Why are most horses so 'Over' these days...

7 rugs :eek::eek::eek: Poor Horse!

Horses are all different and have different needs. I have a very warm Horse and have been told a few times I am under rugging. When infact she is toasty warm and hasn't lost condition or weight. But I appreciate they aren't all like her and may need more rugs. I wouldn't then say they are overugging as thats what suits their Horse.

I have actually removed a rug before though from a fellow liveries Horse ;):eek: I texted the owenr to say why and she was fine about it. Her Horse was boiling!
 
Ellen Durow said:
For goodness sake, Welshies running in the hills have suitable natural coats. Horse who live indoors don't develop coats to the same extent as semi-feral ponies even if not rugged.

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You need to have a word with my daughter's welsh a then (defo not feral)! He starts to grow his winter coat in August! He is living out 24/7 with no additional feed or hay and I will be delighted if he has shed several kilos by the Spring! In fact a good deep bit of snow would do him the world of good as he might shiver off a few kilos and spend some extra energy finding something to eat under the laying snow! Me, mean, no it is what he is designed to do. Ponies are supposed to drop off in the winter. As for starvation paddocks - love them! In fact if I had had a starvation for small hairy in the summer he wouldn't have to shed those excess kilos during the winter but as he literally lives off fresh air it is nigh on impossible for him not to get larger in the summer!

My ID x cob mare on the other hand is fully clipped and tucked up in bed every night with a 450g on!
 
So, I did the "under armpits/behind ears" test today.
Ned's got a HW rug on, no neck. Under armpits/behinds ears were...just warm, I'd say. Not boiling, not freezing, just warm.
He doesn't get hard feed, lives out 24/7 and is partially clipped.
 
Nah said:
So, I did the "under armpits/behind ears" test today.
Ned's got a HW rug on, no neck. Under armpits/behinds ears were...just warm, I'd say. Not boiling, not freezing, just warm.
He doesn't get hard feed, lives out 24/7 and is partially clipped.
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Then it sounds like you are rugging correctly to keep him toasty warm but not too hot :)
 
Nah said:
So, I did the "under armpits/behind ears" test today.
Ned's got a HW rug on, no neck. Under armpits/behinds ears were...just warm, I'd say. Not boiling, not freezing, just warm.
He doesn't get hard feed, lives out 24/7 and is partially clipped.
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That's the feeling I look for too :)
 
I'm sorry but first of all I know my horses, if I want to put on 25 rugs I will do so..
Second I do not Care what a bunch of people with nothing better to do than sit behind a computer screen and b1tch say. I value the experience and knowledge of the people around me and those I choose to listen too.
Thirdly some horses get cold, some don't mind your own business an let people get on with their own horses....

That is all.
 
Beans2000 said:
I'm sorry but first of all I know my horses, if I want to put on 25 rugs I will do so..
Second I do not Care what a bunch of people with nothing better to do than sit behind a computer screen and b1tch say. I value the experience and knowledge of the people around me and those I choose to listen too.
Thirdly some horses get cold, some don't mind your own business an let people get on with their own horses....

That is all.
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Hurrah! Someone talking sense at last !!
 
Of course feral horses survive without rugs.

They are not restricted to small paddocks with little winter forage - they can grow fat in the summer on nature's bounty, grow thick winter coats (more as a result of daylight hours than temperature), and slowly lose weight over the winter. They can seek the best forage and shelter from the worst of the elements.

All my horses have water proof rugs from autumn onwards in differing weights. Some are happy in a lightweight all winter others need more warmth. The fact they still seek shelter from wind and rain says it all.

When I was a child, I survived cold winters living in a house without central heating. It is not an experience I wish to replicate and don't think my own sons have suffered from living in a warm home.
 
sjp1 said:
This made me giggle - so true - but you have forgotten being out 24/7 - very cruel to keep them in a warm dry stable at night time.
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Oops!

Nikki, you are a horse abuser... Look at his sad little face :(

;)

(even the donkey wears a rug for us...)
 
Beans2000 said:
I'm sorry but first of all I know my horses, if I want to put on 25 rugs I will do so..
Second I do not Care what a bunch of people with nothing better to do than sit behind a computer screen and b1tch say. I value the experience and knowledge of the people around me and those I choose to listen too.
Thirdly some horses get cold, some don't mind your own business an let people get on with their own horses....

That is all.
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So you're not going to give any more information?

I'm disappointed. I'm genuinely interested in the reasoning behind using 7 rugs, and what those rugs are made up of.

Instead of having a hissy fit, why don't you explain why you do what you do, as you obviously feel there is a valid reason for doing so, and may provide some food for thought.
 
I don't think I could afford that many rugs for a horse!

Each has the basics - a decent turnout (or two), a fleece and a basic stable rug. If it's too cold for those rugs I'll layer blankets under accordingly. And if anyone suggests I'm doing harm I'll suggest they go get a job with a welfare organisation if they know so much.

Strangely, not many 'know it alls' know as much as they think they do.
 
Ok so at the moment they have a fleece, l/w 100g stable, 250g stable with neck and a h/w 350g with neck, that's the one who has the most on, the one who has the least is a rambo optimo no neck with 360g liner... Not going to list all what everyone has on...

When one wore 7 rugs he had, a fleece, l/w stable, fleece combo, m/w combo x 2, normal l/w and a h/w combo on top. It was -15.
 
Moomince Pie said:
Err, donkeys should wear rugs in the winter. They don't have waterproof coats.:confused:
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(we know... No one else does, it seems ;) )

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It's the smallest rug ever...
 
Agreed moomince. If we were talking donkeys would be a completely different conversation as they're a completely different animal who aren't waterproof. Top many people treat them simply as horses though.
 
Lolo work has a minature donkey and she is a 3'6 rug! Aww! Some of out r minis are 3'3! They all have light, med and heavy turnouts with necks, stable rugs and summer and fly sheets :))
 
Oh dear, I am going to be shot down in flames for this ...

My French TB who doesn't grow a winter coat and has a stable wears a heavyweight stable rug with detachable neck and a middleweight T/O rug.

My American TB who is as fluffy as a yak has a 300g stable rug and a 280g full neck T/O rug. He also has a stable.

My 2 out 24/7 hairy yak TB's wear 450g T/O rugs with 250G necks on.

The welsh cob, who has a stable and a not so native, native coat is naked, as is 2 of the other stabled shetlands.

One stabled shetland wear a lightweight stable rug as she rubs her tail and I would really rather she didn't wreck it.

1 shetland lives out rugless, the other 6 wear lightweights.

The Fell has a lightweight rug.

The Dartmoor has a middlweight full neck rug as even though he was born and bred on the moors and lived there until he was 3, the slightest drop of rain or the faintest breath of wind and he stands shivering - bloomin pansy!
 
Personally, I think if you are having to clip every 2 weeks your horse is getting cold. Mine live out, fully clipped, and look fab, how many rugs they wear is my business.
 
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