Being told I'm cruel for not rugging up!

WelshD said:
These threads always end up as arguements! someone will say that their horse is unrugged, someone else will say theirs is partially clipped and unrugged, someone will say theirs is unrugged with no shelter and on a hill then someone will say that theirs lives in siberia with no rugs. Barefoot and living naturally 'as a horse should' will rear its head somewhere along the line

The one upmanship will continue for a few pages then someone will say their horse is rugged, someone will say theirs has TWO rugs, the next will say theirs is clipped and rugged in wool blankets from the 1920's

Then the first set of people will set out the reasons why it is better not to rug with differing levels of rationality

Then the second lot will defend their actions

this will result in a stand off between two members with a bit of mud slinging and dredging up old posts to score points

If your horse is happy and you are happy then you will be ok, what anyone else thinks is irrelevant :)
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This to a t!
:)
 
Patterdale said:
I would argue that if your horse is 'tucked, cold and muscle sore' in anything less than a heavyweight + under rug in early October then there is something seriously amiss in its management.

Honestly - do you REALLY think that this is right!?
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have you read the bit about the horse having EPSM-go away, read up, spend 4 years working out how to keep the horse comfortable, and then tell me its wrong. I dont go by what he SHOULD be wearing, i go by what the horse tells me. So no he might not be normal, but he's happy and that is more important.

As far as Fig goes, he's a stress head, a poor doer, and used to warm temps and being stabled, so he's not at all used to being out in cold, windy, wet, weather. Again, he is rugged according to HIS preferances and what keeps him happy and comfortable.
 
You are totally doing the right thing OP.

A thick coated horse like yours will have a fabulous way of keeping dry. The hairs form 'arrowheads' that are like guttering, the rain water runs down these arrowheads and drips onto the floor. If you notice, the side of the coat tends to stay pretty dry because of this.

Also, I can bet you that if you were to dig your fingers right down to the horse's skin, it will be bone dry.

As you are also providing hay and grass, this will keep the horse super warm from the inside out via fibre fermentation in the hind gut.
 
Perhaps we should start a thread called 'what are you wearing?' (strictly NON kinky...)

I for example am wearing a long sleeved T shirt where my colleague is in a jumper and overalls. Same environment, same heating (or lack thereof) etc..

I dont understand why people cant accept that other people are capable of managing their own horses
 
I absolutely do not think you are cruel. I have to say, Ben gets a pretty hefty coat, is not yet clipped and is in a medium weight standard rug, I know that he is over rugged but not to the point of getting hot, more that he doesn't need a medium weight yet. Thing is, he is a wuss, he loves to be snuggled and toasty and as medium weights go this is at the less heavy end of the scale. When he is clipped (he is just about to come back off his break) he will have a body warmer on too, although I'm trying to hold off until November just incase the predictions on the weather come true. In the autumn/winter, I always rug, even if its not necessarily needed as I like him to be dry, and I don't generally bother with a rain sheet because I know that the horse natural ability to keep itself warm is compromised by the act of putting a rug on, so I go straight for his mw rug. This is just me. Having owned both a full blown gypsy cob and a shire I would not be over rugging them.
 
Patterdale said:
I would argue that if your horse is 'tucked, cold and muscle sore' in anything less than a heavyweight + under rug in early October then there is something seriously amiss in its management.

Honestly - do you REALLY think that this is right!?
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Prince33Sp4rkle said:
have you read the bit about the horse having EPSM-go away, read up, spend 4 years working out how to keep the horse comfortable, and then tell me its wrong. I dont go by what he SHOULD be wearing, i go by what the horse tells me. So no he might not be normal, but he's happy and that is more important.
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Probably owe PS an apology Patterdale...
 
I have 3, a 4yo Trad Cob, a 13yo TB and a 25yo ArabxWelsh, The TB and the Arabxwelsh are in rainsheets, the old lady will be going into a medium weight this week if temperature drop a little further, none are currently ridden, so I would like them all to build a nice winter coat before rugging to the eyeballs,

In all, you know your horse better than anyone, My cob will be wearing a lightweight at most a mediumweight if temps get as low as last year, the old girl and the TB could end up in 10 rugs haha, all 3 live out 24/7/365 too
 
nikkimariet said:
Probably owe PS an apology Patterdale...
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Oh do you think, mother? :rolleyes3:
Well I don't.

I HAVE gone back and read a couple of posts, and decided that I am not going to join the queue of people banging their heads against the wall with you.
Fair enough, one of your horses is ill, and you think he needs 5 rugs. Fine, he's yours, crack on. But that's no reason for your others to all be in heavy weights and under rugs in this weather!

But whatever. I think that to be in a heavyweight with a thermatex under in this weather is far too much, and is the REASON that most of your horses seem to 'need' to have rugs piled on them.
I also think that rugging all year round, even in summer is bordering on barbaric. Like those people who put clothes on dogs.

But it's your horse and your money and your conscience so the good news is you can please yourself :)

And FTR, I don't appreciate being ordered to 'apologise' for my opinions to some kid on a horse forum.
 
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WelshD said:
These threads always end up as arguements! someone will say that their horse is unrugged, someone else will say theirs is partially clipped and unrugged, someone will say theirs is unrugged with no shelter and on a hill then someone will say that theirs lives in siberia with no rugs. Barefoot and living naturally 'as a horse should' will rear its head somewhere along the line

The one upmanship will continue for a few pages then someone will say their horse is rugged, someone will say theirs has TWO rugs, the next will say theirs is clipped and rugged in wool blankets from the 1920's

Then the first set of people will set out the reasons why it is better not to rug with differing levels of rationality

Then the second lot will defend their actions

this will result in a stand off between two members with a bit of mud slinging and dredging up old posts to score points

If your horse is happy and you are happy then you will be ok, what anyone else thinks is irrelevant :)
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BINGO
 
I have one naked, one fully clipped in a MW+neck (out in day, in at night in a LW stable + fleece) and one unclipped in a MW (day, fleece added at night, he lives out). Clearly I have some kind of split personality between cruel and... well, cruel the other way too :D

Either that or I just respect the individuality of my horses' needs and rug them accordingly.
 
Finn.
Good for you for listening to what your horse is telling you rather than going along with all the other sheep who rug their horses acording to what everyone else on the yard does.

Really not a fan of over rugging at all, and really hate it when someone asks "what rug are you putting on J tonight". What does that have to do with what rug you chose to put on your horse exactly??
Having said that, it does work both ways, and I had to give a very good friend both barrels on Sunday morning when I was first on the yard to find her TB and TBX huddled up soaking wet in no fill rain sheets with their knees knocking after a solid night of howling wind and rain.
 
Patterdale said:
Oh do you think, mother? :rolleyes3:
Well I don't.

I HAVE gone back and read a couple of posts, and decided that I am not going to join the queue of people banging their heads against the wall with you.
Fair enough, one of your horses is ill, and you think he needs 5 rugs. Fine, he's yours, crack on. But that's no reason for your others to all be in heavy weights and under rugs in this weather!

But whatever. I think that to be in a heavyweight with a thermatex under in this weather is far too much, and is the REASON that most of your horses seem to 'need' to have rugs piled on them.
I also think that rugging all year round, even in summer is bordering on barbaric. Like those people who put clothes on dogs.

But it's your horse and your money and your conscience so the good news is you can please yourself :)

And FTR, I don't appreciate being ordered to 'apologise' for my opinions to some kid on a horse forum, particularly one who can't rug her horses appropriately ;)
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the anti-ageing creams are clearly working....FWIW im 30 this year!

horse is not wearing 5 rugs? not sure why you have said that as its clearly incorrect?

only 2 of them have under rugs on-the one with the muscle condition and the one used to being stabled who spent the majority of his life in Oz. The furry boy does not have an under rug on so again your comments are incorrect.

Appropriate/light rugging all year round is a fly rug, a cotton sheet or a rain sheet in prolonged rain. My personal opinion is that calling that barbaric is rather dramatic.
 
Ha, typical rug thread. Op if you are cruel I don't know where I am on the cruelty scale... 6 and not one wearing a rug of any description. lol I'd probably have a nervous breakdown trying to work it all out!
 
Prince33Sp4rkle said:
the anti-ageing creams are clearly working....FWIW im 30 this year!

horse is not wearing 5 rugs? not sure why you have said that as its clearly incorrect?.
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You said it on one of your other posts. I'm guessing he builds up to 5 by around Christmas?

Apologies for the age mistake.....don't know WHY I would make the assumption you were a kid...

I'm not replying to this any more though - we clearly disagree so there's really no point. Plus as its about a horse I don't even know or look after I really don't care.
 
Patterdale said:
You said it on one of your other posts. I'm guessing he builds up to 5 by around Christmas?

Apologies for the age mistake.....don't know WHY I would make the assumption you were a kid...

I'm not replying to this any more though - we clearly disagree so there's really no point. Plus as its about a horse I don't even know or look after I really don't care.
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indeed a horse you dont know or look after, but still seem to think you know more about his needs than me..................................

i believe if you go and check someone else (incorrectly) said 5, it started off as 8 and then came down to 5 HW.neither of which is correct.

Having a different way of doing things to you, does not make me immature (as you have implied) or wrong, it just makes our horses and situations different...................note that i dont jump all over the members who have naked or very lightly rugged horses, yet its fine to tell me im outright wrong when you then admit you dont even know the horse-completely illogical and not the actions of an educated,polite, or intelligent adult.
 
My boy was clipped for the first time this year (blanket clip) and is in a rainsheet/fleece in stable overnight .

I'm frozen to the bone already with this weather and however tempting it is to throw his MW on, he is perfectly happy and toasty warm. I've got a personal mantra of remembering the weather will be a lot more harsh than this - if I put heavier rugs on now, what will I do when it gets *really* cold?!
 
I don't care what anyone else has on their horses rug wise.

I do think that people who need confirmation on whether thier rugging choices are correct, from a bunch of stranger on an internet forum who have no idea a)what your horse is like b) where in the country you are and c) how much work/feed etc need to think twice about whether they are ready to own a horse - making sure they are at a comfortable temperature is a pretty basic need.

Having said that, I have to agree with Patterdale regarding the heavyweight and the thermotex, christ I dread to think what you put on them when it gets to -10.
 
Patterdale said:
Oh do you think, mother? :rolleyes3:
Well I don't.

I HAVE gone back and read a couple of posts, and decided that I am not going to join the queue of people banging their heads against the wall with you.
Fair enough, one of your horses is ill, and you think he needs 5 rugs. Fine, he's yours, crack on. But that's no reason for your others to all be in heavy weights and under rugs in this weather!

But whatever. I think that to be in a heavyweight with a thermatex under in this weather is far too much, and is the REASON that most of your horses seem to 'need' to have rugs piled on them.
I also think that rugging all year round, even in summer is bordering on barbaric. Like those people who put clothes on dogs.

But it's your horse and your money and your conscience so the good news is you can please yourself :)

And FTR, I don't appreciate being ordered to 'apologise' for my opinions to some kid on a horse forum.
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Calm down PD.

I never ordered you to apologize, I merely suggested you ought to.

My anti ageing creams are also working well it seems!

FTR, I think it's incredibly childish to trash talk anothers management of their horse, without reading the proffered background.

Prince33Sp4rkle said:
i believe if you go and check someone else (incorrectly) said 5, it started off as 8 and then came down to 5 HW.neither of which is correct.
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Actually, it started off as 21. Then 8 HWs. Then 8 MW *or* HW's. Then 5 HWs. We actually said 2 HWs at a maximum.

As a side note, I don't care if a horse has no rugs or a number of rugs on. As long as it IS appropriate for the horse.
 
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Over rugging it would be crueler! Don't worry, some people are just ridiculous!! You and your horse are happy with your decision so it shouldn't be anyone else's concern! :D
 
Take no notice of ignorant people, I have experienced this in the past. Your mare like our boys are perfectly capable of keeping warm in rain and snow as long as they have some form of shelter and plenty of forage, I also believe they are mentally so much happier living out 24/7!,
 
I guess now, right when this thread is heated, would be a bad time to admit to often taking matters into my own hands in the past.

I used to go to a livery yard where there was a girl who rugged her horse all year. During the summer the horse would be out in the field sweating profusely. The rug was dark and heavy. The horse was miserable. The girl used to argue with everyone who mentioned it.
As soon as she went home I used to go down the field and take it off. I used to do the chest straps back up and dump it on the ground. The horse looked relieved. The owner arrives the next day to think the horse managed to get the rug off himself. She thought he was Houdini. The horse was happy. It was our little secret.
 
OP i wouldnt worry about people calling you cruel! ive been getting too.... none of my 7 are rugged yet. not the nearing 30 year old arab or the 4 month old sports horse foal or the tb. they are all growing a nice winter coat, have plenty grass and natural shelter.
yes they might look a bit miserable in the rain but they are all warm enough and wont be seeing a rug until its much colder.

poor foal might never see a rug as he has decided he doesnt want to be caught so fine he can do without.....do i feel bad about it? NO :) x
 
minimilton said:
I guess now, right when this thread is heated, would be a bad time to admit to often taking matters into my own hands in the past.

I used to go to a livery yard where there was a girl who rugged her horse all year. During the summer the horse would be out in the field sweating profusely. The rug was dark and heavy. The horse was miserable. The girl used to argue with everyone who mentioned it.
As soon as she went home I used to go down the field and take it off. I used to do the chest straps back up and dump it on the ground. The horse looked relieved. The owner arrives the next day to think the horse managed to get the rug off himself. She thought he was Houdini. The horse was happy. It was our little secret.
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:D :D :D
 
minimilton said:
I guess Welsh D was right!

What happens with vitamin D levels when horses are rugged all year round?
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I bought a show cob a few years ago and he had been rugged all summer. He was always prone to tying up, which might have been any number of reasons, but my vet said that being rugged 24/7 was, in his opinion a contributory factor.
 
nikkimariet said:
Leviathan, thank you for your concern but it's my horse my decision :)
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My post you quoted above, was for the original poster to say to those dissing her for being cruel in not rugging her horse, why you had to quote it like i was posting to you is beyond me.

I you read my thread properly you will see I said MY horses not yours

Sheesh I would never put heavy weights on now, I have found in the past if you over rug while they are young / to soon, when they are older you have a hard time keeping weight and condition on and feel the cold more mine started in 4 oz rugs now moved to 7 oz rugs. They move to 12 oz once clipped (end month beg Nov) and heavy weight 14oz when the ground is frozen. I refuse to put more than two layers on my horses so at the most they have one rug and an under rug. If they were in heavy weights now lord knows what would happen when the temp drops to minus something.

AND I said in my experience of dealing with horses till their last years they did not benefit from their rugs.

I did not diss anyone for doing it I just voiced my opinion of my experience, you can only tell people your experiance and opnion what they do with it is up to them period

I don't give a monkeys what others do, I like to rug my horses individually if THEY are cold not IF the weather is cold, I feel them and if they are I up their rugs.

I like to add warmth not weight to my horses back so I spend £ 300+ on a light 14 oz rug with a light 2 oz under rug so they are no bogged down with weight on their withers, so they are warm and not overloaded. What other s do outside is their choices> I just voiced my opinion as this is a forum where you can, well when I last looked it was. :rolleyes:
 
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My welsh D never wore a rug unless the weather was truly dire! And before I had her she used to wear 3 or 4 rugs over winter! I 'weened' her off her rugs over a few winters till she went without and coped fine.
 
Imagine minus 8 and fellow livery late at yard was concerned my naked baby would be cold(only 1 nakedon yard)so she kindly checked her. next morning her words were"she was blooming cosy". plenty of good hay for natural internal warmth.BUT im not anti rug just some esp our natives dont need them. Big lad had rugs and in depth of winter yes would wear one lightest poss but hay increased first. Good article re natives in h&h last week:)
 
You do whats right for your horse not whats right for other people. i look after my friends horse and that was so over rugged and red hot in stable i felt so sorry for him i took the rug off and she went mad. mine is a shire and never ever wears a rug - he would be way too hot and i couldnt careless about what the nosey other liveries say. they like to stick their noses in and their info is always wrong in regards to my horse i have learnt over the months. :)
 
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