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 Expert
Posts: 1261
  
| I have always blanketed all my horses but this year I am debating on one. She is a hard keeper that always looks great in summer and then slowly goes to looking not so amazing in winter no matter what feed program I try. Anyway I will have her out on pasture all day and probably brought in at night and I have always tried to keep her warm with blankets to help keep weight on but considering maybe I am doing her no favors by not just letting her coat do the work. Although she was unblanked when I got her and looked no better. I live in a moderately cold very very wet winter climate. She will be getting light to perhaps moderate work. |
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 Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
  
Location: Phoenix | How cold does it get?
I'd say blanket, because it's wet, AND you'll be riding her. |
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
Location: North Dakota | I don't blanket. It's better to just let nature do it's job. My horses all have shelters and/or get stalled at night so they get out of the wet/wind. |
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  Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | wet cold is miserable.. id blanket at 35 and below. stalled horses are colder then ones that can move around all night.. |
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 More bootie than waist!
Posts: 18425
Location: Riding Crackhead. | Where are you located? I agree with wet cold is hard on them especially the old ones. I blanket, I'm in South Dakota. Some people believe in it and some don't. |
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Expert
Posts: 1261
| I am in Oregon in the Willamette valley. It doesn't get super cold but there is plenty of rain and mud! There is shelter but they stand in the rain anyway. |
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The Advice Guru
Posts: 6419
| I live in Alberta where we have very cold winters.
I blanket the ones I ride as the saddle pad flattens the hair then the horse looses heat through the back.
The horses I don't ride Are turned out they have trees for shelter and 80 acres to move around.
If any of my horses are loosing weight then they come in and generally get blanketed.
If any are shivering for long periods of time I generally blanket
If they are getting sick they get blanketed.
Generally once they start getting blanketed for the winter I am pulling blankets when the weather is above freezing and throwing the blankets back on when the sun goes down.
Last year our weather was menopausal we had above freezing for two weeks in jan, then within 12 hours back to 40 below, we lost a mini donkey due to the weather changes now I have blankets for my mini donkeys too. |
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 Big Gun
Posts: 2216
Location: Texas | Many animals survive cold winter without blankets. God put hair on them for that reason and forage to keep them burning calories to keep them warm. Let em be horses |
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 Underestimated Underdog
Posts: 3971
Location: Minnesota | I blanket. My old mare gets a light weight blanket at night when it gets below 40 and when it starts to get below 40 during the day she gets her winter blanket. Last year we had a horrible winter up here and this year they are predicting worse. All of my horses will get blanekts this year. |
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Hungarian Midget Woman
Location: Midwest | I have both blanketed and not blanketed.
This year, I probably won't blanket... but the barn is kept above freezing, so the horses really don't have to deal with bad cold much. They will get turned during the day on days when it isn't raining. |
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More bootie than waist!
Posts: 18425
Location: Riding Crackhead. | 3rdtimesacharm - 2014-09-14 12:00 AM Many animals survive cold winter without blankets. God put hair on them for that reason and forage to keep them burning calories to keep them warm. Let em be horses
Spoken by a person from the southern states. |
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Expert
Posts: 1314
Location: North Central Iowa Land of white frozen grass | Isn't it amazing that horses survived for 1,000 of years without humans to put blankets on them. Somebody better not tell all the mustangs that they are going to die this winter because nobody is going to put blankets on them. Let nature put their natural hair coat on them. You only need to blanket them if there is a special need for it. |
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Hungarian Midget Woman
Location: Midwest | In my area, most do absolutely fine not being blanketed. (Indiana)
Some do need it. Any horse that is clipped will need one, as you have removed the natural hair coat.
Horses are pretty adept at warming themselves up, as long as they can remain dry and out of strong winds. There are always exceptions though.
I don't think there is any harm in blanketing, but mine always gets rubs and it's a general PITA, so I don't think I will bother this year. |
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 Northern Chocolate Queen
Posts: 16576
Location: ND | Where you live makes a big difference in if blankets are going to be helpful or not. I blanket some & not others. My senior citizens get blankets, young horses don't get blankets but are stalled when it's really cold, horses without much shelter get blankets. It gets to -30 here with 30+ mph winds sometimes for a week or more at a time. I'm going to do everything I can to keep them comfortable, in that type of weather sometimes hay & a good hair coat just isn't enough. |
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The Advice Guru
Posts: 6419
| BS Hauler - 2014-09-14 8:48 AM
Isn't it amazing that horses survived for 1,000 of years without humans to put blankets on them. Somebody better not tell all the mustangs that they are going to die this winter because nobody is going to put blankets on them. Let nature put their natural hair coat on them. You only need to blanket them if there is a special need for it.
Rule of thumb is weak, old, and sick die every year from the elements and prey.
The wild horses also are not locked up and can move around to warmer areas, to better sheltered areas, etc.
Movement creates warmth the mustangs moving to find food, pawing all creates warmth.
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 Queen Bee Cat Owner
Posts: 3629
Location: Way up North | Here's the deal, yes, they can survive without blankets. We can also survive without all the niceties in life too but that doesn't mean any of us want to do it.
I full time blanket the ones I want to ride right away once it finally get bareable out in spring. It keeps them from growing as much hair, still plenty but not as much as without a blanket.
The rest of them get blanketed if it is going to get really cold, which really cold up here is considered well below zero, if it is really windy which blows their body heat away, or if it is going to storm especially the heavy wet stuff.
Yes, they all have survived for thousands of years without it but we could all go back to wearing animal skins and having a good chunk of the population die from exposure too. When I come in from doing chorse and my muscles are tight and painful from bracing in the cold and wind I can only imagine how they feel living out there without reprieve. |
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 Winner winner chicken dinner
Posts: 2047
Location: California | Since you said she's kind of a hard keeper, I would continue blanketing her. Otherwise you'll just have to up your feed and your costs. |
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Expert
Posts: 1314
Location: North Central Iowa Land of white frozen grass | And as I said if there was a special need for them to be blanketed. But if you are just putting blankets on because we think its cold outside we are not doing these horse justis. Let mother nature put the hair coat on them that they are designed to have. |
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 Shelter Dog Lover
Posts: 10277
| CYA Ranch - 2014-09-14 8:25 AM 3rdtimesacharm - 2014-09-14 12:00 AM Many animals survive cold winter without blankets. God put hair on them for that reason and forage to keep them burning calories to keep them warm. Let em be horses Spoken by a person from the southern states.
asking horses to run and perform under those conditions with a thick winter coat is brutal.
Edited to add that my vet said the ideal temperature for a horse is 17 degrees and that no horses would be in the southern states if not for man kind bringing them here.
Edited by rodeomom3 2014-09-14 12:22 PM
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 I'm Cooler Offline
Posts: 6387
Location: Pacific Northwest | I live in western WA. I blanket because I don't like dealing with soaking wet, mud-caked horses for 9 months straight. |
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