Do NOT blanket ANY horses except for some circumstances

[Sandee]

I have come to the conclusion that blanketing is not necessary also as it flattens the hair and then they have to work to get that air layer back.

However, my horses didn't read the study that says "horses are most comfortable at around 40 degrees". When it gets to 40 mine are doing a lot of moving around to generate energy to stay warm whether they are inside or outside. Mine are "most comfortable" at about 50. So unless someone does a study with my horses or with ONLY miniature horses, I'll continue to do what I think is best for them.

 

[Tab]

Interesting. Thanks for posting! We never blanketed our horses. Years ago we tried to blanket our full sized morgan that had inhaled his mash and was on antibiotics to help prevent pneumonia. He took it off of himself and shredded it to pieces. I guess he knew something we did not.

I have heard from more than one vet that a horse that has free access to the outdoors w/ shelter and is NOT blanketed is healthier. I would say that goes for keeping bird cages uncovered and clothes off dogs (depending on the breed), etc.

Obviously, we would use a cooler on a horse after exertion and a blanket on a clipped horse in the Fall. But we don't clip earlier than May or later than August, so it isn't necessary. Besides a foal blanket I don't own one. I can improvise if the need arises.

 

[Hawks_Eye_Minis]

I blanketed my old appy gelding but he was 38 and never grew much of a winter coat...

and this year in october i blanketed my boys when the temps went from 70 one day to 30 the next they were shivering cold so yes for a few nights i did blanket them but as soon as morning came i always take the blankets off and now both boys have nice winter coats

I do keep extra blankets on hand just in case

 

[shelterwood]

Well I live in one of the coldest spots in the entire nation, routinely we have the coldest recorded temps on the national news (Saranac Lake, NY if you're wondering). Last night it was -25 degrees, and I did NOT blanket, because there was no wind. The night before, it was the same temp, but with 15mph winds, so I did blanket. My mares have a run-in for shelter, and it's just the 2 of them, but a run-in, no matter how well positioned, does not block all wind. My mares have super thick coats and I generally don't worry, but with wind chills approaching -40, it just seemed like the right thing to do. I think we all use our gut and intuition to tell us when things need to be done. My blankets are heavy pile winter blankets. They come off in the morning and my girls fluff right back up. I agree that each horse and each situation is unique.

When I was a kid, it was routine at the show barns, even if no one was showing in the winter, to stall and blanket. I feel strongly that horses generally do best in cold when they have the option of moving about, using muscle movement to generate heat, which is why living where I do I chose to use a run-in situation. So far I have never had a horse shivering. Blanketing has only needed to be done a handful of times in the two years I've had my mares.

Katie

 

[Riverdance]

I have been in horses since I was 22. Or should I say, I owned my first horse at 22. I have been in horses all of my life. I was always taught to not blanket a horse unless it was used for heavy riding in the winter, then they were in stalls all the time and the reasone for blanketing was to keep their coats on the shorter side for riding, not to keep them warm.

I have had hunter jumpers, then moved on to raising Morgans. Until this past fall, I lived in MN for 19 years. I NEVER had a Morgan or a Mini blanketed except when one was sick, or clipped down. Then they were in the barn anyway and the barn was heated. As you must know, it does not get much colder than MN. down here in FL, I have had to clip heads, necks, chests and bellies as they were getting too hot. I left leg, body and ear coats on them. This way they still have their natural blanket for the cold nights, but can still cool off a bit on the warm days. My show horses are also clipped this way too.

Do we blanket our cattle? They have shorter coats than a horse and they do just fine. heck, they give birth outside in pretty cold temperatures and the calves have to be prepared for the cold weather, Nature does a REAL GOOD job of that. What makes us think that we know more than Mother Nature?

At this time I do not have a barn here, so I cannot bring anyone in, unless it is in my garage. They are all doing fine here as they did in MN.

I have to say though, they are always warning people down here that it is going to get to 20 at night, so bring your pets in and bundle up your horses. Say What?

 

[shelia]

I trust mother nature to a certain extent, but mother nature can be quite cruel at times. Often times wild animals or birds will die from sudden temperature changes because they have not had time to adjust. I agree with almost every post. You know your horses and you can often tell if they need a little help keeping warm (or cool). I agree that for the most part they don't need blankets, but there are those rare occasions when they do. A horse can get hypothermia. It happens in floods and in other situations too. i figure, it they are not shivering then they are not cold. Every one of mine can get out of the rain or wind if they really want to. i do have one stallion who did seem to get cold and shiver one day each year after a cold windy rain storm. He gets cold, he gets a blanket and get warmed up.

 

[MountainWoman]

I live in Northern Vermont and I don't blanket. That being said my minis are all young and healthy and in the barn at night. Even thought they have a run in shed, if the wind is blowing and it's snowing hard, they are inside. Perhaps that is more for me than for them. They also have ample time to grow thick coats which they start doing in August. We get cold and stay cold and don't have large fluctuations in weather. I do have a question: I have a mare coming from the South next month and obviously she's used to much warmer temperatures. She's definitely not going to have enough coat to keep up with our winter weather. Any suggestions about blanketing her? Turnout rug? Stable sheet? Both? Thanks.

 

[Joanne]

I have looked everywhere for a link to this article, and what I find so far...is that is doesn't exist.

If anyone can find a link, I would love to have it, please.

That said...I whole-heartedly agree with it, no matter who wrote it...blanketing is far over-done, and under-done at the same time. Over-done in that horses are being blanketed that don't need to be, and under-done in that they are blanketed with blankets far-far too light to make up for the loss in natural coat loft ability.

I have also not been able to find this study via the internet. There are several forums that have picked this up and discussed it with the same conclusion...the study does not exist.

It appears that someone has used Colorado State University's name on something they wrote to give it credibility. The internet can be dangerous at times.

There are valid reasons for blanketing a horse and some of those have been given here: clipped horses, horses traveling to a show after being clipped, thin horses that are unable to maintain their body heat on their own for lack of body condition, horses with no shelter to get out of the weather (shame on the owners), horses that are compromised by disease or colic etc that may need extra help.

It gets back to USE COMMON SENSE when deciding on blankets. If providing shelter by bringing them into the barn warms them up, then do it. Shivering is the body's way of letting us know it is not able to regulate body heat without shivering.

Here is a definition on shivering:

"Shivering (also called shuddering) is a bodily function in response to early hypothermia in warm-blooded animals. When the core body temperature drops, the shivering reflex is triggered to maintain homeostasis. Muscle groups around the vital organs begin to shake in small movements in an attempt to create warmth by expending energy. Shivering can also be a response to a fever, as a person may feel cold, though their core temperature is already elevated.

Located in the posterior hypothalamus near the wall of the third ventricle is an area called the primary motor centre for shivering. This area is normally inhibited by signals from the heat centre in the anterior hypothalamic-preoptic area but is excited by cold signals from the skin and spinal cord. Therefore, this centre becomes activated when the body temperature falls even a fraction of a degree below a critical temperature level.

Increased muscular activity results in the generation of heat as a byproduct. Most often, when the purpose of the muscle activity is to produce motion, the heat is wasted energy. In shivering, the heat is the main intended product and is utilized for warmth. "

Here is an article I have just received from Purina on winter care of horses: Purina Winter Feeding

 

[wingnut]

While studies are great, there's always exceptions. Of my 6 minis, only my hard keeper ever shows signs of being cold. Right now, she's not eating her grain at all (day 4). She's eating her hay, or grazing in the pasture with no problem so I'm trying not to panic. She also is the one we occasionally find her shivering. So, with today's low of less than 10 degrees here, she got a blanket yesterday. As soon as it gets above 30-35, the blanket comes back off. I have blankets for those "just in case" moments.

 

[ohmt]

I live in North Dakota, right next to Fargo which was named the worst weather city in the country. It is absolutely flat with no trees (whole area used to be a lake bottom) so the winds are atrocious. We almost always have at least a few days a winter that hit 60 below. We NEVER blanket. The horses absolutely do not need it if they have proper shelter and are at a good weight. They need a place to go to get out of the wind and elements, but as long as they are not shaved, they are fine. I do bring all of my stallions in the barn when it hits 20-30 below and the younguns have 24/7 access to the big barn, but other than that, I just keep a close eye on everyone to make sure no one is dropping weight and they are healthy and happy. Keep them fed well, give them shelter, they will do just fine

 

[rabbitsfizz]

I am in the "don't blanket" camp, firmly.

Of course, if there is a reason, any valid reason, I have plenty of blankets to use, but, in winter, I never have.

I have a very small moving thatched cottage out there, that I just know is actually Rabbit, and he will not give you a thank you for a blanket.

Obviously, I think it goes without saying, if there is a reason, you do it. Anyone with any common sense knows that.

Unfortunately, in horses as with anything else, we know this is not always the case.....

 

[Leeana]

I normally only blanket horses when trying to keep them clean for show or sale or shipping purpose, I do own several winter blankets and use them mostly if I have to do body clipping when it is still cold in early Spring. Thank you for the good reading material.

 

[Katiean]

I do blanket when they just act miserable. I also blanketed my horses that were kept in a full care facility. My hunter jumper would even duck her head as we ran from the barn to the covered arena if it was raining. One thing I really hate here in Nevada is, I have seen horses in a 12x12 livestock panel pen with no shelter from sun, wind, rain or snow. Not even a natural shelter such as a hill or tree. Maybe I have gone overboard in keeping my horses warm. But, some think they can stand out in the open with nothing.

 

[Lori W]

I will blanket if the weather will cause the 'loft' of the hair to flatten - for example, when it rains during the winter. Here in Michigan, that is simply bone chilling cold. Even with a run-in shed, as others have mentioned, when there are more than a couple of horses, someone (or more than one) is always the odd man out. Of course, if my husband has his way, all the minis would be in the barn, in their stalls, on cold, rainy days!

Besides when clipped, ill, or otherwise unable to regulate their body temp, I'll also blanket in the winter if it's very windy and the wind chill is under 15-20 degrees. IMHO, that frigid wind gets in under their loft and very effectively chills the horse. I've often seen unblanketed horses looking miserable, simply standing with their head down and rump to the wind. When my horses are blanketed in this kind of weather, they're bright eyed, moving about, etc. And when I check under their blankets, they are warm and toasty.

Yes, other than situations when it's always appropriate to blanket a horse, blanketing for adverse weather conditions is definitely a personal preference!

 

[rimmerpaints]

i never blanket. I hate them to be honest. My dad told me once you start that you can never stop(now he is old school horseman with all his homemade remedies like take used motor oil to paint horses hoof to keep from drying and cracking and etc.... Man the things my dad has told me some I listen others are to wild and wont risk trying) Anyway blankets have always scared me so I just dont do it.

 

[frostedpineminis]

I always keep tons of blankets on hand but we get awful wind here, temps are usually -15 to -30 degrees celsius sometimes colder and the wind chill can knock that temp down to -30 to -40 degrees celsius pretty easy and it can last from october to april! that is why I am unhappy when farms have sales and auctions this time of year, its hard to transport horses from -2 to -30 and expect them not to get sick lol