Last night -16, anyone still out 24/7 unrugged?

Its not the hair that keeps them warm but the trapped air in the coat, as soon as you put a rug an a hairy beastie with a full coat you squash the hair down and effectively take one (very good ) rug off and put another on.Wind and wet are the problems ,not the cold as such.I wonder how the wild horses on Batus ,Alberta are tonight,probably dreaming of a tropical minus 16.
 
As he has no access to a shelter then I would definitely rug. There is no point checking him at the warmest part of the day to see how cold he 'looks'. Unless you can check him in the middle of the night you do not know how he is coping. It is exceptionally cold at the minute. FAR colder than UK winters normally are.
 
mine is rugged up with a normal neck 300g, but he is in at night and out for a few hours during the day, he is getting bored with the snow.

if you are worried then pop a 180/200g rug on, better to be safe than sorry in my opinion but only you know your own horse. xx
 
Crazy Dancer & Prancer said:
Sorry - I know so many people have done this to death already, but for the first time I feel a bit under pressure.
So my ArabxWelsh is out 24/7, and unrugged. All the others are rugged. They have ad-lib haylage, but no shelter as such, other than a hedge on 2 sides of the field. Up to now, I haven't worried, he is fat and fluffy and when I visit during the day he seems happy and warm. But last night we were down to -16, and the YO (who's opinion I do value, as she is very experienced) said she felt sorry for him.
So I'm a bit in two minds now. I really don't recall it ever being this cold, and I'm only getting to the yard during the 'warmest' part of the day as I'm getting a lift with another owner who has a 4x4 (as I don't!) so am worried that he is getting cold at night.
Any thoughts?
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Im sure he is fine. He has food and company and he is used to being unrugged. More to the point he is fat- therefore for his health he is better off left unrugged. The YO will feel more sorry for him in the spring if he goes down with laminitis or ems because he has stayed fat all winter due to being rugged.
 
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