Too many blankets, or too heavy a blanket will make your horse sweat, make the hairs lie down, and make your horse cold. Make sure that any blankets used for turnout are waterproof! A wet blanket will make your horse cold. If the amount of insulation in the blanket is less than what your horse’s natural coat would provide, then he will be cold. A blanket will make your horse’s hair coat lie flat, thus removing that insulating layer of warm air. "It is very important to keep in mind that there are times when blanketing is worse than not blanketing. My horses aren't cold, I don't see them shiver and they happily go out into the pasture full of snow and make horse snow angels several times throughout the day. I found if I did blanket them, they would start to get hot and sweat under the blankets. Over the next couple months, hitting mid-late December my horses have all grown nice thick winter coats and I no longer blanket them even when it dips down into the low 20°s when it's dry and calm. What I had found was they acclimated very quickly and easily. At the time, my horses still had little coat growth so I choose to use the light weight blankets during the night time or wet weather. ![]() When I first arrived we were getting into temps of low 40°s and high 30°s. Before my move, I had purchased a few light weight and medium weight blankets. I'll tap out on that subject since I did not follow up with more research on preventing hair growth.įast forward to Oct of 2021, moving to the PNW, with temps that could drop into the single digits, jump started my research on acclimating my horses for colder weather. I know many people keep their show horses blanketed to prevent the growth of hair, however the reading I did stated that their hair grows based on the time of the year rather then the temperature outside. I always thought SoCal horses never needed blankets, the climate is just too mild for the need. They were never cold and preferred being outside during that time anyways. My horses were trace clipped and had access to an in-n-out stall to get out of any wind/rain. But horses are most comfortable at temperatures between 18° and 59° F, depending on their hair coat." Living in SoCal with horses during the mild winters where the low temps stay at a consistent 60° except for a month or two out of the year where it might dip down into the 40°s, I never blanketed. If horses have access to a shelter, they can tolerate temperatures as low as -40° F. So, how cold is too cold for horses? "In the absence of wind and moisture, horses tolerate temperatures at or slightly below 0° F. ![]() The chart posted here is from a horse product company providing information with little or no research supporting their reasoning to purchase their blankets. "Horses that do not live in extremely cold environments – meaning routinely colder than 10☏ – will do well without a blanket, provided they are either stalled during the coldest temperatures or have access to a protective shelter". ![]() During my research I had found many logistics that play into the 'blanket or not-to-blanket' role such as: hair growth, medical condition of the horse, having access to shelter, and environment. Reading various articles from veterinarian professionals along with blogs and inputs from the people who live in low temps with horses, I found the information from sales companies misleading. Where did they get their research? Do the people who come up with the strategy even have any horse experience? Or are these just big wig corporation people put in charge to push the sale of their blankets? As someone who has recently moved to the Pacific North West from the beach side of sunny Southern California, I began the real research on cold climates and horses. The perfect blanket guide, a marking strategy composed by a company who sells products for most animals.
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