Clipping a cob living out and rug?

A

almrc

Well-Known Member
Joined
13 March 2007
Messages
846
Visit site
Hi all

My cob lives out 24/7. She is in good condition, with a slight belly on her at the mo due to being moved into her winter field. She is not wearing a rug at the moment, she wears a LW if it is tipping with rain/very windy. Other than that, she only wears LW if it drops to 4 or below (ish!).

I ride her about 3 times a week and each time she gets very sweaty. I would like to clip her, however I don't want a clip that means she has to have a rug on if its still warm out...if that makes sense?

I am thinking of giving her a medium trace clip. Will she be ok to still live out without a rug on for now? (Hope I make sense!) :)
 
as long as she is holding her weight and has some form of shelter (man made or natural) in her field then She'll be fine with a trace clip and no rug. She'll probably be far more comfortable while it is mild.
 
See this is the thing, I don't want to get into having lots of different types of rugs, and for mine it is far too early for them to be in a MW. She has a LW, MW and a HW. Last year she wasn't clipped and lived out happily in a MW, even in all that snow. I dont want to get into over rugging her.

I have clipped a small section of her neck to just the girth area for now, and she is hot in a LW, which she sometimes wears at night only or when its tipping down. Other than that shes naked in the day and night still.

She does have natural shelter. I took their LW off today for a few hours as pouring rain all night, an hour after this it hammered down all day! I found her in the middle of the field happily grazing.
 
it sounds like you've got it all covered.

just go with your gut feeling.
the weather isn't helping at all ATM ...although its lovely to be so mild.
 
Phil had an irish clip. Worked 3-4 times a week. Lived out 24/7. Not much natural shelter (enough but they never used it!). Fed on the days he was ridden and given hay when it snowed. Good do-er. Had a 200g mw standard neck all winter (from when he was clipped in mid-november until february when he broke his rug so went into a lw).

He was fine :D But then he's not normally rugged so I didn't worry about over-rugging. He had enough fat to keep him warm and could run about if he were that cold :p
 
Go with your gut feeling. Last year my HW cob was very HW and he had a low trace clip (not his face clipped) and had no rug until the snow. Was fed a handful of happy hoof and barley straw ab lib, had shelter that he went in if he choose to. Still came out of the winter very HW though lol
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top