Big freeze in USA - how are the animals coping?

[Orangehorse]

Hearing about the extreme low temperatures, I was worrying about all the animals in america. Animals can cope with cold - but not this cold. OK for polar bears but what about cattle, horses, animals in the wild further south? Anyone know?

 

[Kikke]

this was done last week.

 

[TandD]

We were wondering this....... I think at -26 my horses Would have on every rug they owned!!! (All 17 of them)

 

[Orangehorse]

this was done last week.

But I don't think it was Arctic Circle weather last week. People told to stay in as their eyeballs can freeze.

 

[MissTyc]

I didn't see last week's thread so don't know what was said, but I do remember reading something about 300 cattle and many (mostly wild) horses dying in North Dakota. Don't know if it was "this time" or a previous time. Either way, bad low temps

 

[MadBlackLab]

be interesting to hear. The weather has deteriated in last few days. I know that animals out there can cope to a certain extend as they are brought up with those conditions but this is very extreme.

Global warming for you in its making

 

[Honey08]

I've just come back from Chicago today and it was -17 air temp, with the wind chill factored in it was -45. Unbelieveable cold, I've never seen anything like it. There were emergency messages on the news regularly, warning people that if they were outside for more than 5 mins they were at risk of hypothermia and frostbite.

You would have to have animals inside in that weather, it was a killer.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

People told to stay in as their eyeballs can freeze.

Dear God, seriously?! Horrific!

 

[Biska]

My sister has her "at home" horses including a lovely retired old thoroughbred eventer heavily rugged with a choice of out or in, lots of hay and plenty of tasty feeds. he can wander the pasture or use the barn at will. His little pony buddy has less hard feed but a good rug for warmth. She says the horses do act differently when it gets cold, she was a little worried yesterday but I know that her horses get the best care ever! It is minus 12 centigrade! I will take the mud of old England thank you.

 

[DoesDressage]

I'm near DC. Our first winter. It's freezing. Highs of -10 today and -18 tonight. Our little English horse is doing fine with 3 heavyweights on. Actually it's our American bought horse who is struggling a little more plus us people. Even the inside of my nose froze this morning. Seriously uncomfortable!!

 

[Murphy88]

I'm in Kentucky. It's been around -15 to -20 celsius since Sunday night here, and it has now warmed up to a positively tropical -12. All the horses seem to be coping fine, and there were still horses out today on my drive to work that didn't have rugs on! However it is rare to see horses with rugs on here in general, there are herds of (very expensive) broodmares out grazing all winter, the majority of which are thoroughbreds, and they virtually never wear rugs.

 

[prosefullstop]

My neighbours have had their pony and horse outside during the daytime (in CT) but rugged up to the eyeballs. I took my dogs out for about twenty minutes today, and while my pug is a bit of a woolly mammoth and loves it the colder the better, my Boston terrier had both a fleece and a down dog jacket on...and she still shivered aplenty, the poor mite.

 

[Hippophilia]

Here in Saskatchewan we've been at -30 or so for a week now with wind chills of -50 over the weekend. This is my 4th winter here and definitely the coldest, but not by much. My TB mare is out with a heavyweight combo and 200g stable rug, a round bale, shelter and buddies. She's doing fine and hates being in a stall so would only stress and sweat up if I tried to bring her in. It warmed up to -20 today so I tried to take the dogs for a walk but they were having none of it! Sensible creatures. Roll on Thursday when it will be highs of -2! I'll be out in my bikini

 

[olivia x]

Ah, yes, those extreme cold temperatures do point out how relative "cold" can be-- temperatures at the freezing level can feel positively balmy after an extreme cold snap-- such that you do not even feel as if you need a warm winter coat or jacket!

 

[Firewell]

Brrrrrrrrr!! Thank god I chose California to live in the USA, it's lovely here, every day is like summer. I have been sunbathing. My English horse thinks he has died and gone to heaven!
However I have to fly to NJ and NYC next week for 7 days and I am not looking forward to that at all. They have been having terrible snowstorms and blizzards. It's going to be a right shock to the system .

 

[Enfys]

Brant. SW Ontario
Only -24C today.
The animals are coping fine.
Frost quakes are interesting
Life goes on

 

[Loulou2002]

Here in Saskatchewan we've been at -30 or so for a week now with wind chills of -50 over the weekend. This is my 4th winter here and definitely the coldest, but not by much. My TB mare is out with a heavyweight combo and 200g stable rug, a round bale, shelter and buddies. She's doing fine and hates being in a stall so would only stress and sweat up if I tried to bring her in. It warmed up to -20 today so I tried to take the dogs for a walk but they were having none of it! Sensible creatures. Roll on Thursday when it will be highs of -2! I'll be out in my bikini

OMG! -30! I thought when it hit -10 here last winter for a couple of days i was going to die!

 

[lachlanandmarcus]

We normally get minus 20 C at our place here in Aberdeenshire so I can vouch for the fact that at least at that temp the horses are completely fine!

80% of horses warmth comes from their internal warmth engine from eating, rugs only give them about 20% of the heat, so the most important thing is that they drink enough and eat enough to keep warm and hydrated.

Can't comment about -40 and eyeballs tho.

TBH once it gets below minus 10 or so here, it doesn't feel too much colder, providing you keep moving, partly cos it tends to be very still dry air and not windy, so doesn't feel as cold.

 

[cobgoblin]

Brant. SW Ontario
Only -24C today.
The animals are coping fine.
Frost quakes are interesting
Life goes on

Excuse my ignorance but what are frost quakes?