Should i take his fleece off?

SplashofSoy said:
My TB will drop condition at the drop of a hat if he gets cold. Currently the perfect weight and maintaining this on good grass and relevant hard feed but will always be rugged in this current sort of weather. Someone needs to remind him that horses really shouldnt shrink in the rain but he didnt get that memo. Rug a horse which needs a rug and dont if they dont, being slightly cold is not a problem for a lot of horses if they dont drop condition when they are so.
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Tb's can be an odd breed with regards this sort of thing agreed, they may be the exception given the fact that they are usually coddled from birth. But the likes of people rugging natives because it is raining is silly.

Anyway, better go and check my horse to see if she is still standing or if she has melted into a heap of salt...:-)
 
Moomin1 said:
It makes me cringe the amount of fields I have driven past in the past couple of weeks, when there is a slight drizzle and a cloud and all horses have full neck turnouts on.
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Well, your horses are lucky to have such a stoical and considerate owner.:)

But the likes of people rugging natives because it is raining is silly.
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Ooops :o:o:p
 
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amymay said:
Well, your horses are lucky to have such a stoical and considerate owner.:)
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Thankyou Amymay, I like to think so too. She likes being a horse bless her and I do try and give her as natural a life as I can. She does get lots of carrots though, so maybe that's why she hasn't lost any condition with not being rugged in these terribly harsh conditions! :);)
 
OP I have a thermometer in my stable, which just helps me to make my mind up a little more firmly. It was only a few quid, but is invaluable.

So now that tells me exactly how warm/cold it is in my stable and I make a choice from that :) having obviously checked how the horse feels first!
 
Ooopsy my vanner x welsh has a lw no fill on. It has been raining non stop for 24 hrs here and blowing a gale.
Either way rugged or not he'll survive. I want to keep the rain off his back with a sheet so why not. He's certainly not going to overheat :rolleyes: as soon as the rain stops he'll have it off.
I am most deffinatley anthropomorphising but I think he looked smug next to his feild mates who were huddling (and shivering:eek:) under the tree whilst he muched away in the open :p
 
Buds_mum said:
Ooopsy my vanner x welsh has a lw no fill on. It has been raining non stop for 24 hrs here and blowing a gale.
Either way rugged or not he'll survive. I want to keep the rain off his back with a sheet so why not. He's certainly not going to overheat :rolleyes: as soon as the rain stops he'll have it off.
I am most deffinatley anthropomorphising but I think he looked smug next to his feild mates who were huddling (and shivering:eek:) under the tree whilst he muched away in the open :p
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Well if it's a no fill what's the problem?!! Don't think anyone here has said don't put a no fill on. We were talking about proper rugging.:)
 
Moomin1 said:
Well if it's a no fill what's the problem?!! Don't think anyone here has said don't put a no fill on. We were talking about proper rugging.:)
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aha! But having never owned anything heavier than a medium for when he's clipped in the depths of winter that is proper rugging for me :p Don't get me started on PROPER rugging haha. We have two ponies at our yard who get a lw on if its a breezy mid summer day :mad: they have 2 x fleeces each under a heavy weight today, whilst in their stables! Did i mention they are sec b?! Makes me mad, i just grumble away to myself as nothing I can do or say that will inflict their mangement. Oh well :rolleyes: least we can vent on here.
 
amymay said:
So is a fleece 'proper' rugging..........??
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I was talking about horses with turnouts on - not about the OP's situation. With regard the fleece, no I wouldn't class that as rugging if it's only on a for a few hours to dry a horse off indoors, but again, if they are being used to 'keep a horse warm' in temeratures of 8 degrees in a stable then yes that is excessive I would say. It's 8 degrees, not -8. I am still walking around in a t-shirt. And the last time I checked I don't have hair all over my body (well, since I used Immac anyway ;) ).
 
joeanne said:
My 11 yr old has a year or two under her belt. She is quite capable of telling me that her pony needs/doesn't need a rug.
SOME questions are never stupid, but questions about BASIC horse care should never really need to be asked. You should have learnt it all before you got the animal.
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There is nothing wrong with anyone asking a question on anything theyre unsure of, its sad that people who feel they know the answer instead of just giving it, feel the need to make snidey comments in an attempt to belittle the op.
In all honesty it just makes you look bad
 
Moomin1 said:
I was talking about horses with turnouts on - not about the OP's situation. With regard the fleece, no I wouldn't class that as rugging if it's only on a for a few hours to dry a horse off indoors,
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But you asked the OP this:confused:

Is your horse ill or very underweight OP?

If not then he shouldn't need any rug at all.
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Buds_mum said:
aha! But having never owned anything heavier than a medium for when he's clipped in the depths of winter that is proper rugging for me :p Don't get me started on PROPER rugging haha. We have two ponies at our yard who get a lw on if its a breezy mid summer day :mad: they have 2 x fleeces each under a heavy weight today, whilst in their stables! Did i mention they are sec b?! Makes me mad, i just grumble away to myself as nothing I can do or say that will inflict their mangement. Oh well :rolleyes: least we can vent on here.
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Ridiculous isn't it? Makes me squirm. But is is all too common unfortunately in the horse world.

You sound like one of the sensible ruggers!! ;):)
 
amymay said:
But you asked the OP this:confused:
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Yes, because (if you read back) she was asking whether to leave the rug on overnight incase he was cold.

I repeat, I don't think there's anything wrong using them to dry out in a stable for an hour or two.
 
Moomin1 said:
Yes, because (if you read back) she was asking whether to leave the rug on overnight incase he was cold.
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But as you don't consider a fleece 'proper' rugging, why would you even question what she is doing, let alone ask if the horse is ill or underweight?
 
joeanne said:
Not at all Billie....but I certainly didn't get to own one until I was able to care for it proficiently!
I still learn new stuff on a very regular basis, but things like how to check a horse is too warm/too cold?
Thats really basic stuff and should not need to be asked by someone lucky enough to own a horse!
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:rolleyes: You are really sounding like an ignorant rude individual.

OP even people with years and years of experience sometimes debate and ask others' opinions about rugs. I have been caught out on several occasions, especially if the weather is unpredictable, like it is right now. Take no notice of people like Joanne. I certainly won't be listening to anything she has to say in future.
 
amymay said:
But as you don't consider a fleece 'proper' rugging, why would you even question what she is doing, let alone ask if the horse is ill or underweight?
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Dear me Amymay, are you bored or something?!! Go and watch an episode of Murder She Wrote or something, that should satisfy your urge to be a detective!! ;)

I am responding to the fact that she wondered whether her horse may be cold, or too hot, if she LEFT the fleece on all night. Not about whether she should use it to dry the horse for a couple of hours.:)
 
I think rugging in this unpredictable weather is a minefield, and certainly one that I like to discuss with others to get opinions, with a close eye to the weather forecast. Mine are all out, but as the ponies have been shampooed very recently, and therefore I have stripped all of the waterpoof oils out of their coats, I have put rainsheets on them as it was raining sideways. My horse is greasy and waterproof, so is naked.

Now the sun has some out and I am sitting at work hoping that they aren't cooking!
 
Ideally I'd only want to leave a fleece on whilst he is drying off in his stable - however it isn't so warm that I think leaving it on would cause undue suffering, so unless your horse is a 'hot' kind of horse so personally I wouldn't worry too much.

My native didn't get the memo that he should thrive in all elements because he is native!! Whilst he is perfectly capable of regulating his own body temperature, I'd rather he didn't waste any calories doing it in wet, windy weather when he could have a breathable, lightweight turnout on instead.

Weird how despite us all having the same body temperature, we all feel differently! I only have a teeshirt on too but my hands, arms and nose feel cold and I'll be more comfortable once I stick a sweatshirt on.
 
Billie1007 said:
'poor animal'? Are you referring to the same animal that has an owner who cares so much for its comfort that she is seeking the advice from a thousand other people about whether she has made him suitably comfortable this evening or not!? Poor animal indeed, how awful that she seems to care that she gets it just right for him and hopes that she hasn't made a decision that will have left him just a bit too cold or a bit too hot.

Poor animal.

Get over yourselves.
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Well said...!!
 
op if my horse came in chilled i would leave on the fleece, i also go by if i feel a chilly in the evening i check carefully the horses at 9.0 pm and put on a rug if needed, i can then go indoors and sit on top of the fire or dive under the bedclothes with the happy thought that i have done all i can to make them comfortable.

i think being cold is no good to anyone man or horse, and after seeing many a dithering horse in cold and rain i think anyone who pays attention to detail in their horses comfort has my admiration and respect.
 
I agree in part to what Joanne is saying.

We don't know the op's horse. Asking if we should leave a fleece on or not is a rhetorical question. My horse may need a fleece/rug at 6 degrees, yours may not. As I don't know your horse I can't offer an opinion as to whether you should rug or not. I can say 'I would rug my own horse' or 'I wouldn't rug my own horse', but as you don't know my horse that would not help you make a decision as to whether to rug your own or not.

As it is one of mine gets a rain sheet on if it is bitterly cold, windy and consistantly raining for days as it was a few weeks ago, the other two are naked in all weathers year round.

What is good for one is bad for another :)
 
As a nursing student, I am frequently told to keep asking questions, even if it's something blatantly obvious that I should have learnt years ago!

I'd rather ask a 'stupid' question than try and muddle along without, and potentially endanger someone's life. Same goes for horses IMO.
 
blimey all this kerfuffle over a simple question:eek: I'm usually quite confident in my own ability to know what and when to rug but the weather so far this year has had me dithering like Mavis Riley! my well covered welshx who i rarely have to rug has caused me the most headaches! one wet and windy day i went down to find him shivering, the unrugged TB and TBx were fine:confused: rather than rug a soggy horse i gave them all some hay and he was fine within minutes but i admit to feeling a little perturbed when i got home over whether i should have actually rugged him :o 2 days later i'm frantically trying to find the fly sheet as he was getting eaten alive only to be woken in the middle of the night by torrential rain, then of course i had a little mavis moment because he was going to be stood about in a wet fly sheet:rolleyes:
 
MrsElle said:
I agree in part to what Joanne is saying.

..
What is good for one is bad for another :)
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Well said MrsE. I am the weirdo that is out all winter in shorts and t-shirts, and can't cope with hot weather :p I don't suggest everyone should do the same :cool:

Weather has been odd though, found mine shivering when I brought him in a few days ago; we are on the side of a hill so with the wet and the wind, it is actually colder than you'd think. He's now rugged :)
 
Ibblebibble said:
blimey all this kerfuffle over a simple question:eek: I'm usually quite confident in my own ability to know what and when to rug but the weather so far this year has had me dithering like Mavis Riley! my well covered welshx who i rarely have to rug has caused me the most headaches! one wet and windy day i went down to find him shivering, the unrugged TB and TBx were fine:confused: rather than rug a soggy horse i gave them all some hay and he was fine within minutes but i admit to feeling a little perturbed when i got home over whether i should have actually rugged him :o 2 days later i'm frantically trying to find the fly sheet as he was getting eaten alive only to be woken in the middle of the night by torrential rain, then of course i had a little mavis moment because he was going to be stood about in a wet fly sheet:rolleyes:
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Totally agree with this! Been going through the complete range of clothing this summer with the exception of their H/W combos - got a feeling I'll be needing them out of mothballs at some point. So stop giving the OP a hard time - I'm sure I'm not alone in checking what all the others in the yard are wearing!
 
Well ...since there is such a wealth of rug knowledge available in this thread may I hijack for opinions of this rug?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-BLACK-BLUE-MEDIUMWEIGHT-TURNOUT-RUG-DETACHABLE-NECK-60-/370546185830?

pt=UK_Horse_Wear_Equipment&hash=item5646461666#ht_500wt_1054
my poor pony is too cold in her lightweight at the moment and shivering like a washing machine when the rains on so want a m/w with detachable neck- (my current m/w has a full neck but it rubbed her mane throughout winter and I’ve just managed to grow it back)

:(
 
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