thick coat in summer

[Quival]

my new horse seems to have quite a thick coat even though middle of year. He is always very warm too. His coat is very shiny and i don't think he is at all ill. Is it because he is a warmblood do you think? My last horse was an Angloarab and had a fine silky coat and soon became chilled even in the summer. Maybe new horse was clipped too late. Any thoughts on this please

 

[keeperscottage]

How old is he?

 

[JillA]

Not properly shedding winter coats is a symptom of Cushings - may be worth getting him blood tested, because you can then treat it fairly successfully

 

[keeperscottage]

I agree with you, JillA, that's why I asked how old he is. A friend of mine borrowed my clippers last week to clip his gelding who I think is about 16, and apparently very fit and healthy, but nevertheless, early Cushings still crossed my mind, although I refrained from worrying my friend! Another friend of mine had a horse which developed very early Cushings - she was only about 10!

 

[I_A_P]

my gelding always has a thick summer coat and i normally clip him about april time and then he comes bac with a relativly thin coat.

he is now 23

 

[Fairynuff]

Im clipping two next week, the mare is 21 and a SF, the gelding is 27 and is Argentinian. Both are healthy but just hairy! M.

 

[pixiebee]

dont panick-mine still has a bit of a hairy coat-i think alot of it is due to the weather and maybe if he was clipped during the winter it will take longer for his summer coat to come through.

 

[JillA]

I used to dismiss my old mare's thick coat as "just Jessica" but she was Cushingoid and had I treated it earlier would have kept her for many more years. By the time she was blood tested her levels of whatever it is they test for were 200 against a normal range of up to 50!! And she had seemed otherwise healthy.
Just a blood test - might rule it out but if not, at least you can then treat to prevent a rapid deterioration of sweating and laminitis.I know what I would do, just for peace of mind if nothing else.

 

[MagicMelon]

I think older horses begin retaining their winter coat more anyway, even if they dont have cushings. 2 of mine (in their late teens) usually take ages to loose their winter coat and one keeps some under his belly. I clip them both in May and they still grow back a summer coat.

Id clip the horse to keep it comfortable.

 

[princesskelly]

my mare has a thick summer coat she's 22. she's always has a thick summer coat. Her last clip is around april time all though i got caught out this year because of mild weather and her first clip is end of august. i only hack in summer with a show here and there so not really a problem.But if i was to jump every weekend then i would clip her all year round.She does not have cushing. They dont always have thick coats though. A pony at my yard has had a real rough time with cushing (now under control) and she has a lovely summer coat. A lot thinner than my mare.

 

[Folara]

Dont worry even if he is not old he can still have a naturally thick summer coat. Gen is just 7, very fit and healthy and grows a summer coat that is thicker than my friends TB's winter coat. Gen is an irish cob x Selle Francais. I now clip him all year or he sweats just standing in the field, let alone schooling and competing.

 

[Quival]

Oscar is just 13 years old. My Anglo Arab who died at christmas was 29 and always felt the cold and would shiver in summer after a shower of rain even as a 10 year old. He was rugged up pretty much all of the time in latter years and had a warm quarter sheets for hacks if weather not too good. I expect it will take some getting use to having a 'warm'horse in more than one sense. When I bought him in April he had been recently clipped. His coat soon grew. He had no shine to his coat unlike now and I think he is sweating up less. What are your thoughts on this please?