when do they need a blanket?

Miniature Horse Talk Forums

Help Support Miniature Horse Talk Forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

sayyadina

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 24, 2016
Messages
49
Reaction score
25
I thought it was going to be in the low 50s tonight, but when I checked a moment ago its now supposed to hit the high 40s. My minis live in a dry lot w/ run in. Its raining now, but it isn't going to rain all night. One is a bit more cold sensitive than the other. They have plenty of hay in slow feeders. I clipped them about a month ago, and their summer coat has grown in. Its been in the mid 50s all day, and they've been fine w/o a blanket.

Do they need to be blanketed? Its been a long, hard day. If I wasn't so tired, I'd go up and blanket them anyway to save myself from worrying.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Do they readily use their shelter? If so, you probably don't have to worry. If one is bossy and pushes the other one out, it might be a mild concern; but since neither are freshly clipped and have normal summer coats now, they'll likely be fine.

We've had a few nights in the 40s, and all mine are out with access to shelter, including the two babies that are only 3 weeks and 2.5 weeks old (they haven't worn blankets since their first week). All seem to be just fine.
 
When I'm not quite sure if a horse is warm enough, I put my hand up inside their "arm pit", where the front leg joins the body. If it's warm, the horse is okay.
 
I think every person "new" to horse ownership should read this article. It does an excellent job of explaining why - when we blanket a horse - we are SOMETIMES doing more harm than good. Please read the entire article. I live in northern Wisconsin and have owned horses for over 55 years. My horses are outside 24/7 with access to shelter. I stall my horses only if sick (which is extremely rare) or when waiting for the farrier. The ONLY time I blanket is if a horse is body clipped for a show. Here is the link: http://thesoulofahorse.com/blog/a-amazing-article-on-why-horses-should-not-be-blanketed-in-winter/
 
Thanks everyone. So far, they've been fine at night naked (even in the high 40s).

Until a couple years ago, I never blanketed any of my horses. Then my old pony (~27 at the time) stopped putting on her normal winter coat. And I found out the hard way that she'll colic and get laminitis if she gets too cold. For her, that's whenever temps are below 60F. So she lives in blankets most of the year. Its really not fair or right to not blanket her, especially when it can get down to -30F here.

My 32" mini will loose weight, despite free choice hay and increased feed, when it gets below 20F here. So she'll wear a blanket then. Oddly enough, she doesn't seem to grow as thick a coat as her 34" full sister. That and her smaller size makes it harder for her to stay warm, despite all the hay and shelter. My 34" mini never gets blanketed, unless she's clipped and its still cold (<40F).

Thanks Jean_B. I've read that article before, and I used to agree with it. But there are some horses who actually need blankets sometimes. Just to clarify my experience, I've been around horses for about 20 years, starting with riding lessons when I was a kid. I've had my own horses for about half that time. Minis are a pretty recent addition, only in the last 4 years. I'm just a bit unsure sometimes of what the differences are between minis and larger horses
 
There are always exceptions to almost any rule when it comes to horses. You know your horse's best, the article is a good place to start, but if you know horse has a problem with cold, the of course blanket. Usually, minis tolerate cold quite well, but clipped, sick, thin, sensitive individuals might need a blanket when you wouldn't normally think it's necessary.
 
to add to Chanda's reply - your 27 yr old mare IS a special case. Most geriatric horses (& people I might add!!) have problems with regulating body temps, there fore need help.

and some are just "different"... I have had full size horses that, for one reason or another, didn't grow a full winter coat. Those have gotten blanketed, as necessary, for them.

I may be looking at needing to invest in more blankets myself or building different stall/shed configurations for the ponies that are getting older... Bell and Bit are now 24 & 25 yrs old and still growing heavy winter coats - in January when it hit 90* for almost a week, they were miserable and I had troubles getting them to eat but I didn't want to remove their natural coats due to knowing we had bad weather still coming this way. I'm so glad I didn't - just the following week was when we had that terrible ice storm that hit us soooo hard. They were much happier and able to stay warm on their own with their coats that they had. BUT Bit has not shed off this spring/summer as readily as she has in the past - even with grooming - so I'm thinking that now her metabolism IS changing. We'll see.

default_smile.png
 
The article does indicate there are times a blanket is needed, and your mare is a prime example. MANY years ago one of my barrel horses just never grew enough hair while all the others did....lots of hay would stop the shivering but sometimes still needed to blanket him.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top