humanising horses

guido16

guido16

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Why oh why.

I am sure we discuss this each autumn, but,

Why on earth to people think that just because they are cold or have to put a jacket on, that their horse(s) must be cold aswell!!!

Seriously!

We have no hair on our bodies, well not much (except Shills who is like a silverback) but in the middle of winter, do we put 3 HW jackets on?

NO.
 
You forgot the underwear and leg warmers :rolleyes:

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Shall i fetch the corn that pops? :D
 
Drives me insane! Is my current 'grumpy old woman' pet peeve (much to the annoyance of my oh!).
One on our yard (at night temps not below about 12) has a full neck heavyweight stable rug with a duvet underneath!! No health probs, old age etc. I would have thought it would sweat any weight off in that!
If you rug like that when it is still so mild, what on earth do you put on in the proper cold winter nights?!!

... and breath!
 
It recently cooled down here for a few days and all of a sudden there was a rash of rug wearing horses (not including ours).

All well and good until I looked at the gauge in the car that shows the temperature outside; it was 17 degrees!
 
Mine have a lightweight (stabled but unclipped) when it drops to minus 10. They are then chucked out for 2 to 3 hours naked! The youngest is 16 and the eldest is around 32. Horses are horses and not blimming hothouse flowers.
 
My two thoroughbreds are still naked, still alive and still seem pretty happy! I did relent and stick some rainsheets on in all that rain though.
However they live with a rugged welsh section A and 2 double-rugged sport horse types.
All still out at night though thank God.

I, however, have been out in my thermals and 3 heavyweight jackets since the 1st September :D
 
guido16 said:
We have no hair on our bodies, well not much (except Shills who is like a silverback):D but in the middle of winter, do we put 3 HW jackets on?

NO.
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I flaming well do! -25C with a blizzard blowing and windchill taking it below -30 the only bit of me showing is my eyes and they are behind glasses!

The horses, nah, if they are cold they get blankets, if they are not, they don't. I don't possess HW's at all, mine just keep the wind and the ice storms (that hurts!) at bay. If I had one that needed blankets to the ears then sure, that's what it would get and anyone that disapproved could buy said horse from me and do what they liked...$7,000 should do nicely thankyou;) Until then, back off.
 
Sammii819 said:
Someone who thinks like me......my horses are still totally naked!!!!!!
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Same.
Soon as it's warm enough (or more to the point, dry enough!!!!) his rug comes off - cue comments from nosey people trying to say he'll be cold etc etc :rolleyes: And the rug stays off until the temp drops right down at night time! If the weather stays like this, it will be off for a while yet.


Pet peeve - people who put 'lightweights' on thinking this will keep their horse warm :rolleyes: He'll be better off without it, sigh.

Don't believe in this vanity clipping either. Unless the horse is in some SERIOUS work, there is no need to take the coat off - It's there for a reason.

Gah.
 
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And there was me thinking I was alone!

Horses were not born wimpy!
Its humans that have made them that way. Dear god, HW rugs on just now. Really? for real?

Tell me, when it was a foalie, for the first winter, did it need a HW rug? I doubt it.

And if it did,

rod, back own, your, for, make. Unscramble at your pleasure!
 
Lol, the horses where I work will be left out neked 'til november (all night too!!) then brought in at night and lightly rugged when it gets freezing, but only coz if they're left out there will be no summer grazing. I have to say, 2 of the oldies are rugged now though at night, they drop weight too easily otherwise.

My friends horse is made of carefully molded icing sugar, and will melt in the rain so is rugged to the eyeballs already :/
 
montyforever said:
My mum loves to mollycoddle .. i always have to remove one or two of the 3 rugs she puts on Hon :rolleyes::D
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I think your mum should wrap herself in all 3 rugs and wonder about outside all day.........

Anyhoo - your one of those cruel owners that doesnt rug just now.
Evil witch

Is it not about time for you to go buy some cosy leg wraps for your horses little cold legs?
 
guido16 said:
And there was me thinking I was alone!

Horses were not born wimpy!
Its humans that have made them that way. Dear god, HW rugs on just now. Really? for real?

Tell me, when it was a foalie, for the first winter, did it need a HW rug? I doubt it.

And if it did,

rod, back own, your, for, make. Unscramble at your pleasure!
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I agree with you on principal...

HOWEVER, as a foal, my horse would have had a full winter coat, and lived in a herd environment in the middle of Ireland, with hedges, trees etc to shelter under ;)

She is now for all intnse purposes bald (down to my choice and vanity probably!) which means I have taken away one of her main ways of regulating her temperature. She also has no shelter, and a relatively small patch of land.

Therefore I am more than happy with my choice of rugging, especially when I go to get in my "overrugged" horse who will come cantering down to see me, not be remotely "hot" under her rugs, and will keep her weight and have a nice sleek shiney clipped coat, instead of it being stood up desperately trying to keep her warm. :)

I am not one who runs out to get my horse when it starts raining, or has a fit if she is out when it is cold, but I figure being as I have changed her way of regulating herself, I should keep her warm in the way her coat would have!!
 
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I will join the "just say no to over rugging" club, mine went out in mweight turn outs (with necks) all winter, got down to -18, 2 had blanket clips, one is ancient, the other one i didnt want to feel left out!!!:D
 
Oh, sweet jeebus, not this again.

Why on earth does everyone feel the need to be so damn judgmental?? I'm sure the vast majority of people on here are genuinely doing the best they can for their horses. Yes, mine's in a 400g rug overnight (below 10 degrees) at the moment. No, this is not frivolous - it's based on his body temperature when I check him in the morning. Get. Over. It. :rolleyes:
 
guido16 said:
I think your mum should wrap herself in all 3 rugs and wonder about outside all day.........

Anyhoo - your one of those cruel owners that doesnt rug just now.
Evil witch

Is it not about time for you to go buy some cosy leg wraps for your horses little cold legs?
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I know! :eek:
Im such a cruel mother! Bwahahah :D

Beat you to it!!

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(she had a sprained tendon .. i am not cruel enough to dress her in pink bandages normally ;))
 
I rug to what my horse tells me. If he's cold, he gets a rug, if he isn't he doesn't - simples :-)

I don't tend to go by the seasons either - if its p*ssing it down and freezing cold in July, he'll get a rug, if its a nice warm sunny day in October he won't.
 
nutkin said:
Oh, sweet jeebus, not this again.

Why on earth does everyone feel the need to be so damn judgmental?? I'm sure the vast majority of people on here are genuinely doing the best they can for their horses. Yes, mine's in a 400g rug overnight (below 10 degrees) at the moment. No, this is not frivolous - it's based on his body temperature when I check him in the morning. Get. Over. It. :rolleyes:
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wow, your tetchy!

Below 10 degrees! Hardly going to freeze your Morags off is it?

Your very vigilant if your taking a thermometer to your horse in the morning.
 
guido16 said:
wow, your tetchy!

Below 10 degrees! Hardly going to freeze your Morags off is it?

Your very vigilant if your taking a thermometer to your horse in the morning.
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Yar, we've run out of coffee at the office this afternoon.

And I've had to have the electric fire on all day today, it's so bleeding cold!
 
you should put a HW rug on. That should help. :-p

But, you have just proven to me that you feel the cold.
Doesnt mean your horse is the same.

and by the way, I am not talking about people rugging in general, I am talking about OVERrugging, OVER feeding, - humanising.
 
When I had my fat, hairy cob mare I would have agreed with you wholeheartedly. She never wore a rug and lived out for most of the year too. However, I now own a TB who drops weight quickly so I'm afraid I do keep him warm... but I don't allow him to get hot! He's not clipped and it's a fine line between keeping him warm so he doesn't lose weight/condition and leaving him exposed that he grows a lovely thick coat.
 
Interesting note: with adequate nutrition (probably more than is able to be provided or indeed consumed but nvm) horses (completely naked) are able to maintain their body temp and resist hypothermia down to approx -15 degrees, a naked human will begin to suffer hypothermia at about +15 degrees.....

I dislike over rugging, but I think application of commen sense is a wonderful tool in deciding how many clothes each horse needs and when.
 
Taffyhorse said:
I rug to what my horse tells me. If he's cold, he gets a rug, if he isn't he doesn't - simples :-)

I don't tend to go by the seasons either - if its p*ssing it down and freezing cold in July, he'll get a rug, if its a nice warm sunny day in October he won't.
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Yay! Common sense talking:)
 
Well, imagine my chagrin upon arriving at the yard one morning with freezing hands, tucking them under my horse's HW rug to make them nice and toasty to find... lukewarm...?! What good is a lukewarm horse when you have freezing hands?!

Ooh, I should also mention that he's on box rest and still getting hard feed :p:D
 
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