Do Black horses get hotter than others in the heat?

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minimex2

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Sorry for the divvy question but when its hot ive always been told black attracts the heat so is it the same for horses ?

Ive only owned Blarney 6 months so this is his first summer with me and yesterday was sweaty in the field so wondered whether black horses are more prone to attract the heat ?

My black cat loves the heat and is always sunbathing.

For those of you with black horses what do you think and do you cover them up with a reflector type fly rug - or am i being over the top :-/

thanks
 
White reflects the suns rays whereas black absorbs so yes black and bays may feel the heat more.

Well that's what I was taught at school regarding black and white! Perhaps someone could explain the science behind it :)
 
Yes, its simple physics. Dark colours absorb heat, light colours reflect it (hence the snow doesn't melt on sunny winter days). I was explaining this to my 7 year old pupil just recently when we were considering not working the pony too hard on a warm day when he still had his winter coat.
 
yes we have a black cob and he gets in a terrible mess in the warmer weather we have to have him in by day and out at night as even with a fly rug on he sweats loads
 
My boy does get hot, never a sweaty mess thou (will be hacking him out for the first time this year so may be different when rising)
 
I've bred 2 near black horses (so dark brown or bay they look black), & they've always needed less rugging & seem to retain heat. Also noticed they seem to attract the flies more in summer. Could be the colour or because they sweat more than the lighter colours.
 
Black doesn't attract the heat more that white. White reflects more that black so a black surface will get warmer than a white surface.

A standard white fly rug should work fine although the 'cool coat' and similar rugs do look good.
 
I've often wondered this too and belived it to be true. However, my black Andalusian doesn't get as hot as most other horses. He wasn't sweating in the field last night, unlike my OH's bay cob or the three native greys.

Could it be more to do with skin type, I wonder? Or a combination of the two?

I do put a fly rug on him, for fly protection and as it protects his coat from fading to ginger at the ends that's great too!
 
Wagtail said:
Yes they do. It is best to put a fly rug on them with a light reflective finish to it.
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That's food for thought. My kids' ponies are white, so white they positively glare from across the fields :D BUT I've now got a black horse on loan and hadn't thought of this. He didn't come with a fly rug but I think I ought to treat him to one.

Any particular brands recommended?
 
Black surfaces do absorb more thermal energy than silver surfaces but they do emit more thermal energy. Thus black objects do cool down quicker than silver
 
My Friesian cooks in the sun, he now wears a reflective fly sheet at all times... Sometimes he has it off at night, if I have time in the morning to go up and put it back on before the sun comes out! They deffo get hotter, although greys are also equally vulnerable as they can get sunburn along their backs :/
 
Yes, our black shire x does and we have to either put a fly rug on him or we wash him down alot. He has trees for shelter.

He's also bothered by flies alot xx
 
I've noticed that over the winter they hold the heat more to the touch, however so far in summer it's the lighter horses in the field who have all been flat out and seem to feel the heat more surprisingly! The dark ones still hotter to the touch.

Pan
 
When I had my coloured mare I noticed in the heat that her black patches were a lot warmer to the touch than her white bits.
 
Yes they can , both my friesians have fly rugs on and I need to purchase one for my old cob , just be aware people horses can get heat stroke so if you have a dark horse or a horse that attracts the sun , put a fly sheet on ,one of my clients horse nearly died last year due to heat stroke
 
My black mare is hot all year round and she's a TB, yesterday in the scorching heat she wore her Aussie Allrounder and came in dry while my chestnut WB wearing a fly rug was sweated up to the eyeballs, so a thumbs up for the Aussie!
 
StableMum said:
When I had my coloured mare I noticed in the heat that her black patches were a lot warmer to the touch than her white bits.
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If you had a horse that was light on one side and dark on the other, it would be interesting to see if he tended to stand so the dark side was in shadow.
 
thank you all,

think ill be bring in in the day and out at night - hopefully that will also reduce his grass intact as well as they are suppose to eat more in the day and less at night?? - will be testing that theory.

also just found these which are really cheap with free P&P, but do i go for fixed neck or seperate neck - decisions decisions!!

http://www.fasttackdirect.co.uk/pro..._Protection_Set_with_mask_and_neck_cover.html
http://www.fasttackdirect.co.uk/product-1-12-14699/New_HORSE_combo_neck_fly_turnout_rug_ON_SALE.html
 
Numpty question time alert..!! How does putting a rug on a horse cool it down?

I have a black irish cob, keep him in a field 24/7, with trees and hedges for shade, and have never had a problem, touch wood.

Answers on a postcard please!
 
With my boy the problem is the hedge tree position his paddock doesnt have shad in the afternoon just in the morning.

He lies down to cool down but last two days he has had a morning hack a hose down and the afternoon in a very cool stable.

Yes this is a luxury but one new to me I used to be at a yard where the stables were like furnaces and turnout was so tight you took it when it was offered.
 
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