What blankets do you need for horses?
Ok.. So i mean blankets as like Stable Blanket, stable sheet….. What i would like to know is what all blankets do you recommend me buying?? for the summer like turnouts and the winter blankets… please anything helps
thanks,
Chelsea
i want to know what all blankets i will need!!
Asked by:Chelsea A
you should be able to go to your loocal feed store they may carry them or let you know were to go and get them
Im guessing you live where you have snow and winter and also summer.like i do.
Here are my suggestions:
For winter (i live wear it is really cold) A Turnout (not stable blanket) Heavy weight blanket. Make sure it is turnout, becasue they are thicker, water proof and are alot sturdier.
If it is really cold you could also get a fleece blanket liner for under your blanket.
If your horse is inside alot during the day, and your barn is cold but not freezing than a stable blanket would be good.
For Summer/fall/spring
I would definitly get a nylon sheet for when it is cool out and rainy..so best for fall and spring. It gives them some warmth while also protection from rain.
Also for summer if you show, a simple cotton sheet works good.
If it is really buggy in your area than a fly sheet and mask would also be good to.
Really though, the only things that are really nessicary are the turnout blanket and nylon sheet. The rest is if you want that or not,
A good website I have gotten my blankets from, is- sstack.com there blankets are really strudy and are reasonably priced,
Hope this Helps =)
Do you clip your horses or live in a very cold area? I live in OH and keep my horses unclipped and unblanketed all year. It gets below zero at times, and most horses, contrary to popular belief, are comfortable down to about zero. My horses choose to go out and eat or run around even when its colder than that!. I don’t have nice turnout blankets because I don’t clip, but when its extremely cold I at least put a cotton blanket on them just to keep a little extra body heat. I feel that as long as you aren’t clipping, a stall full of straw and a barn that’s not drafty with turnout does the trick! If you do clip, you’ll definitely want a warm turnout blanket, but I’m not sure at what temperatures. Hope that helped!
Don’t blanket your horse. Unless you plan on checking him every day, & making sure he has his blanket every day of winter, you will cause problems. Horses naturally grow longer coats in winter, so they don’t need blankets. I have a light water proof sheet since my horse in on 40 acres & i fox hunt in the winter. If I know it is gonna rain, I bring her up to the corral, brush her, & put on the blanket. I don’t like saddling a wet horse. That is all. No sheets for summer. No blankets for winter. & if they are stabled, at night when it is coldest, they shouldnt need a blanket, they have four walls & a roof to block the wind.
Unless your horse has a particular health problem and sickly blankets are not needed.. For sure they don’t need one in the barn. . Blankets cause so many problems for the horse, rubs,sore spots, prohibiting normal hair growth. bending and breaking the hair that is under the blanket preventing nature from doing what is normal. Horses are built to withstand frigid, temps rain, snow, ice wind etc etc. If a blanket is in the scenario the horse suffers eventually. My horses do not wear blankets at any time of the year unless camping and they do not have shelter during a particularly nasty night.
What type of setup? will horse be stabled sometimes? or clipped? and where do you live, could give you better idea what you need.
rugging I find differs a lot depending what country you are from, different things seem popular and the weight/fill of them will depend how cold it gets. My show horses are clipped and kept under lights so they don’t grow a winter coat and they are rugged almost always to keep coats clean and from fading, obviously this means they all have a few different types to suit all weather. They are generally out during the day and stabled at night. So rugs get changed morning and night. The type of stable setup depends what type you need too, although my horses are stabled, it quite open stabling, so not in a barn, they look out into the yard, so not as warm as an enclosed space.
basics would be
- fly sheet for summer
- basic cotton rug and hood set, versatile, keeps horse clean, wear under heavy winter rugs to keep them clean, as the turnouts are hard to wash
- nylon or other synthetic rain sheet – for wet weather
- filled waterproof turnout rug for winter, how much weight in it will depend how cold it gets
- you could also have an in between rug, so either a rip stop or canvas, so slightly heavier than the fly sheet and cotton.
And also either a wool underug or polar fleece underug, for use when its a bit cooler, the wool/polar fleece can go under the rain sheet if its cool and rainy, but not cold enough for the heavy turnout.
This is why I like have options in different weights and materials, wardrobe can be adjusted layers added depending.