Meep, for those of you who keep your horses out... =S

floradora09

floradora09

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If you keep your horse out, what are you doing rug-wise? Mine's blanket clipped and it's going to be -7 tonight....
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He's already got a full neck h/w, full neck fleece and a light under rug! He feels plenty warm enough now, but think I ought to put another layer on for tonight? Thoughts anyone? I've got a med. weight under rug that I guess could go on too... although that would be four layers!
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Thankies
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I feel guilty now. All of ours are in MW's with no necks. But am going to change them into half neck HW's tonight. Before the WHW come after me they do have a lot of natural shelter though and bales and bales of hay out in the field!
 
Monty is nearly 30yo tb and he's not clipped. He is in a full neck heavy weight. Tonight he will have a full neck under-rug on too.

Zoomy has a hunter clip and is a tb. She is currently in a full neck medium weight with a standard neck medium quilt underneath. She will have an extra fleece on tonight.

If yours is used to living out and feels warm enough he will be fine. There is colder weather yet to come in January!!
 
I have two out, one is 30 years old Sec D xTb, she has a heavyweight rambo with no neck, she was plenty warm enough this morning so will stay like that, the other is also an oldie but tougher. she has a rainsheet on and was toasty this morning. They will both get more feed (as in fibre) tonight though as I think that does the best job of keeping them warm. It is bright and dry here but frozen solid, no snow - yet!
 
Ok, I'll have a think! Something on my shopping list for Olympia is a full neck mw under rug, but not been yet so haven't got one! Think what I'll do is swap the light under rug for the medium one, so he'll have a full neck fleece, standard medium under rug and a full neck heavyweight turnout.

Good?
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Horses cope really well with the cold dry weather and snow we're having at the moment. I was in the states at the start of this year and it was -25 during the day - these guys were all retired TBs and none were rugged and none ever chose to use the shelter either.

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I wouldn't add any more rugs if your horse feels warm enough - my TB is still in just a MW with neck - but I would make sure they had ad lib good hay or haylage, it's amazing how well they keep warm.

PS in that pic it was so cold that the water buckets for the inside horses had to be filled after they were bought in from the fields, then the following morning I spent a couple of hours breaking ice out of the buckets where they had frozen solid. If you filled the buckets before the horses were in then they froze by the time the horses came in, that's how cold it was. I don't miss chipping ice out of buckets!!
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My clipped cob has a HW full neck with a fleece underneath at the moment, this is the most he ever has.

If you're worried perhaps swap the light underrug for the medium one?
 
Mine is a blanket clipped NF pony with a HW rambo wug on at the moment loads of snow also he has a thick bushy mane and tail and hairy legs, he has access to a large field shelter.

This is as heavy as he will get regarding rugging as I don't him out 24/7 with more than one rug on.
 
My 20 yo riding pony had been fully clipped but its partly grown out, he's out in a hw with neck and is toasty under his rug.
Our 14 yo fell is out in a high neck MW but is pretty fluffy.
 
my 3yro unclipped horse is wearing a full neck heavyweight rug but he is a bit of a poor doer and impossible to get weight on again once it is lost.
 
10yr old ISH hunter clipped and hunting fit out 24/7 - in a fleece, MW half neck turn out and a HW full neck turn out over - that's done her well in the last few nights -7 here too
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but - wind chill is supopsed to get to -12 here tonight so will swap fleece for a full neck combo thin underrug
was using her sherpa with full belly flap - love it - but after only a week she has no mane for about 4 inches abover her withers.... grrrrr and thats with me reapplying it twice a day... double grrrrr
 
We're not quite as cold here, around minus 3 or so, but it was snowing yesterday!! ALways thought that was too cold to snow? Weird. Anyway he is unclipped and in a 300g full neck rug and was contemplating his proper heavy weight, but decided to leave it until it was wet. windy and freezing when he'll really need it!
I personally would never put more than two rugs on a horse, especially one that it living out.
 
Id say anything over 3 layers is way too much personally, Id think that would be quite uncomfy! Cold doesnt seem to bother horses, only when its wet and windy with it do they really feel it. It was about -5 here last night and my horse (the 2 ponies are natives so are naked) simply has on a heavyweight turnout (no neck) but then he is furry at the moment (although TB x luso so only little frizz!). When he's clipped (in about a month) he'll just wear a heavyweight with neck, on really nasty days I'll add a stable rug underneath but thats about it. He's never cold!
 
My 2 Arabs are in HWs with necks overnight and MWs during the day. One is Irish clipped. Both seem quite happy. This cold dry weather isn't a problem for most horses.
 
My preggers mare just has a middleweight with neck on and her furry baby tummy sticking out the bottom - going to switch to the heavyweight tonight for -5 temps she was toasty warm this morning (Compared to my hands !!!!)

She doesn't seem to mind the cold it is more the wet that bothers them
 
well ive got a 3yo WB who is a total wimp. not clipped, not rugged
and a 19year old, not clipped or rugged ISH.

the WBxTB is fully clipped and has two m/w turnouts with full necks on, but shes in at night.
dry cold is normally ok, its when its wet and windy they get really cold.
 
26yo connie x arab - looks like a polar bear in a MW with no neck - felt positively hot this morning in the sun. 15 month old TB xQH in a MW with full neck - lovely and cosy this morning. They have loads and loads of hay and some natural shelter but no field shelter - they honestly seem fine. On the other hand the 11yo TB is in the stable with a fleece and a MW in the day and a MW with HW over at night!
 
Personally I prefer not to put too many rugs on horses that are out as they can run around and have hay for central heating. Orkan is in a hw t/o combo with a lw stable rug underneath in this weather and is toasty (he is blanket clipped).
 
None of ours are clipped, but one has a MW as he has virtually no shelter and is old and drops weight, one has a LW as she is underweight and shivering recently, the other six are naked but still feeling warm. Won't be quite so cold here as -7 though.
 
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