PSSM horse rugging?

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travellingpony

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I am trying the supplements for my mare well I have them all ordered. She is fat but not terribly.

She's native so grows a good coat. With sore muscles in mind should you rug if it's wet etc? She's currently out with nothing I've been trying to get weight off? Any thoughts? Vet isn't being helpful at al.
 
I try to keep rugs off for as long as possible as our winters can get very cold (-25C), and if I start rugging too early I run out of rugs to go to.

My mare wasn't overly symptomatic until last summer when she was diagnosed, and we went from her being happy out in the worst of weather with a 100g rug, to her being cold (shivery type cold) in 500g

Generally I am always guided by how she is feeling. I check how warm she feels in her "armpit" and in the groin when she is un rugged, and beside the wither and top of loin when she is rugged.

Once the rugs are on, I now know to keep her warmer than I would a "normal" horse, i.e. She she feels warm rather than "not cold." This worked well for us last winter, but each horse is an individual...
 
Casey76 said:
I try to keep rugs off for as long as possible as our winters can get very cold (-25C), and if I start rugging too early I run out of rugs to go to.

My mare wasn't overly symptomatic until last summer when she was diagnosed, and we went from her being happy out in the worst of weather with a 100g rug, to her being cold (shivery type cold) in 500g

Generally I am always guided by how she is feeling. I check how warm she feels in her "armpit" and in the groin when she is un rugged, and beside the wither and top of loin when she is rugged.

Once the rugs are on, I now know to keep her warmer than I would a "normal" horse, i.e. She she feels warm rather than "not cold." This worked well for us last winter, but each horse is an individual...
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Thank you that is helpful. She's not a cold horse at all I just didn't wan to aggravate muscle spasms but in the same breath want to get weight off too. Il see how she goes
 
Not quite the same muscle condition but I rug my RER horse much more than the other horses I know. His condition is stress triggered and he doesn't grow much coat so for him the brisk autumn morning that the woolly natives enjoy tend to lead to him galloping around like a loony or rearing and leaping on the spot to warm up, which leads to tight muscles or sore spots from uncontrolled belting around. Rigging keeps him relaxed and his muscles much softer. But that doesn't necessarily mean you need to rug a pssm horse, just don't let it get cold. So if she has a lovely thick coat and keeps herself warm that's great, but if it's wet and miserable you may want to consider rugging where you may not bother if the horse had adequate shelter but didn't have pssm.

I'm very careful not to over rug though, he usually only gets a 100g rug unless the temps drop to well below zero.
 
The first winter I had mine I didn't know she had pssm so she was out rug less to try and lose some weight - couldn't ride her. Her quarters were so stiff she looked lame every time she trotted.

So she's now rugged much more heavily than I would do normally for a chunky X-bred draft. Rain sheet or nothing in the day right now and 100g at night. I ride in the mornings and she's much happier with a warmer rug on. I need to start digging out the exercise sheets soon.
 
All really interesting thanks guys my thoughts were she should be warm. She's on Bute just now and seems better but I will think about a sheet and speak to the vet again
 
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