Why do horses have rugs on when owners are in t-shirts?

The reason is because their owners are only human & they've possibly made an error deciding which rug to put on in the morning.
Or maybe they know the horse better than you & know how to keep it happy.

Why oh why are HHO Members so affronted about how other people choose to rug their horses? I honestly don't understand how some fabric strapped to a horses back can cause such debate 😂
 
Caramac71 said:
But I cant get to the yard to get the rug off! I wish I could, but I cant. So last night I had to decide on what she would have on from 6pm yesterday until 4pm today. On the days I'm not at work then I will always whip her rug off when needed but some days I have no choice.
Click to expand...

Then in that case, that is poor husbandry IMO. If the yard your horse is on can't provide your horse with the appropriate needs then it's a poor do. I can't quite get my head around a full livery service not offering rug changes.
 
Moomin1 said:
Then in that case, that is poor husbandry IMO. If the yard your horse is on can't provide your horse with the appropriate needs then it's a poor do. I can't quite get my head around a full livery service not offering rug changes.
Click to expand...

it may not be ideal but in the grand scheme of horse care it's not a major issue. My horse has a similar set up, i.e. 24/7, 365 days a year turnout but although the horses are checked in the morning the YO doesn't offer rug change (except in exceptional circumstances). IMO being able to provide a horse with 24/7 turnout is infinitely more important for their welfare than being able to change rugs in the morning.

I tend to rug for daytime temperatures, the horse can keep moving if it's colder at night, and in any case as long as they're dry I don't find cold temperatures to be such an issue.
 
Moomin1 said:
Then in that case, that is poor husbandry IMO. If you can't provide your horse with the appropriate needs then it's a poor do. Particularly if it's on full livery..I can't quite get my head around a full livery service not offering rug changes.
Click to expand...

Well YO does not want to change rugs and as my horse is otherwise happy and settled at the yard, then I'm not going to move her elsewhere for the sake of something that possibly affects her for a few days a year. I work 3 days a week and it's only for a few weeks Spring/Autumn that we have the problem of cold nights, warmer days.

So are you telling me that you are in a position to drop everything and change your horse's rugs as the weather dictates, 24/7? I would think for many people that really isn't realistic and we are just trying to do the best we can with the compromises we have to make.
 
If I didn't rug my horse on days where rain was forecast, I would never ride as she'd be constantly soaked and filthy, therefore she wears a no fill lightweight. She's a fully clipped piebald cob and I have not once brought her in sweaty this year (I've had her 7 weeks). I understand that rugging her isn't ideal as it is still very mild but I do it for my sanity and to save time on grooming. I would absolutely not rug her if she still had a full coat but she has no coat to speak of at the moment and seems to be doing just fine. If she was sweaty of uncomfortable in any way, I wouldn't rug her as her wellbeing is more important than my desire to ride. If sunny days like today are forecast, she goes out naked but if showers or rain are on the cards, she is rugged. Simples :)
 
I must admit that I'm surprised at all the horses that do need a rug on when it's a sunny, warm Autumn day! Just glad that my girls are both hardy! I never quite understand why the same rug stays on during the whole 24 hours as surely the horse doesn't then get the benefit of it at night! But as people say, they know their horses best! I know for sure that I would wear something warmer at night when temperature drops and then take it off when the sun comes out! I would have thought that the same concept occurs with horses!
 
Moomin1 said:
Then in that case, that is poor husbandry IMO. If the yard your horse is on can't provide your horse with the appropriate needs then it's a poor do. I can't quite get my head around a full livery service not offering rug changes.
Click to expand...
Full livery? Who said anything about full livery?

Mine is on grass livery and checked by my yard owner in the morning at about 7am. Even if she did offer a rug changing service at that time of the morning she is just as likely to get it wrong as I am the evening before.

Actually I don't think a horse getting a little warm is much of a husbandry issue at all, particularly when compared to a lot of full livery where horses are stuck in their stables all winter.
 
acorn92x said:
If I didn't rug my horse on days where rain was forecast, I would never ride as she'd be constantly soaked and filthy, therefore she wears a no fill lightweight. She's a fully clipped piebald cob and I have not once brought her in sweaty this year (I've had her 7 weeks). I understand that rugging her isn't ideal as it is still very mild but I do it for my sanity and to save time on grooming. I would absolutely not rug her if she still had a full coat but she has no coat to speak of at the moment and seems to be doing just fine. If she was sweaty of uncomfortable in any way, I wouldn't rug her as her wellbeing is more important than my desire to ride. If sunny days like today are forecast, she goes out naked but if showers or rain are on the cards, she is rugged. Simples :)
Click to expand...
That sounds sensible :) Mine will have rug on 24/7 when she has hunter clip in November and I usually pop a light stable rug over her turnout rug as she is in at night so obviously colder and she can't move around. That's why I chose a trace clip with 50g rug at night so she is fine without a rug during the day. Although I have never clipped so early before but she was so hairy and in medium work. Haha - mine is chestnut so doesn't show the mud!
 
My gelding has a remedial clip (what i like to call the shambles of a clip he has) so has no neck, half a face and i have left his legs and belly on. He had the start of rain scald cause he was so fluffy and it was so wet and warm. I take his rug off in the morning unless it is literally freezing and wet, in which case he is usually in lol just a light stable rug on to keep the chill away but yes, definitely not over rugged
 
For the same reason that my husband can be walking around in a vest and I'm bundled up in wooly jumpers and fluffy socks!
Out of our three part-livery horses, one is great at regulating her temperature and seems happy whatever you rug her in, another is usually on the warm side and another is usually cold.
 
Rug changes are not part of my livery either. It's cold at night so horse has 50g rug on all day and night. I'd prefer no rug on during the day but we don't have a choice so horse will just have to put up with it...
 
Caramac71 said:
Most people are going to do what they believe to be in their horse's best interests and unless you know what that is, I don't think you can really judge.
Click to expand...

This. You can't start judging if you don't know the horse or the reasons behind it (rugging or leaving naked). Horses for courses as they say.
 
I guess most of us who don't have access to a rug changing service do expect to see our horses twice a day, I can't imagine not!
 
Have only skimmed the first page.

The answer to your question - All horses and humans feel the cold differently.

I can wear a t-shirt in the snow no problem. My welsh cob could also (full clipped) stay out for a couple of hours in the snow fine. My Clydesdale x Thoroughbred who is likely to be unclipped however would feel very cold! (And become a huge grumpy chunk of muscle)
 
Why does it matter to you? Many people have their horses on DIY and/or grass livery, work full time and have to rug for eventualities over a broad time period . . . equally, as others have said, horses (just like people) are individuals - and I'm guessing that in the majority of cases people are rugging to suit their horses and ponies.

P
 
Caramac71 said:
Well YO does not want to change rugs and as my horse is otherwise happy and settled at the yard, then I'm not going to move her elsewhere for the sake of something that possibly affects her for a few days a year. I work 3 days a week and it's only for a few weeks Spring/Autumn that we have the problem of cold nights, warmer day

So are you telling me that you are in a position to drop everything and change your horse's rugs as the weather dictates, 24/7? I would think for many people that really isn't realistic and we are just trying to do the best we can with the compromises we have to make.
Click to expand...

No not at all. I didn't say that. I said I think it's poor that a full livery service doesn't include rug changes. Though full grass livery I suppose does differ.
 
Ah, the rugging threads begin. Although for what it's worth Pingu I totally agree.

Yes there will always be the odd horse that can't hold condition or needs rugging for health reasons but the majority of horses on our yard are well rugged already. It does make me wonder what people will do when it does actually get cold.
 
Aghhhh! The point that I'm trying to make is that it has been 17 degrees and warm and sunny in the West Midlands today. Many people have been out in t-shirts and not seen one person wearing a coat and HAIR! I can't see why anyone would want to put a rug on a hairy horse in 17 degrees and warm and sunny! I give up arguing my case! Thank you all those people who agree with me! Rugging a horse in 17 degrees and sunny is in my opinion cruel! I have no problem with rugging a horse if it needs it when wet and cold but not when it's flipping warm!
 
Horse are often over rugged.They are hardier than a lot of people think.I have only rugged one of mine so far and only in heavy rain ,because he is a sensitive Argentinian polo pony! In the past I have rugged to save on grooming. But way to early to rug at the moment.
 
Tern said:
Have only skimmed the first page.

The answer to your question - All horses and humans feel the cold differently.

I can wear a t-shirt in the snow no problem. My welsh cob could also (full clipped) stay out for a couple of hours in the snow fine. My Clydesdale x Thoroughbred who is likely to be unclipped however would feel very cold! (And become a huge grumpy chunk of muscle)
Click to expand...
Totally agree but today in West Midlands it is 17 degrees and warm and sunny! I really don't think any horse that has a full coat of hair would have felt cold today!!!
 
Yesterday may have been sunny later on but when the horses would have gone out it was pouring with rain and cold here. On livery you may get a change of rugs at the beginning and end of the day but not sure how many would go and change at 1pm if the weather changes, especially if the fields are a long walk from the yard and there are a lot of horses on livery.
 
Last edited:
Where I am we have high pressure at the moment, which means quite warm when the sun is out, but it's down to six degrees tonight, but dry and still, so all mine are in 40g rugs overnight only
 
Mines hunter clipped and the wind is still chilly despite the sun. No fill rainsheet during the day, lightweight added over the top at night currently. Middle weight next month if the temperature drops considerably. Middle weight and neck when its colder come November time approx.
 
Another problem is where you have a field that is in shade for half the day. It may be warm in the sun but at this time of year it is quite chilly in the shade or when the sun goes in.

Personally I have an elderly pony who can shiver weight off on a cloudy day in midsummer. She simply cannot regulate her temperature any more. I spend a lot of time checking the weather forecast and agonising over whether to rug and if so, which rug to put on! :) Some days know matter how hard I try, I still get it wrong.
 
Wow. The know it all's are out in force tonight. It is up to each individual as to how they keep their horse, which they pay for and spend their time with. Neither can ANYONE keep making sweeping general statements. I have a horse who has not even started to throw any sort of winter coat. One of his field companions is already looking distinctly fluffy. My YO will bring mine in early for me if it has been torrential but will leave the rug on..which will be nicely drying by the time I get down..
 
Luci07 said:
Wow. The know it all's are out in force tonight. It is up to each individual as to how they keep their horse, which they pay for and spend their time with. Neither can ANYONE keep making sweeping general statements. I have a horse who has not even started to throw any sort of winter coat. One of his field companions is already looking distinctly fluffy. My YO will bring mine in early for me if it has been torrential but will leave the rug on..which will be nicely drying by the time I get down..
Click to expand...
But I'm not talking about wet and cold weather! I'm talking about 17 degrees and warm and sunny! Banging my head against a brick wall! If people want to rug their horses when warm and sunny then they should be wearing at least a jumper and anorak themselves and walking around a field to understand how a poor horse feels!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top