Darraxi
Member
Apologies as this question has been posted to death, but just looking for some opinions!
This is the first winter I will be seeing my horse through (8 year old unclipped Thoroughbred); he’s my first horse, so I want to make sure I get it right! He’s out 24/7 on (far too) good grazing with ad-lib haylage and no shelter, there is a little bit of windbreak in all directions (house and stable block, trees, wall, etc.) though.
He seems to be a surprisingly good doer for the breed; got him in April ribby and unfit, he gets a very small amount of hard feed after work, none of it is conditioning and yet he’s still gaining weight well into November! During the freak summer we had I actually had to clip his chest and neck from jaw to girth as he was sweating buckets just standing in the field! He had front shoes but recently took him barefoot, popped a light-fill rug on for the first night in case he decided to stand about looking hard done by; he made it very clear he didn’t want it on (I insisted) and by the next day he had snapped the back string and was grazing away happily with it folded over backwards and bum to the breeze.
Currently he is one of only three horses in the field (and almost on the whole yard) still naked, but the others are natives so I have no real comparison. The older thoroughbreds have been rugged up since summer and all since September. So I suppose my main problem really is pressure from the prevailing yard attitude; nothing has really been said to me directly and I’m trying to let the horse tell me if or when he needs a bit of help to stay toasty, but it’s difficult surrounded by horses wrapped in rugs and cotton wool, plus being very aware of the fact this is the first winter I’ve seen any horse through; really I’m just looking for any advice or thoughts anyone can share on the matter? What signs should I be looking for? Or will I just know?
Ultimately I know that if I do get it wrong for a night or two it won’t be the end of the world, but I could just really do with some advice from outside of a triple-rugged cob mindset for my own peace of mind!
Thanks
This is the first winter I will be seeing my horse through (8 year old unclipped Thoroughbred); he’s my first horse, so I want to make sure I get it right! He’s out 24/7 on (far too) good grazing with ad-lib haylage and no shelter, there is a little bit of windbreak in all directions (house and stable block, trees, wall, etc.) though.
He seems to be a surprisingly good doer for the breed; got him in April ribby and unfit, he gets a very small amount of hard feed after work, none of it is conditioning and yet he’s still gaining weight well into November! During the freak summer we had I actually had to clip his chest and neck from jaw to girth as he was sweating buckets just standing in the field! He had front shoes but recently took him barefoot, popped a light-fill rug on for the first night in case he decided to stand about looking hard done by; he made it very clear he didn’t want it on (I insisted) and by the next day he had snapped the back string and was grazing away happily with it folded over backwards and bum to the breeze.
Currently he is one of only three horses in the field (and almost on the whole yard) still naked, but the others are natives so I have no real comparison. The older thoroughbreds have been rugged up since summer and all since September. So I suppose my main problem really is pressure from the prevailing yard attitude; nothing has really been said to me directly and I’m trying to let the horse tell me if or when he needs a bit of help to stay toasty, but it’s difficult surrounded by horses wrapped in rugs and cotton wool, plus being very aware of the fact this is the first winter I’ve seen any horse through; really I’m just looking for any advice or thoughts anyone can share on the matter? What signs should I be looking for? Or will I just know?
Ultimately I know that if I do get it wrong for a night or two it won’t be the end of the world, but I could just really do with some advice from outside of a triple-rugged cob mindset for my own peace of mind!
Thanks