The mini ice age...

dominobrown

dominobrown

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hmmm, if there actually is a mini ice age upon us how will this affect the way we winter our horses.
The last 2 winters have been a struggle but if this is going on for a decade or so, have you got any long term tips.
:(
Its going to be cold.
 
Ride as much as possible over the summer, let them grow a huge coat and chuck 'em in the field for 6 months :D

Seriously though Jade and Enfys would be the best people to ask!
 
Its getting water to them that is the biggest struggle, especially when its -20C in Cumbria :(

Tips welcome from people in Canada, Scandinavia, Alaska, Greenland, Artic circle etc :D
 
I live in Scotland, its normal to us.
Far more of an issue to humans than to our horses. I hated last winter that my horses were stuck in a paddock for over 6 weeks and I couldn't get them out as it was a sheet of ice to the barn.
Do you think my horses cared? Not one bit, they had good rugs, unlimited haylage, became fat as barrels and loved the break.
I however got sick of breaking ice, frozen feet and didn't know what to do with the extra time, oh and trying to poo pick frozen poo is no fun :(

My tip, enjoy the break, this year I am expexting it, so am planning for a winter break. Thankfully though mine are now stabled and in paddocks by the barn so I'll at least be able to do stuff with them in the barn.
 
Be as prepared as you can. Mine live out with a decent shelter (a wb and hairy cob), shoes come off for winter- better grip imo, i dont clip and i have a wide variety of rugs to acomodate our weird weather. Im not on a livery yard so i MUST get up to see my horses, have comondered the BF's tractor to plough the steading out so i can get in if it snows again as ive only a car. Car has snow tyres and chains live in the boot. Just make sure you've plenty hay and the water doesnt freeze!! :D
 
We had pipes freezing under ground so had to carry water up from the house. I did plan to hunt, SJ and dressage over winter bt when the snow turns to solid ice I just cover the yard with old hay, bedding etc and let them wander around the yard for a bit.
 
To help with the water situation, our YO has put huge plastic water tubs in the fields in addition to the usual troughs, and these will stay topped up from now on. Also a bank of tall tubs, the sort you'd store rainwater in, are all lined up in the yard and topped up. So although we'd have to break ice, there will be water to last about 2 weeks should we need it.
Haylage has been delivered and all should last about 3 months, next delivery booked in Jan.
Everyone except me has a 4x4, so I have to beg a lift if it gets too bad, but hoping to get something more suitable next year, so this should be my last winter without one.
I just need to get myself some new ski gear to keep warm!
 
Most of mine were absolutely fine living out (Aberdeenshire). I ditto the adlib haylage. Water not really an issue with me as my burns never freeze but I did have to get the farmer to cut 'tracks' through the snow. Also good rugs - the rambo extremees I got 6 years ago are still as good as new. Lets hope its all wrong anyway. I hate having to 'start again' with my horse every spring!
 
We have a spring that continues running through most of the cold - but stockpiliing water now is a good idea. I think I may also look at insulating our trough - the metal ones just freeze straight away.

I'm also going to get some of those auto socks for my car, so the focus doesn't turn into a huge sledge again :rolleyes:
 
We used two 150 litre barrels with lids on to ferry the water on the back of the pick-up into the paddocks, broke the ice, fished it out with a sieve, topped the troughs up, then watched it freeze again there and then!

Had to do this twice a day, was I glad of those barrels! Saved us lugging around small ones and breaking our backs, we just bucketed the water into the troughs then...
 
Nothing wrong with last winter - except one of our horses got laminitis through frozen grass and too-rich haylage.

They live out, with access to barns and hardstanding in the stable yard, have rugs for all weathers. They have full coats, manes and tails. The Welsh Section C hardly wore her rug at all.

Yes it was very cold, (-11C many nights over a month or so, and never above freezing by day) but there was no wind at all. I could go out to see to them in the stable yard in house shoes, they had warm feeds with plenty of linseed, and they came out of winter looking far too well.

When the sun was shinging I took their rugs off for an hour or two and they rolled themselves silly in the snow.

Roll on the mini ice-age. I can't wait. NO MUD!!!
 
I got a couple of camping water buts. I'd fill them up the night before and wrap them in an old turnout rug to stop them freezing overnight.

Fill up plenty of nets and leave one outside your stable in case you can't get to the yard, then someone can feed for you.

I love my Bucas rugs too.
 
Sink a water butt in a really warm muck heap (the steamy bit you stand in to warm your feet up in) it keeps it defrosted, refill daily.

Hosepipes: Roll and drain every drop of water out of them after use, then store them indoors - a real nuisance but better than hauling water buckets. As long as you keep the water running when you are using them they are fine. Heated pipes are available but they are expensive.

Unless a horse isn't well, or is cold, I whip blankets off when the sun is shining and there is no wind regardless of the temperature.
 
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Shoes off (horses).

Warm spare clothes.

Fleece hat.

Waterproof ski gloves (plus spares).

Layers (gets warm mucking out!).

Hessian sacking to go over shod hooves (I'm sure I've read somewhere that it works to get across icy patches!).

Spare car battery (the cold seems to seep the power from batteries!).

Snow tyres/chains (car).

Insulate soaking sugarbeet by putting the bucket in a bigger bucket, packing the gap with hay/straw and putting a lit on it. Keep it off the ground as well.

Either 'dry' wet rugs by leaving on the horse when you bring in, or dry over bannister at home overnight... :cool:.

Water. Take it from home. Stand the container in the boot of the car and wrap old quilts round it.
 
Sure I read this tip on here last year.

Last year I found the containers froze up from around the sides as well as from the the top bottom and I was just tipping out huge ice lollies twice a day!!

So, this year I am planning to try putting one large flexible water container (the brightly coloured type you buy everywhere) inside another, but with a couple of insulatings layers of bubble wrap.

Did anyone try this last year?
 
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