2 things ... A Wussy Horse and How Much Hay ??

tonitot

tonitot

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Righto ... wussy horse - I went to take my TB's rug off this morning, she lives out and has recently been cold in her lightweight rug so I'v switched to her medium weight, its a nice thick rug with a neck, but she was frozen under it! She didn't feel too warm under the rug and the base of her ears were cold. I left it on for a while longer and she warmed up so I changed her into her sheet for the day. I don't want her to be cold again so tonight she has her heavy weight with a neck on, but its only September!! Surely she can't be so cold she needs it on already but she was freezing this morning. Does anyone else have such a wuss of a horse or is it just me??

Hay ... how much hay would you feed to a 3yo 15.2hh TB mare, who isn't going to be in work and will be in at night, out during the day, through the winter? I'm thinking of weighing hay to help save a bit of money but I'm not sure how much I'd need to feed her.

thankies :D
 
Wow, surely not a heavy weight already?! :eek: How much grass/hay does she have in the field?

Darce gets Adlib hay in winter provided he doesnt drag it everywhere. Then he can just eat what he needs :)
 
I didn't want to put it on her, but I can't stand the thought of her being cold! But we are at the very top of a hill, so get the worst of all weather up here. I'll check her later and make sure she's not too hot in it, but if she's nice and cosy underneath it then I don't know what to do, I never thought ANY horse would need a h/w in September!

Atm she gets a barrow of hay to share with Henry in the field, but she gets most of it and they eat every little bit. Grass isn't very good at all, which is why they get the hay now.

Could it actually just be me worrying too much and thinking she's cold when she isn't?? I was always told if the base of the ears are cold, then they are too.
 
Wow, she really is a wuss. I would be a bit concerned that a 3yr old requires so much pampering.
My 3yr old TB has no rug just now and I am up North.

Was she pampered as a baby/2 yr old? That could be the reasoning behind this.

My biggest worry would be, if your using a HW rug just now, what are you going to use when it gets really cold?
 
I'd echo concerns if she needs a heavy weight already . . . . .

My 16hh TB gets 16lbs of hay overnight minimum and he's not working. I weigh his hay as he loses weight so easily I want to make sure he's getting enough.
 
Perhaps horses are like people, some feel the cold more than others.
I always feel the ears then under the rug, our 29yr old tb is in a mw
and chooses to stand inside at night now, for all I haven't put beds down yet,
the other three younger ones are also in by choice, I am also freezing and
wearing a coat while poo picking etc, I am right now toasting in front of a roaring fire.
 
My 3 year old gets pretty much ad lib hay at night....He is (hopefully) still growing, and he doesn't always eat it all so he isn't a massive pig that would eat till he pops! (Unlike my older mare!)
 
Horses actually prefer to be slightly on the cold side. It always worries me when I read magazines articles/adverts describing horses as being 'toasty' in their rugs. For horses this should read 'uncomfortable'. What does she feel like if you slide your hand behind her elbow?
You need to find out her weight accurately and then give her hay accordingly, bearing in mind that she is still growing and that weight tapes are not accurate. Can you weigh her on a weigh-bridge? Horse need about 2% of their body weight in forage daily, you might want to top this up with some hard feed if she is not a good doer, to 2.5% of her bodyweight.
 
Okay thanks everyone.
As a 2yo she was in and rugged like the rest of the racehorses, so I'd say she was pampered. She has a stable to come into when it gets really cold so not a problem there. Is there anyway that I could "rough her off" I think they call it. Should I start to rug her with lighter rugs and hope she'll grow a thick enough coat to keep herself warm? I don't mind her being hairy as she'll be out of work so wont be clipped.

Perlsasinger - Thanks for all the info. We haven't got a weighbridge anywhere around us so a tape is as good as we can get.
 
I'd feed her ad lib hay if she feels the cold that badly. She definitely bears out the theory that the younger they are rugged etc the more they become dependent on them as they got older.

We always start with lighter weight rugs and increase them as the weather worsens. Although other than the artic conditions last winter none of ours wears more than a MW.

If she doesn't wear a neck cover or hood that could help as the weather worsens.

The most important thing of all though is do as you have been and treat your horse as an individual. Just because some, like me, aren't rugging yet and others are but varying weights doesn't mean that your girl doesn't need what you are giving her. Horses for courses and all that.
 
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