I'm not sure when a horse needs a blanket and when they don't. I have a 6 year old quarter horse mare, she is overweight and has plenty of fat! I have not put a blanket on her before. It gets very cold where I live (Iowa) and she is turned out half the day with a round bale and access to a shelter, and inside a shelter half day (to limit hay consumption).

Also if you could please let me know what kind of blanket to get that would be great! NL, Iowa

Dear NL,

I was hoping someone would ask a blanketing question before winter! Fortunately for you, it doesn’t sound like your mare needs a blanket. She’s a young adult, in good flesh (perhaps TOO good!), getting plenty of hay, already acclimated to the temperature, with access to shelter at all times. If she was very young or very old, already thin, just in from a warmer climate, or sick or debilitated, I might suggest a waterproof turnout blanket for her, with at least 200 grams of fill. Or you could use a stable blanket and layer it with a lighter waterproof turnout blanket (0 to 100 grams of fill), also called a turnout sheet. However, unless your mare actually begins shivering, I recommend letting the fermentation of the hay and the windbreak of the shelter keep her warm (you might have heard that horses should be fed corn in the winter to keep them warm, but this is a common misconception—hay has been proven to give off more heat during digestion).

If you are planning on working your horse during the winter hard enough to make her sweat on a regular basis, you may want to consider body clipping her. If you do remove her hair, then you MUST blanket her since you have taken away her natural protection from the cold. You don’t say if the shelter is the side of a building (sufficient for a windbreak) or a three-sided lean-to or run-in stall that also has a roof. If she is not protected from rain, sleet or snow during the colder months, you may want to consider a waterproof layer for her.

I think your mare will do fine in the situation you describe, providing she has access to unfrozen water at all times and a fortified grain (or in her case, a multi-vitamin/mineral supplement or forage balancer). Just make sure you feel her all over at least every two weeks throughout the winter to make sure she is not dropping in body condition score (BCS). You can’t simply look at a horse with a heavy winter coat and determine its BCS—you have to feel how much muscle and fat they are carrying. Here’s a website where you can brush up on the scoring scale:  Click Here

To see SmartPak's selection of blankets:  Click Here

Dear SmartPak:

I recently moved with my horse from a warmer location to a colder one that also has ice and snow. What do I need to do differently to make sure my horse stays happy and healthy through the winter?

Dear

Welcome to the cold! Surviving in freezing temperatures definitely requires some additional knowledge and skill, so let’s go through the important areas one by one.

First things first, nutrition. Horses use additional calories to keep warm in the winter, so you may have to make adjustments in his feed to maintain him near the ideal body condition score of 5 on the 1 = emaciated to 9 = obese scale. Increasing the amount of hay fed is the best way to keep weight on horses when it’s cold, as the fermentation process generates heat. Some horses may also require additional fortified grain in the winter to avoid weight loss. If you have an older horse or a hard keeper, consider supplementing with additional fat, amino acids, or other weight gain product at this time of year.

Keeping your horse hydrated is also critical during the winter, when water buckets, troughs and even natural sources of water can freeze. Research at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine showed that if horses have only warm water available during cold weather, they will drink more per day than if they have only icy cold water available. However, if they have a choice between warm and icy cold water, they prefer the icy cold water and drink less. The take home message is this: by only providing your horse with warm water, you can encourage him to drink more. This can be accomplished by using tank or bucket heaters or by adding hot water to his regular water bucket with every feeding. Another method to encourage your horse to drink more in winter (or any time of year) is to topdress his feed with salt, or electrolytes.

Next topic: blanketing. Because your horse is not acclimated to the colder temperatures in your new location, he is a prime candidate for a blanket. Other horses that may need blankets include thin horses, very young or very old horses, sick horses, and horses that have been body clipped. Owners of rotund, hairy ponies with continuous access to shelter and hay may do just fine without clothing.

Because you aren’t used to winter weather either, it may be tempting to give your horse the season off. However, studies have shown that muscular strength, cardiovascular fitness and overall flexibility significantly decrease even if daily turnout is provided. Unfortunately, exercising your horse when it’s cold and slippery can be challenging. Work with your farrier to figure out what trimming or shoeing method will give your horse the best traction. And spend twice as long warming up and cooling down your horse as you do normally. Above all, make sure he’s dry before blanketing or turning out.

Finally, there are a few health conditions associated with cold weather. Help reduce the risk of colic by encouraging your horse to drink more water as described above. Prevent common skin problems such as “scratches” or “rain rot” by keeping your horse in as clean and dry an environment as possible, and continue to groom as often as you can during the winter. Since more time spent inside stalls may worsen conditions like “heaves” and arthritis, make sure your horse gets turned out every day (weather permitting) for fresh air and exercise, adding medications and supplements as your veterinarian recommends.

Again, welcome to winter in the North, and I hope these tips help you and your horse make the most of the season!