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In central Tx I normally don’t blanket my horses. I even have a 30+ year old gelding, holding his own pretty well. We have a large sheltered area to keep 11 minis, ponies and horses out of the wind, rain and cold should they choose to be in that area. I watch if anyone is shivering. Wet and shivering they get a blanket and put in a stall until they warm up and dry off. If we get another nasty winter without power again 😡 then I will blanket them all like I had to when the power went off and we had unusual low temperatures for several days in a row.
The 2 horses have mid-weight and heavyweight blankets for the Wisconsin Winter where overnight lows can reach minus 20-30F. If the day is seasonably mild, say in the teens to 20’s, and no snow or high winds, they don’t wear blankets. One horse has a denser hair coat than the other, so I factor that into the decision. They are turned out 24/7 with access to a deep south-facing run-in shelter on the barn, with access to a heated water tank. They don’t wear heavyweight blankets until the temp plus wind chill is minus 5 degrees F or colder. If it is snowing they wear a mid-weight or heavyweight blanket appropriate for the temperature to keep them dry. Blanketing is a day-by-day (and sometimes hour-by-hour) decision.
I only blanket when it rains and drops below freezing or is very windy. If it’s just cold they do just fine on there own with abundant hay and some warm water.
COMMENT Hannah, pretty much the same. It’s often below freezing here, but it is for the rain or sleet that I will put a sheet on them. Otherwise they are fine. Also, not clipped.
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In central Tx I normally don’t blanket my horses. I even have a 30+ year old gelding, holding his own pretty well. We have a large sheltered area to keep 11 minis, ponies and horses out of the wind, rain and cold should they choose to be in that area. I watch if anyone is shivering. Wet and shivering they get a blanket and put in a stall until they warm up and dry off. If we get another nasty winter without power again 😡 then I will blanket them all like I had to when the power went off and we had unusual low temperatures for several days in a row.
The 2 horses have mid-weight and heavyweight blankets for the Wisconsin Winter where overnight lows can reach minus 20-30F. If the day is seasonably mild, say in the teens to 20’s, and no snow or high winds, they don’t wear blankets. One horse has a denser hair coat than the other, so I factor that into the decision. They are turned out 24/7 with access to a deep south-facing run-in shelter on the barn, with access to a heated water tank. They don’t wear heavyweight blankets until the temp plus wind chill is minus 5 degrees F or colder. If it is snowing they wear a mid-weight or heavyweight blanket appropriate for the temperature to keep them dry. Blanketing is a day-by-day (and sometimes hour-by-hour) decision.
I only blanket when it rains and drops below freezing or is very windy. If it’s just cold they do just fine on there own with abundant hay and some warm water.
COMMENT Hannah, pretty much the same. It’s often below freezing here, but it is for the rain or sleet that I will put a sheet on them. Otherwise they are fine. Also, not clipped.
i only blanket for inclement weather, but the glazed ice on top of this hill will have me blanketing for a more pressing reason…..falling down.