managment question

[parsley]

Now that I am at a different yard I can ride much later in the evening but I am finding that as he is unfit after having a lot of time off my boy comes home very sweaty, even after a quiet walk and trot. He is living out so I rinse the girth area and around his back legs etc and put his cooler on for a while. The problem is that it takes him ages to dry off so tonight I had to put him out while damp.

The question is -

is he better off with a lightweight turnout to stop him getting chilled, but then I worry he will stay damp for longer.

OR

should I turn him out without a rug so that he dries quicker.

I went with the first one in the end but now I am looking at the clock and worrying that he will be damp and cold. (But if I had left the rug off I would have done the same worrying!)

W

hen he wears a rug daily - should I put a cooler under his normal rug if he is still damp and has to go out at night?

 

[Sal_E]

Parsley, can you give him a light clip to stop him sweating? Maybe just a bib or high trace.

To answer your question, I'd put the rug on if you feel he needs it - I wouldn't wash the sweat off though (assuming he's not an over-sensitive sort who gets rubs or bumps..), I'd just brush it. Also, I'd quickly flick any mud off the tack areas & then get on with riding. Then, when you return, brush the sweat immediately (then apply a cooler if you think the weather warrants it), titivate on the yard doing whatever else needs doing (even putting tack away, everything...), then do your proper groom, leaving the sweaty bits to last which should hopefully have virtually dried. Then you're ready to put the rug on.

In the depths of winter, you do not want to be turning the horse out damp - you may well have to clip.

 

[eekmon]

Personally if he is a horse hardy enough to live out, I would leave him with no rug. It is still quite warm at the moment! Though depends on age/breed ect! If You start rugging now and he is to live out all winter, surley he is better off naked at the moment * stands back and waits to be shot*

 

[chestnut cob]

How about giving him a small clip, then he should dry off quicker? You can still rug him and he can still live out.

Mine was fully clipped a week or so ago and has a LW on at night and in the rain. He will stay fully clipped all winter and only come in in January, out in a MW and poss HW til then.

 

[parsley]

Thanks for the replies. He is generally unrugged at the momment (not this evening though)! Last year I had this clip done. Would it be OK to do it now? He is losing a lot of summer coat. but when I bring him back from a hack the sweat is literally running down his front legs.

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[ruscara]

Marius has exactly that clip, and was done last Tuesday. He is not very furry yet, but enough to make him sweat and take ages to dry off. I think you could do Bomber now, and again in a few weeks. I can quite see where you are coming from with the rugging thing - I am in the same quandary!

 

[Sal_E]

There's nothing to say you can't clip early, it just means he'll probably need another clip fairly quickly - a nuisance (& expense) for you, but probably will suit him better to be cooler...

 

[parsley]

I was given a pair of clipper and have been hogging him myself so I thought I would have a go at a little clip - it will probably look like a chewed rug but if I get the hang of it OK I can clip him as often as I want!

I think I will have a go tommorow afternoon so I can ride him in the week.

 

[parsley]

It is difficult isn't it? If I could I would just go back to the yard about 10 to 11 O'clock and check him - but I don't think that would be a nice thing to do to the YO!

 

[eekmon]

Im sure a little clip now would be fine ! Im clipping mine at the weekend and a few at our yard have been done a few weeks! V hard to answer posts like yours til you know the type of horse/ routine ect! A clip and rug is better than a sweaty horse!