Is the amount of coat horses grow based on how warm they are?

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Morgan123

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Feel like I should know the answer to this but..... is it an old wives' tale that keeping your horse warmish early in the season will keep it from growing so much of a coat? I am guessing it is.....
 
Ive always believed it was down to daylight hours. Although I still coat growth can be slowed down slightly by heavy rugging.
 
I think how much of a coat they get depends on their breed as well as reduction of day light hours.
 
One of mine was turned out completely living in a group with very little human intervention for two years before he came to us he had a coat like a bear the first winter he's been here five years this winter he has very little winter coat,
My TB who was not used to turn out is turned out ( well rugged ) every day no matter what the weather the first winter he was here he had no winter coat this is his third winter here and he has a proper winter coat for the first time.
I think they adapt to conditions .
 
I think horses each have a particular thickness of coat and that's it pretty much for life! I don't think you can change it much at all with rugging/clipping.

Over the past seven years I have (different years) over-rugged when I was planning on showing over the winter and in the spring, and under-rugged when I wasn't planning on showing. The only difference I found was that the more you rug the flatter the coat lies, it's the same thickness but it just looks like its not as thick, it's an illusion!

Now I am rugging just what is necessary for the temperature and comfort of my horse and his coat again is the same thickness as previous years.
 
Coat is mostly due to daylight hours, something to do with stimulation of the melatonin pathways. It would therefore make sense that continual rugging would lessen the coat over time, as you're blocking that stimulation, as the skin is not seeing any of the light.
 
I don't agree. Horses that live out tend to throw a thicker coat, and it does seem to change if they are stabled. However, My old mare is now living out, albeit in a very sheltered field and is not throwing any sort of coat at all. She has been a bear before. My youngster who did live out threw a yaks coat the first year in, this year, not so much.
 
I bought 2 connemaras 18 months ago, off a mountain. Last winter, although they were in, they grew massive coats. there was a 1 inch step where I clipped them! They've been in all summer, and this winter they'v grown a much shorter, sleeker coat, I had very little coat to clip. So I would definitely say they acclimatise and grow coat according to whats needed.
Also 'shuttle stallions' do not really change their coats from summer to winter, whereas a TB turned out all year grows a thicker coat.
 
hollybear said:
Think its mostly down to genetics, with environment having some influence too though.
Click to expand...

This.. My 16yo TB gets very fluffy in the winter, his coat starts fluffing up at the end of Aug. I have had him 11yrs, he was stabled at night for the first 6yrs but has been living out 24/7 for the last 5. This has made no difference whatsoever to how thick or how fast his winter coat grows.
 
I don't know. My horses confuse me.
I have a 19yo Connemara who was never rugged apart from one brief spell as a 7yo when she was clipped. Her winter coat is fine, not particularly long but fluffy from mid August. She doesn't lose her coat until May. I would have thought genetically Connies have thick coats.
I have her son who's by a coloured WB. His coat is longer and thicker. I would have thought WB have finer coats.
I have a 22yo draught who had been rugged for years. He grows a long thick coat, always has. But he starts shedding his coat in feb.
Any coloured horse I have ever had has a noticeable difference between the white parts and the coloured parts. There is a noticeable step between the 2 colours. So I wonder is base colour a factor?
 
I got Barry (TB who had lived out all winter) in May and he was like a giant fluffy teddy bear. Either that took all winter to grow, or I'm rugging him more as he's not that fluffy atm. He's also got more padding this year (he was a bit skinny when I got him).
 
In Cyprus and was at a riding place this morning. The ex racers they have all seem to be very furry indeed. You'd think they'd not need to seeing how warm it is here so I'm assuming it's their breeding? The RI said she'd already clipped her horse and he'd grown it right back. The one I had a lesson on has a coat like the welsh SD I have lessons on. Very hairy.
 
I guess if I left him out naked Frank would probably get even hairier - but rugging him would never reduce his coat enough to enable no clipping to happen ;) :p
 
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