harder for her than the cold air. |
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 Veteran
Posts: 151
| A little OT, but I just heard about possible ice storms in the Tulsa area this weekend. Be careful if you're driving in! |
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Cold air and running your horses in it? Do you give anything