For people that "don't rug"

[PapaverFollis]

...or "try not to rug".

If there a minimum temperature on your philosophy?

So is there a temperature it could reach that would make you stick a rug on despite the horse usually not needing a rug?

I very much try not to rug MrT. Last winter I didn't rug him at all but for various reasons he was living in the barn with access to a small 'patio' so he was more protected. He still has access to shelter now but is obviously out in it more. I do rug when it's windy and rainy and cold (below 5 degrees ish) but if it just raining or just windy or just cold, or a combination or just 2 of those, I generally don't. He has a very small neck and belly clip and a little bit of fat.

The absolute temperature tomorrow night is forecast to go to minus 4. But there's no wind. So I'll probably leave him without. But I'm considering where my line is. The 'feels like' tonight is going to minus 4 and the feels like tomorrow night... minus 6.

I'm just wondering what level of cold would soften my cruel un-rugging heart.

Where's the line for you?

(The Beast (pssm) and Little Dragon (25 years old) are wrapped up nice and warm which makes me feel even more guilty ?)

 

[MidChristmasCrisis]

Mine are out in daytime so unless it’s below 5 degrees and windy and rainy I don’t rug the unclipped 8yr old or the unclipped 22 yr old. If they look miserable and aren’t grazing I bring them in....in the main.

 

[SEL]

When the beast from the east hit, with minus 14 wind chill and a stable that was filling up with snow - that was the night I found the Ardennes's 200g rug and put it on. He was very relieved!

He's more than happy usually and has had frost on his bottom in minus 7 without problem.

 

[ihatework]

The cold isn’t the problem.

Wet and cold can be, for some

But it really depends on how the horse is coping, body condition, shelter available etc

But straight sub zero temps. No, just up the hay

 

[honetpot]

I work on the idea that you are generating warmth from the inside, so if they have enough forage, are not losing weight, unless its normal seasonal weight loss for natives types, I do not go on the outside temperature.
If its really cold wet and windy, I may bring them in and dry them off, and think about a rug, but sometimes its just an odd afternoon. I think you have to monitor the situation. As mine live in a herd I find the biggest reason for them losing weight is being moved on all the time by the most dominant pony, so sometimes I readjust the mix.

 

[Orangehorse]

This is a pony that has a natural coat? So long as there is natural shelter - a big hedge, a corner of the field, then given sufficient hay I can't see why he would need a rug.

We used to keep ponies out 24/7 and never gave a thought to rugging, even when trace clipped for hunting. I would say that there was a field shelter if they wanted, but it only got used in the summer, there was a good high hedge on 3 sides of the field, they stood under a holly tree at the far side of the field where they could see well, the field was nice light land so didn't get into a bog, there was sufficient but not excessive grass. They were fed pony nuts daily and got hay when there was frost/snow and they survived perfectly well back in the day when we had frosts from October and snow in January. They were youngish/mature animals not elderly.

 

[welshpony216]

I don't put rugs on the horses if they will be ridden more during the winter, because they will be nice and warm under the rug, but when you take it off to go for a ride, your horse will be freezing. If he is allowed to develop a winter coat and get used to the cold, that will not be a problem. Feed plenty of hay as well.

 

[PapaverFollis]

I very much don't want to rug him I just find my perception a bit skewed by having to over-rug the muscle issue one. So then I feel bad for him being all naked when the other two are wrapped up!

I'll use your benchmark of minus 14 wind chill, SEL. That sounds sensible. ?

 

[ownedbyaconnie]

Last year my connemara mare went unrugged (and unclipped). Tbf I don’t really remember last winter getting too cold but there were definitely a few nights it went to -5ish. She just got a bit of extra hay but she is in at night and her stable is well sheltered from wind.

This year she has a big clip and I popped a light fleece on when it got to -4 a few weeks ago but only because her winter coat hasn’t got to full fluff mode yet. Give it another month and she most definitely won’t be seeing a fleece.

I have never ever seen her cold. But I have seen her sweaty so I’d always rather err on the under rug than over rug!

 

[PapaverFollis]

And I'll give them some hay tomorrow for the minus 4. They're still on just grass overnight at the moment.

 

[DabDab]

Pebbles has a fairly epic winter coat and I've never rugged her. Even through copious amounts of snow and the beast from the east (which bottomed out at -11 here) her skin was still warm to the touch if I buried my fingers in deep enough to find it. She did have a pretty well sheltered stable at night through those times though.

(My other two are also rugged to the nines, but I feel no guilt ?. What with Dabs' pssm and Arty's lack of anything that could be described as a winter coat, they need it)

 

[Equi]

Its not black and white, but its also not grey. I don't rug my unclipped minis at all, but if its torrential rain + freezing i bring them in and if i was not able to i would at least stick a light rug on cause a coat is good but only if its able to dry out.and i have no shelter. if they get soaked to the skin it makes for a very miserable horse. If its freezing only, they wouldn't get a second thought. Their coats are made for cold weather but my line is them being both cold and wet to the skin. I do however stick a few haynets out despite them being a bit overweight cause it heats them inside.

 

[Polos Mum]

If you ad hoc rug a fluffy with a light weight rug you flatten the hair and actually likely to make them colder as their coat can't work as it's designed to (lifting and trapping air).
Temp there would be no minimum for me

Mine look miserable / shelter with rain + wind or even just bad wind

Just rain on it's own doesn't seem to bother them, they stand in the middle of the field grazing

My unbroken fatty is Irish clipped and he doesn't seem to take shelter more than the others that are unclipped.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

Ours are living out this winter for the first time, they have access to a deep shelter and we haven't had to rug them yet. It is forecast to snow on Friday but I doubt that they will need their rugs tbh. We will keep an eye on them and rug if needs be.

 

[HashRouge]

My Welsh was out in the Beast from the East with no rug and was fine. As others have said I find that if he's got plenty to eat very little seems to faze him, it's only if he's hungry that he struggles. That said, atm he does get stabled periodically as his field mate is nearly 28 and I can't bear leaving her out if it's wet and windy now that she's getting on. She gets rugged too, but she's not as hardy as him even if you ignore her age. We do have a lot of natural shelter though - if we were on an exposed hillside I might have a different view!

 

[PapaverFollis]

This was him last winter... but as you can see he was "in the barn". He actually spent most of the time stood outside keeping an eye on his mares.



He grows a good coat. I'll leave him naked then and just stick to windy AND rainy AND cold as criteria.

 

[milliepops]

The cold isn’t the problem.

Wet and cold can be, for some

But it really depends on how the horse is coping, body condition, shelter available etc

But straight sub zero temps. No, just up the hay

This
My living-out retirees aren't rugged unless I get there and find them shivering. They have shelter and hay and good natural coats. Its fairly rare that the cold and wet push them beyond what they can comfortably manage.

Normal wet they are fine, cold they are fine, sometimes prolonged wet and cold wind pushes it a bit far

 

[welshpony216]

This
My living-out retirees aren't rugged unless I get there and find them shivering. They have shelter and hay and good natural coats. Its fairly rare that the cold and wet push them beyond what they can comfortably manage.

Normal wet they are fine, cold they are fine, sometimes prolonged wet and cold wind pushes it a bit far

I agree 101%

 

[PurBee]

If the weather is going to turn wet, windy and cold they are barning themselves, or rugged.

i rarely rug, except in extreme conditions, as stated, more hay generates heat.

if theyre old, ill, low weight or clipped id be more into rugging in winter.

One study i read ages ago said that they lose the efficient metabolic thermal ability at -20. Thats if theyre dry, no wind, rain. Just temp was focused on. Equally they found the horse to be more efficient at heating themselves up than cooling themselves down.
That’s why canadians in their -30 temps have to rug no matter what.

Ive found more weight is lost at consistent temps below 0 degrees...when we hit zero their hay intake goes up to maintain condition.

Hence why a rugged horse will eat less than unrugged, which another study showed.

 

[TheMule]

I will put a rug on if it's due to be very cold and wet at the same time. Cold on its own is fine, but driving freezing wind and rain will get them chilly. For reference, that was for 3 days year before last and not at all last winter

 

[JoannaC]

It's not about temperature for me but wet and windy and cold then I will pop a rug on. Arabs are designed for extremes of heat so can cope but they don't do rain! Mine do have shelter though as can go into the barn when they choose and if it's really wet and windy overnight I will stable them or they'll run round like idiots!

 

[Chinchilla]

I agree with "wet and windy". Normally they'll get a rainsheet if tucked up/shivering and it's raining heavily and cold or due to rain for a prolonged period.

 

[ElleSkywalkingintheair]

I have two naked fattybumsticks who will remain so until thinner. They are out overnight in all weathers and have hedges to lurk under and this year a little shelter no manner of looking pathetic will work on me till I see actual evidence of either pony having a rib.

Fully clipped cobbler also out overnight but in toasty warm rug and two old ponies have 50grm rugs on to keep rainscald away

 

[Lucky788]

I don’t have a min temp for just cold weather. But wet and cold under 5 I’ll add a 50g or rain sheet if it’ll be all day for a few hours they are ok
Although depends on weight mine still need to loose a bit

 

[Jeni the dragon]

Mine wasn't rugged last year for the first time since I'd had her (20 years) apart from one very cold and wet night. The gang were in a field with plenty of grass and most times I checked they were happily grazing.
I tend to check under her armpit and between her hind legs. She used to really feel the cold but she definitely gets a yack coat now!

 

[sport horse]

I have youngsters and oldies that are not clipped and in work. they are never rugged whatever the weather - however they are brought into stables/barns throughout the wet & cold months - normallly January to March. This not only helps them but protects the main grazing fields from getting poached.

 

[Leam_Carrie]

Mini Shetland doesn’t have a rug. He does always have access to hay and shelter.

Riding horse is rugged if cold and wet, or very cold.

 

[Cortez]

Wet + cold + wind will receive a rug. I used to keep horses in Colorado where it is very dry and very cold & snowy in the winter: never used to rug the outside horses, just the inside/clipped ones. It never gets that cold here (Ireland) but it does get wet and windy, and so a rug is proffered, or more usually a respite in a stable (rugless).

 

[Cob Life]

Last year my connemara mare went unrugged (and unclipped). Tbf I don’t really remember last winter getting too cold but there were definitely a few nights it went to -5ish. She just got a bit of extra hay but she is in at night and her stable is well sheltered from wind.

This year she has a big clip and I popped a light fleece on when it got to -4 a few weeks ago but only because her winter coat hasn’t got to full fluff mode yet. Give it another month and she most definitely won’t be seeing a fleece.

I have never ever seen her cold. But I have seen her sweaty so I’d always rather err on the under rug than over rug!

i don’t think we had a particularly cold winter, I managed to get away with not clipping At all.

Blue is blanket clipped (Irish Cob)and I’d happily leave him out without a rug in the day and at night unless he started to drop condition or it dropped below freezing but I need him dry to ride so he has a rain sheet on. If he had a full coat and I didn’t need him dry I probably wouldn’t rug him until it was extremely cold -14ish as others have said.

 

[meleeka]

I have two unrugged. Both have a stable or shelter to choose from. The mini never needs a rug and the cob only if it’s under 7 and windy/rainy. They both have super impressive coats.