Over-rugging..........

[Daytona]

I think it's cruel to be honest.

Horses absolutely hate being hot , it's stressful for them. Cold they can deal with and really with one rug on are they really going to be that cold - no. It's not like we live in Siberia. They will be far comfortable than dripping wet under a mountain of unrequired rugs.

These people are putting there animals through stress for no reason. Poor horses , makes me sad.

 

[Ridingondreams]

My loan horse - a 19-year-old Connemara, unclipped but with a pathetic winter coat - is currently in just a thin fleece at night! How anyone could be putting on more than one medium weight rug on an average heavyweight cob in these temperatures is utterly beyond me!

As well as being uncomfortable for the horse, if a rug gets wet from sweat it is then actually colder for the horse because they are essentially in a cold, damp rug (or so I have been led to believe). I read an article in a horsey magazine a few months back about a horse that died of hyperthermia because it was put in a heavyweight t/o one night and then the next day was sunny. Poor horse was running around trying to get it off and eventually died of heat exhaustion! Clearly this was a very extreme example, but being overheated is very distressing for a horse

 

[ihatework]

Starryeyed - I've now given up! One livery reckons she's bought three lightweight turnouts and none are waterproof because they all get wet linings. Actually, they all get wet linings because her horse sweats up, not because the rug leaks!

Going back a couple of years I remember a conversation with fellow livery who was complaining about the condensation in their stable ... until I pointed out that the layer of 'condenstaion' on the top of their horses stable rug was wicked away sweat!!

to be fair, they were mortified and immediately reduced their rugging.

 

[mandyroberts]

There is no one size fits all. My friends horse was naked last night at 3c, my horse had 2 layers and a neck cover and her horse was warmer than mine this morning. I am concerned if a horse sweats under its rugs

 

[Spottyappy]

People do not seem to treat horses as horses any more, nor as individuals.
My iSH really hates being hot, to the degree he will pull his rug off any which way he can. He is blanket clipped, and tonight stabled, but not rugged. It's 10degrees or so according to a slightly reliable forecast, and he copes fine with that even though fairly hairless. The 3 year old welsh cob, however, is quite wimpy and not holding his weight that well, so he has a thin waffle rug to just keep the chill off. Two totally different horses, but almost with role reversal in rugging techniques!

 

[Starbucks]

Mine has a liner and a heavy weight full neck tonight and he had a medium underneath when it was colder at the weekend. He's not too warm though I'd be mortified if he ever sweated up!! I have shaved all his hair off and making him work hard for a living though.. I don't want him to be hot or cold hence why I am rigging to keep him at a nice temp.. What's so complicated?

 

[keeperscottage]

Mandy Roberts, eh? X

 

[keeperscottage]

SpottyAppy - totally acceptable - unlike my numpty yard!

 

[MerrySherryRider]

I just love the rug manufacturers who, not to miss an opportunity, brought in the concept of matchy matchy rug liners a few years back.
Thus reinforcing the notion that horses are unable to function without a wardrobe more varied than Barbie.

Just waiting for Hunters to start making wellies with fleece socks for their delicate tootsies now.

 

[RunToEarth]

Keeping your horse comfortable is basic horse management, how do so many go so wrong?!

We have four similar breeds, very different rugging requirements. I go to bed with them warm enough, I wake up with them warm enough, it isn't too difficult.

Luckily I'm at home and have no one to justify myself to. I just know how cold it got last spring, and I bear that in mind when I am rugging up - I'm cold, but I'm not a horse...

 

[keeperscottage]

Starbucks - totally acceptable! I'm dealing with over-rugged, sweaty hairies and natives whose owners REFUSE to admit they need less rugs.......arghhhhhhh! X

 

[Fools Motto]

Ask the owners to put on, a thermal vest, a t-shirt, a poloshirt, a sweater and two coats, with a woolly hat and scarf, pair of jeans, waterproof trousers, hiking socks and their wellies. Then ask them to go for a 20 min walk, carrying a 25kg sack of feed.

Bet they'd feel a bit warm then!!

 

[Starbucks]

Yes my ex YO insists her horses wear rugs all year so they don't get rain scald.. Doesn't matter how sweaty they are!?:-(

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

Mine is an ISH type 3 yo old...not clipped. He doesn't really get very fluffy but he is naked and lives out. I am using a no fill rain sheet if its very wet but thats it. He will have a medium weight on once the weather is consistently below 3°c as he does feel cold then. His field mate is an incredibly heavy weight Breton mare and she never has anything thicker than a rain sheet on regardless of the weather.

 

[keeperscottage]

Daytona, couldn't agree more with your final paragraph!!

 

[p87]

Although my wimp of an Arab is in his MW (he was looking suicidal until I caved and put it on him) My shettie is out naked and will be until she is genuinely cold - not because I'm a soft touch and want my baby all snugly wuggly and all wugged up!

I took my friends horses rug off the other day as she was far too hot, and she marched off and now won't come near me! I think it for fear that I'll put it back on haha

 

[p87]

Meant to add... I get more annoyed at folk who try and tell me its cruel to leave a horse naked in the rain... Ok there is a point where I may feel a rain sheet is necessary, but not until the rain is so hard it starts to hurt!

Shettie loves being soaked. Took her a dog walk and she tried to roll in the river! Had it been a sandy bed rather than stones I think she may just have went right down

 

[pansymouse]

In my opinion over rugging is epidemic - native horses and ponies do not need rugs if they are not clipped but these days nearly all of them wear them.

 

[Prince33Sp4rkle]

i guess the point is that they might not need them (ie could survive perfectly happily and healthily without them), but people have horses for a reason (to enjoy) and if rugging allows them to have a clean dry horse to ride,with a less greasy coat, AS LONG as the horse is not too hot, the rugs are not an issue?

i get slated on here for the rugs mine wear but they are NEVER even clammy, never mind actually sweaty or itchy. They are rugged appropriately for each horse-we have 1 in a MW today, and 2 in HW with MW under rugs.

none are hot, or cold, or chilled, or sweaty, or itchy, or tucked up. they are all happy in their rugs

i dont think its about rugging as much as people not using their brains, but ref rugging it works the other way too-saw someone come back from a fast hack at a yard i teach at, unclipped horse MEGA sweaty (white foam dripping off it) and breathing heavily.............tied it up on the yard in the rain for 5mins whilst they put tack away, put a leaky rain sheet on it and turned it back out in the wind and rain! so clammy hot horse will stand and get a chill as coat too thick and wet to dry quickly, and when it does eventually dry the rain sheet will just flatten the hair without offering any warmth,whilst letting rain in along the back, so a cold horse just gets colder!

for the sake of putting a wicking rug on for 20mins to dry it, then putting a 40g or 70g proper rug on.

or even worse is when people are inconsistant..........MW on one day, then no rug, then a LW, then a HW etc (in fairly regular temps i hasten to add), that must play havoc with the horses internal thermometer!

so, to reiterate, i think its just a symptom of people who dont use their brain lol!

 

[Sarah1]

I agree. Some poor horses must be so hot and uncomfortable but some people still think over rugging stops them growing a thick winter coat. None of mine wear more than 200g / 8oz even if they are fully clipped and the temperatures are below zero.

Absolutely agree - mine is the same - he's ID x WB and even with a full clip I hardly ever use the thick liner for his duo rug. At the moment he's unclipped and a walk around the block is enough to make him sweat - his coat is just so thick so I doubt he needs any intervention from me to keep warm! If we have very heavy rain then I will put a sheet with no neck on just to keep the worst of it off him & then once it's stopped it'll come off again. He has plenty of hay too.
My other one is a Shetland and her coat is already the length of my fingers! She comes in at night when it gets really cold/snows (only because the others come in & she doesn't like to be on her own and the snow can trigger her lami if I'm not very careful with her) and she'll still sweat in the stable with no rugs at all unless she has the window open! I may even have to take her belly off and still leave her unrugged if the winter is quite mild just to make her comfy!
I know people who have had their unclipped horses in a minimum of MW rugs for weeks now - they too like them to feel 'toasty' under their rugs but to me if their body feels 'toasty' then they're probably too warm! You can't educate them though so it's best to just let them get on with it!

 

[Honey08]

Without getting too much into the argument, just wanted to add that when I went to check my two last night at about 11.30 and they were boiling. They have just come in at night, are unclipped at the moment, and don't have too much coat. They were wearing rainsheets. I ended up having to pull them off as they were on the point of sweating. Their stables are in open countryside in the Pennines. The weather is so mild. I was quite shocked as to how hot they had got.

 

[BobbyMondeo]

i guess the point is that they might not need them (ie could survive perfectly happily and healthily without them), but people have horses for a reason (to enjoy) and if rugging allows them to have a clean dry horse to ride,with a less greasy coat, AS LONG as the horse is not too hot, the rugs are not an issue?

i get slated on here for the rugs mine wear but they are NEVER even clammy, never mind actually sweaty or itchy. They are rugged appropriately for each horse-we have 1 in a MW today, and 2 in HW with MW under rugs.

none are hot, or cold, or chilled, or sweaty, or itchy, or tucked up. they are all happy in their rugs

even worse is when people are inconsistant..........MW on one day, then no rug, then a LW, then a HW etc (in fairly regular temps i hasten to add), that must play havoc with the horses internal thermometer!

so, to reiterate, i think its just a symptom of people who dont use their brain lol!

Totally agree PS!!!

I have been slated in the past for putting too many rugs on my boy...and ok i have got it wrong sometimes and he has ripped them but he has never been sweaty or too cold and always been quite happy. Hes currently in a HW combo and a LW combo at night and HW in the field.

I have to keep him slightly "toasty" in the winter because he drops weight and as soon as he is cold his muscles get stiff, he them finds it hard to work and i have to spend more money on getting the physio out to correct it again.

Personally would slightly over rug (with him still being comfortable) than under rug and have to spend money on tonnes of extra feed and physio appointments.

 

[catherine22]

My freshly fully clipped ISH is out naked today. He had a 200g rug on overnight (he lives out) but now the sun is out he was starting to get hot so he's happily basking in the sun, not baking

 

[splashnutti1]

I really dont understand over rugging lol.

my irish cob is fully clipped out and is in a light/med weight rug with hood, wont go into anything thicker till temps are in the minuses. My 26 year old isnt clipped and only wearing a lined lightweight and is fine

 

[mel_s]

Its a real bug-bear of mine! Mine are still in LWs and were sweating the weekend. They live out and last year never had more than a MW on! I have given in and bought HWs this year though in case i need them. But that year it dropped to -20 i put a stable rug under my horses MW turnout and i'm sure he was too hot!

 

[Prince33Sp4rkle]

My freshly fully clipped ISH is out naked today. He had a 200g rug on overnight (he lives out) but now the sun is out he was starting to get hot so he's happily basking in the sun, not baking

and thats the thing, if mine were out naked today they would be tucked up and miserable.

horses for courses (or rugs for horses lol), whats right for one is very rarely right for all.

 

[Penny Eater]

I wouldn't have thought a HW with a MW underneath would be appropriate for any horse today - it's very mild for November.

 

[splashnutti1]

and thats the thing, if mine were out naked today they would be tucked up and miserable.

horses for courses (or rugs for horses lol), whats right for one is very rarely right for all.

totally agree each horse is different. my lad is a naturally hot horse some others feel the cold. I believe rug to the individual

do feel if its unfair to rug a horse if its sweating and hot, but if comfortable then doesnt matter what they have on!

 

[Dizzleton]

If the horse is happy leave the owner to it!

My WB is in a 450g combo living out day/night and fully clipped (bar legs and face) He is lovely and warm and very happy. Once the weather is colder he will wear 450g + 400g stable rug + fleece (snuggy jams) while he is out in the day / in at night. He hates cold, wet and windy weather; but is always happy in the rugs I have him in.

On the other hand a livery's TB x has a chaser clip and is still in a med weight standard neck day/night. He doesn't feel the cold and sweats up easily.

Each horse is different, just as people are

 

[Cheshire Chestnut]

14.1hh Welshie - not clipped yet. Has a lightweight turnout on during the day (no filling) and that's just to keep him clean as he is an expert at rolling in puddles. Has a thin fleece on a night mainly because his stable has a draught. Not going to clip him until it gets much colder as he has a heavyweight turnout and a heavyweight stable rug waiting for him but he will still be too warm to have them on now even with a clip. When the temp drops he can have his clip and then his thicker rugs. He lived out all last year naked - he wasn't worked then but he had a shelter but no rugs and was fine. Hardy little thing