Anybody else's horses still got summer coats?

Alfie&Milo

Alfie&Milo

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My six year old welsh section c is still summer-coated and rugged up to her ears because I don't want her to get cold! She's still shining beautifully and in good condition (she's also preggers). My two darties have gone a bit hairy but nothing like the teddy bears they were last year! :D
 
Nope all fluffy! Foals & shetland like yaks, preggers black pony wooly but has jammies on the mo as she isn't as warm as the others.

Gingerknobbermare is clipped, with rug & neck rug but this am all the fur on her clipped bit of face was stood up on end!!! Her non clipped fur is super thick, I rugged her early but she felt the yak vibes from the others I think!!!

Friends WBxirish gelding is still in summer coat tho! He just doesn't grow fur!
 
All grew winter coats (and clipped the ones in work) except my filly. She just didn't seem to want to grow a winter coat so I gave in and rugged her well to keep her warm and she's lovely and shiny :D. All the others have got fluffy ears and winter fur on their legs (and loads of cat hairs :rolleyes: ) but the fur on her ears and legs is still definitely summer coat too! I don't really understand it as all my others grew winter coats, but if the princess wants to keep clean soft and shiny Im not complaining :cool:.
 
If horses are anything like humans, when we are pregnant we are much warmer anyway - perhaps this has something to do with it too??
 
My 6yo sec C also has no coat, he's very much a fake little native pony! Wouldn't last 5 mins in the wild. He's rugged quite heavily as he hates the cold/wind/rain etc. If it's not 15 degrees and sunny he really does not see the need to leave his stable. I really did try and toughen him up .... Needless to say I didn't win!
 
Mine are like bears. Though I tend not to rug them too much - just lightweight if very wet. And we are in Scotland! I need them to lose some weight over winter so don't rug them if at all possible.
 
I have noticed that my two have not grown very thick coats this year. The Appy filly in particular is much less yak like than last winter.
Both mine live out un rugged. I think they have grown the 'rugs' they need.
I think (hope) this means the winter is going to be milder than last year.

Neither of mine have started shedding yet. The longer days are the trigger for coat change so any day now I'm going to start sporting the black/white/ginger hair shirt!
 
Oliver12 said:
My three are out unrugged and we've had temperatures of -5. So why are they shedding their coats? Very strange.
Click to expand...

Because the coat shedding process is triggered by the amount of daylight.

It's picked up by a receptor at the back of the horse's eye which in turn causes the coat to start shedding. All horses start shedding their coats the day after the winter solstice, although in most it's so subtle you wouldn't notice....and they all start to grow their winter coats just after the summer solstice.

There were some trials done a few years back which proves it, although weirdly the whole daylight/receptor thingy affects blind horses exactly the same as sighted horses. Strange huh?
 
My sec D youngster is like an impressively woolly mammoth - didn't have him last winter so don't know how he compares, but I did meet him in May and he still had tufts left so guess he was pretty hairy then too. His coat is just awesome, wish I had one similar :D
Sec A loan boy is effectively yakked-up too but I did have him last winter and think he seems less woolly than last year.
Sec D big boy seems the least hairy but he has quite a coarse feeling coat so presume it is still effective...he never looks in the slightest bit bothered by anything weatherwise, but has lived out unrugged all his life so....
all out 24/7..all unrugged apart from sec A during the recent gales and driving rain when I caught him looking soaked and shivering one tea time so he had a LW TO on for a little while til he was looking a bit more his usual self..
I actually do like it when they have their woolies on...but am also looking forward to sleek horses on summer days! ;)
 
My welsh A and Shettie x are naked bears and moulting.. My Clevie youngsters are bears and my other 2 are in Mediumweights and not particularly wooly compared to last year..
 
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