Living out unrugged and clipping?

samlf said:
Obviously every horse is an individual but the point of a forum is to ask others experiences, isn't it?
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Absolutely - my comment was aimed at people who apply black and white rules to things (to clip = to rug) with no consideration of the horse itself; other people who may be less experienced then repeat this mantra and end up never really thinking about what's best for their horse because they simply do what they then consider to be the done thing.

Hearing the views of others in the context of their own situation is always helpful.

Your plan sounds very sensible.
 
I blanket clipped my lightweight cob last week, he was sweating just mooching round the field. He is living out, unrugged, seems pointless putting a rug on top of his unclipped back!
I do under rug compared to a lot of people, would rather my (good doer) horses had ad lib forage and moved about more than rug them to the eyeballs and put them on diets!
 
Tnavas said:
Depends how much and where you remove it from. A basic bib and low throat is fine to be left up rugged. A trace needs at least one wool lined rug, any more off and you need to double rug.
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Doesn't it also depend on where you live, what the ambient temperature is, whether it's raining, what breed your horse is, what it's fed, how much shelter it has, how fat it is, etc.?

I'm sorry Tnavas, but the above is a very blanket statement . . . pun intended . . .

P

P.S. Also, wool rugs? Really? With all the lightweight, breathable modern rugs on the market today?
 
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Your're right Polarskye, it all depends!
Last winter was quite warm and wet, but not cold. If its -10 and your horse is freezing put a dam rug on it, if its 10c and nice leave its rug off.
The beauty of rugs is that you can put them on... and off!
Buy a rug, use it when necessary. Sorted! :)
 
PolarSkye said:
Doesn't it also depend on where you live, what the ambient temperature is, whether it's raining, what breed your horse is, what it's fed, how much shelter it has, how fat it is, etc.?

I'm sorry Tnavas, but the above is a very blanket statement . . . pun intended . . .

P

P.S. Also, wool rugs? Really? With all the lightweight, breathable modern rugs on the market today?
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This....with bells on.
 
Tnavas said:
Depends how much and where you remove it from. A basic bib and low throat is fine to be left up rugged. A trace needs at least one wool lined rug, any more off and you need to double rug.
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Double rug? My mare has been out with a hunter clip unrugged before if the weather is warm enough, nevermind double rugging!!
 
I own rugs and horses...it is possible that the two may at some point occupy the same general space. It isn't looking very likely at present, but it could happen.
 
Tnavas said:
Depends how much and where you remove it from. A basic bib and low throat is fine to be left up rugged. A trace needs at least one wool lined rug, any more off and you need to double rug.
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Wool lined rug? Wake up Tnavas it's the twenty first century :D

Double rug? PMSL :D:D :D
 
I've just hunter clipped the pony as she was hairy and sweaty and has a sponsored ride this weekend. But it is 20 deg c still at 19:20 in the evening so I definitely won't be double rugging her tonight. I'm still wandering round the garden in a t shirt!

There are so many variables - location, microclimate, time of year, horse hardiness, time elapsed since clipping etc, that you can't make hard and fast rules!
 
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It depends on the horse/pony. If there's some shelter in the field a native type can quite happily spend winter living out unrugged with a bib clip and some with a trace clip especially if they are a bit tubby.
 
joycec said:
Wool lined rug? Wake up Tnavas it's the twenty first century :D

Double rug? PMSL :D:D :D
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I still buy them! They are far more comfortable for the horse to wear - they don't sweat up as they tend to do in a synthetic.

They are still made all around New Zealand and are definitely the choice for all the racing stables. if they get damaged they are easy to fix and can be resealed when they start to leak.

I have a couple of synthetic rugs, unless lined with a natural fabric they fray the end of the coat and cause funny patches. They cause the horse to sweat often on only a mildly warm day. While they may be light and easy for us to handle Id far rather have my lovely wool lined New Zealand rugs.

To be honest a lot of you rug needlessly - horses don't melt in the rain and are no different than they were twenty years ago - the majority of horses that lived out never wore rugs.
 
if doing just a bib you could leave unrugged however as you say you are clipping as she'll be in work you don't want her getting too wet or muddy as over brushing isn't good either. A lightweight will keep them clean and the worst of the wind and rain off of them.

Personally as an owner of a horse who has a blanket/trace combo over the winter and clipped out late feb as he doesn't cope with moulting his winter coat. I don't like over rugging him, I use the wintertime to let him drop a bit of weight naturally and he will soak up the sun on a warm day would be drenched in sweat anyway, I'd prefer him to be cooler than overheating even in a winter sun!!

Ultimately the choice is yours in the best interests of your own horse you know them best
 
One thing I briefly alluded to in my post above is the time that has elapsed since clipping. Here in the South East the weather is positively Mediterranean at present, but the hairy types are still growing thick coats and most will need some form of clipping if doing vigorous work. If you give a bib clip now you probably wouldn't need to rug in our area at present. Obviously after clipping the hair will start to grow back slowly and in a few weeks time the weather might be getting colder but the clipped area will not be so naked so pony may still not need rugging and you may not feel the need to reclip because the weather is not so mild hence pony won't get so sweaty when worked.

Obviously it is a totally different matter when a horse or pony is freshly clipped and it is minus temperatures!
 
Mine are being clipped at the weekend. One will be full clipped, the other trace or blanket depending on my mood at the time. Both will remain naked until this ridiculous weather desists.

And neither will ever see a wool-lined rug in their lives...
 
Tnavas said:
To be honest a lot of you rug needlessly - horses don't melt in the rain and are no different than they were twenty years ago - the majority of horses that lived out never wore rugs.
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But . . . didn't you say somewhere up there that horses that were trace clipped should wear at least ONE wool rug?

I'm a teensy bit confused . . .

P
 
Can't see that a bib clip would harm with no rug as look as horse is a good doer, and happy. Putting a rug on will only cover a small area of a bib clip anyway. I probably wouldn't take the tummy off nor any of the hind quarters. But agree with everyone else who says it is entirely dependent on horse, weather, location, condition etc etc etc and there will be times in the worst of weather a rug may be needed. some horses need lots of rugs, some don't.
 
Was feeling bad and going to rug but it was 24 degrees at 6pm when left yard, its rained but he has field shelter, will be rugged in lightweight when temps return to normal
 
I bib clipped my Exmoor (to include girth area)-just the week before our first bad winter in 2009. he wasn't rugged, it was cold and dry and made no difference to him at all, once again came through winter fat (he was 16 at the time) . don't believe a bib clip on a wooly native makes much difference to a lot of them.
 
Hunter clipped some of mine last weekend as they were getting very sweaty when worked. As it is so warm at night at the moment they are currently out unrugged in a field with good shelter. None of them are underweight and a couple could do with losing a few kilos. Obviously when the weather changes they will be rugged and at some stage will swap over to being out at day and in at night.


In answer to the OP I think it is worth trying a bib clip with no rigging but be prepared to rug if necessary.
 
PolarSkye said:
But . . . didn't you say somewhere up there that horses that were trace clipped should wear at least ONE wool rug?

I'm a teensy bit confused . . .

P
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I'm talking about the number of horses and ponies that are rugged when they need nothing.

Once you remove the coat you need to provide a replacement for that lost coat. A bib clip removes very little coat (rain has usually dripped off before reaching these areas) so doesn't compromise the animals well being, but remove anything above the 'drip' line and the horse needs some protection.

Autumn is always a tough time for deciding whether to clip/rug etc because the weather changes so rapidly. To be honest I cannot understand why your horses are sweating so much, could it just be that they are not fit enough.

I live in a far warmer country than most of you. The unfit horses sweat, the fit ones rarely. None of our show horses in summer are clipped as it would spoil their coat. Some of the show jumpers with horses that have heavier type coats and are in very hard work may clip. In winter, in Christchurch it snows, none of my school horses were clipped, they were fit and rarely sweated up, they wore one wool lined canvas cover, that went on and stayed on. Even the racehorses are rarely clipped, and many are turned out during the day with one wool lined cover on.

My own will sweat buckets in a synthetic cover but doesn't in a canvas one. Regardless of how much they tell you, waterproof, synthetic covers do not breath.
That's why synthetic materials are so great at keeping the wind out.

I know myself I feel far more comfortable doing physical work in my Drisabone coat than I do in my synthetic jacket, the synthetic one raises my temperature and causes me to sweat. Fine for standing around at seminars but not for working in.

A fit horse deals better with work load and temperature changes than an unfit one
 
It is v.v. humid here right now (full on thunderstorms tonight) and particularly unseasonal temperature wise - plenty of native types are well in to coat change - they don't tend to take their fitness in to account sadly- although I haven't clipped mine yet I could have done I just can't be bothered as it will need doing again soon. Maybe you don't have many hairy natives/coloured cob types :p.

Funny how I own waterproof synthetic coats that definitely breath - I can compare them to the ones that don't!
 
I sweat just walking out to my car. I ride 2 a day, muck out, clear fields and do plenty of yard work, plus run 3x a week and do pilates. I am fit enough to walk out to my car, thanks Tnavas. The same applies to my very hairy horses who are in working well within their fitness too. You're on the other side of the world - perhaps you should engage your brain before commenting on things you know nothing about :)
 
sometimes trotting out some paragraph from a 1970s PC/BHS type stable manual just doesn't cut it anymore-be it vet med, stable management or training. there. I've said it. its the referendum, I just don' care anymore..
 
MotherOfChickens said:
sometimes trotting out some paragraph from a 1970s PC/BHS type stable manual just doesn't cut it anymore-be it vet med, stable management or training. there. I've said it. its the referendum, I just don' care anymore..
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Or even a 2014 "colours of the horse" guide from the BHS S1 Official Companion...

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JFTD said:
I sweat just walking out to my car. I ride 2 a day, muck out, clear fields and do plenty of yard work, plus run 3x a week and do pilates. I am fit enough to walk out to my car, thanks Tnavas. The same applies to my very hairy horses who are in working well within their fitness too. You're on the other side of the world - perhaps you should engage your brain before commenting on things you know nothing about :)
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Excuse me - I also actually come from the UK and know perfectly well what the temperature and weather is like. So also suggest that YOU engage your brain before opening your mouth, look to your left and read by my avatar!

The area I live in is also very humid with temperatures far higher daily for weeks on end than you will ever get in the UK.

Synthetic covers cause horses to over heat, canvas don't! Fit horses cope better with temperature changes. Therefore if your horses are sweating with medium level work then they are NOT fit.
 
But you don't know what it is like here now! That is the point.

I suspect your horses are more aclimatised to that sort of environment at that sort of time of year. Ours are expecting autumn to be well on the way and we are +20 and humid!
 
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