Keeping horse warm this winter

[shellebage]

Hi all. So I have a new horse arriving on Saturday.

He is a le trot ex racer. Has lived in Malta and Europe for most of his life. He came over to the UK in July and this is his first English winter!

I will make sure he is fed well and rugged up appropriately.

However when we go out hacking this winter which will be 4-5 times a week I'm a bit worried he might really feel the cold esp if he gets wet.
I'm thinking maybe an exercise sheet could help, maybe a waterproof high viz one as all we will do is hack.

Am I overthinking this?
I'm just thinking that I'll be doing all I can to keep him warm this winter and then tae him out hacking totally naked! We won't be going crazy, mostly walk and trot around the lanes.

Advice welcome!

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

Just be aware that he may not have ever had an exercise rug on I would stick with a fleece type one, a waterproof flappy noisy one might be a bit too much, one of my Arab's still is not great in one if it blows around and makes a noise and his 19 now and had them on for years

We need pictures of new horse please.

 

[SpeedyPony]

I have a fleece lined waterproof- not very loud, certainly no louder than a rug and weighty enough that it doesn't flap too badly, although I would try it out from the ground first if I was riding a new horse in high winds!
If they're clipped/the weather is truly foul they are great, if he's got a reasonable coat or you aren't riding in foul weather you may not need one. I like using them when it's raining, even if it's not too cold, as it saves the hassle of drying out a wet horse when you get back. The wrap around type are IMO better, as they go under the saddle flap rather than under the whole saddle which can be slippery.

 

[Clodagh]

Don’t feed him lots of hard feed, ad lib forage will keep him far warmer.

 

[Barton Bounty]

I agree with the fleece lined waterproof one. I have a nice toasty eskadron softshell one but its only showerproof.

Congratulations on new horsey piccies please

 

[shellebage]

Don’t feed him lots of hard feed, ad lib forage will keep him far warmer.

I'm going to keep him on what his current owners have him on for now so not to upset him too much, some conditioning fibre, balancer and pink mash. He'll have as much hay as he wants

 

[shellebage]

I have a fleece lined waterproof- not very loud, certainly no louder than a rug and weighty enough that it doesn't flap too badly, although I would try it out from the ground first if I was riding a new horse in high winds!
If they're clipped/the weather is truly foul they are great, if he's got a reasonable coat or you aren't riding in foul weather you may not need one. I like using them when it's raining, even if it's not too cold, as it saves the hassle of drying out a wet horse when you get back. The wrap around type are IMO better, as they go under the saddle flap rather than under the whole saddle which can be slippery.

Can I ask you which one you have please? I'll probably get him one and walk him in hand out and about first to see how he gets on! He's pretty unflappable himself apparently

 

[SpeedyPony]

Can I ask you which one you have please? I'll probably get him one and walk him in hand out and about first to see how he gets on! He's pretty unflappable himself apparently

I think it's the HyVis exercise sheet (https://gsequestrian.co.uk/products/hyviz-reflector-exercise-sheet) if not that one exactly pretty similar. I also have a navy one for when we need to look smart/hi vis isn't so vital, which is definitely an Hy one.

 

[NinjaPony]

I’ve got a mark Todd hi viz sheet which is great. I also recommend the thermatex quarter sheets, they are slightly heavier so don’t tend to move and very warm. Definitely walk/lunge in one first in case he hasn’t had one on before!

 

[HorseMaid]

I've got a fleece lined exercise sheet which is great BUT I'm finding since I clipped my horse it's catching on her bum hairs and pulling everything back (saddle etc) - so I'm on the lookout for a silky lined one instead if they exist!

 

[LadyGascoyne]

Definitely lots of hay. The digestion/ fermentation process for forage actually produces heat which acts as an internal horse-warmer. So it’s not just about calories and weight, it helps them to keep themselves warm from the inside.

Congrats on the new horse

 

[Widgeon]

He sounds lovely - in my limited experiences trotter types are sweeties. Do post some photos when he arrives!

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

I have a fleece lined waterproof mark todd hiviz which I use on Arabi but I don't use it on windy days because it still flaps and makes a noise, his just really sensitive to anything flapping about on him so I have used the Rambo stripe fleece which is so thick in the rain it doesn't go through it.