# When does your barn blanket your Horse?



## LoriF (Apr 3, 2015)

One barn that I boarded at blanketed at 40F and below unless otherwise specified. Personally, I don't think that they need blankets unless it's raining and cold. I've seen horses shivering when it was 45 or 50 in the rain.


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## csimkunas6 (Apr 18, 2010)

LoriF said:


> One barn that I boarded at blanketed at 40F and below unless otherwise specified. Personally, I don't think that they need blankets unless it's raining and cold. I've seen horses shivering when it was 45 or 50 in the rain.


40F was originally my thought. Awesome thank you! Im the same way! My 2 geldings do great all winter, I usually only blanket them if intensely cold, freezing rain, or with wind chill pretty chilly. A handful of my boarders are the same way, others are not. I just dont feel like running around like a chicken with its head cut off because everyone wants their horses blanketed at different temps.:eek_color:

Thanks again!


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

People get pretty picky when it's not them doing the work. I had a potential boarder who had a list of what blankets she wanted used depending on temperature ranges. I sent her on her way.
Choose you parameters & stick with them.


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## AnitaAnne (Oct 31, 2010)

I agree with blanketing unclipped horses at 40F. Nothing too warm though, as they can sweat quite a bit under a thick blanket. 

Cold and rainy is different though, would not turn horses out when raining if it is colder than 60F. Snow seems to be less of a problem than rain.


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## ApuetsoT (Aug 22, 2014)

My thin coated horse starts wearing his blanket regularly once it is consistently below 0°c in the day. That usually means nights are closer to -10°c. He lives out 24/7. At the warmer temps, I will usually err on the side of to cold, so the blanket may stay of even if the night is colder becuase I can't be out there to unblanket in the mornings ifits going to get warm.

Once it's getting really cold, I err on the side of warmer and will leave heavier blankets on.


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## ApuetsoT (Aug 22, 2014)

Just did the conversion... 40°f is ~5°c. IMO that's too warm to be blanketing an unclipped horse in normal conditions.


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## JoBlueQuarter (Jan 20, 2017)

Same, @ApuetsoT. My horses don't get blanketed up to 20-25 Celsius; 68-77 Fahrenheit, as long as it isn't snowing/sleet/hailing. If the weather conditions are worse, I'll put them into the pole shed's lean-on, which isn't closed everywhere but gives them more protection than if they were outside. They're pretty hardy, like all the animals and humans here, too!  Around here, 5 degrees Celsius is a temperature that makes kids run around outside in thin sweaters, yelling "It's spring!". 
Other then that, I agree with all the other posts.

Edited to add: They don't get clipped anytime close to winter; they turn into big fluff balls in winter!


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## gottatrot (Jan 9, 2011)

Most barns in my area have the owners do the blanketing or else charge extra. For example, if I want my horses to have a blanket on tomorrow because the forecast is for rain, I have to put the blankets on tonight when I am at the barn. The horses will wear the blankets until I can make it out again. Anyone who can't make it out to remove or put on a blanket when it is needed either texts another boarder to ask them to do it as a favor, or pays the owner a fee for blanketing such as $5 a day.

My point is that many barn owners don't provide this service since it is a lot of extra work and comes down to individual preference.

That being said, I don't think it is feasible to say horses should have blankets at this temperature or come inside at such and such. Every horse is an individual. Some TBs have thin coats and need their blankets on at 40 degrees F. Other breeds such as Mustangs might almost never require a blanket. An old or thin horse will need blanketing when a young or heavy horse may not. I have two horses, and one has Cushing's and grows a thicker coat in the winter so she wears a lighter sheet when my other older mare needs a blanket.

A lot also has to do with your climate. In a dry, cold climate, healthy younger horses may be out with no blanket day and night in temperatures down into the teens. They'll fluff their coats out be perfectly happy. Sometimes it can be raining here and 65 degrees F with no wind, and the horses will be completely comfortable, even older ones. Other times it can be raining and 45 degrees F with strong gusts of wind and the horses will be shivering. The "real feel" can mean the degrees showing on the thermometer do not correlate with how warm or cold it feels. 

If you want to continue doing the blanketing, you can try to get a consensus of what owners want. But perhaps it might be easier to give the responsibility to the owners, so they can base it on their horse's age, body condition, etc.


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## LoriF (Apr 3, 2015)

Here in N. Florida, it can get tricky. In the height of winter it can get down to 30 to 40 f or even in the 20's at night and then jump up to sixty or so during the day. If it's raining it makes it even trickier. The barn that I was speaking of did charge for blanketing whether it was only once or twice for the month or every day. 25 dollars a month. It just doesn't stay cold for months here and the horses don't get a chance to get used to it. 

The one thing that I hate is putting a blanket on for the night and then leaving it during the day when it gets to 65 and they are sweating their butts off under the blanket. I would rather just leave the blankets off and bring them in when it's raining in the winter.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

_A *unclipped *horse with a winter coat...._
Would not see a blanket during the day at my barn...that is also providing no sharp wind or inclement weather. Let that winter coat work, the sun is still warming and I would prefer my horses to not sweat under a blanket being beat upon by the sun.
That also said,...it would of course also be determined by how thick a coat each horse has for protection.

I don't think you can do a "blanket policy" of on at this temp, off at.....
You must do a individual, as needed per horse evaluation.

If anything, 40* during a sun-filled day might bring out a t/o sheet for most, a few a light blanket.
Remove the warm sun, add a cold breeze and bring on night and most would get a medium weight blanket over their _unclipped_ body...
Add into that a rain or weather event, the horses would go inside those that could for protection.
I hate seeing horses shiver!!

It must be a individual thing though, although you are not going to want to hear or deal with it...
To be fair, to do right by the horses though....it must.
:runninghorse2:....
_jmo..._


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## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

Didn't read all the replies.

I know BO's find it annoying, but I really think you need instructions from owners as to whether or not to blanket. Here's why: some people don't want their horses to grow too much of a winter coat because they plan on riding extensively during the winter. Some horses are more sensitive to the cold, such as older, arthritic equines, or ones with metabolic issues. Some are just more wimpy. 

I don't think you can do a one-size-fits-all here. My gelding gets a blanket when it's cold and rainy (near freezing) or when it drops down to -20C. My mare almost never gets a blanket because she doesn't need one (will stand outside in a blizzard rather than come in for shelter, never shivers, etc.). 

As an owner, I would have a huge problem with a barn manager who won't blanket my horse because other horses don't need to be blanketed. They're individuals with different needs. The same way I wouldn't want every horse in the barn to be fed the same thing. But then again, maybe that's why I don't board my horses anymore...


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Because of our 'bipolar' OK weather, my horses will start getting blanketed for a few nights this weekend. We're 70 F plus in the days but going to have our first hard freeze (Below 28-30 F for several nights) this weekend. My horses are still very SLICK and will remain so for quite a while. We're also still light until after 7 pm, so they're not in any hurry to fuzz up, though they have started to thicken a little. 

Here's a link to the Schneider's Warmth guide, it talks about when and how much blanket for clipped & unclipped horses. I find it's a pretty good starting place. If I was managing your barn, I'd send out a letter or e-mail telling everyone that if nights go below X horses will be brought in and/or blanketed as needed. If days go below X real temp or X with a wind chill and/or wet, horses will be blanketed and/or brought in. If anyone has greatly different wishes, then there will be an extra charge of $Z to blanket & bring in on an individual basis. I'd make it enough to discourage that kind of thing. I dislike barns that nickle & dime you to death, but if you have a reasonable schedule for blanketing and bringing in, it needs to hurt a little bit if they want more. You're not their hot/cold running servant, though I'm sure there are some who probably act like you are. I would make it clear that regardless of schedule, if a horse was showing a need for a sheet or blanket, it would be taken care of no extra charge. Same if you have one who stays warmer and sweats when blanketed even if all 112 other horses don't. That's fair and shows the best interest of the horses is the main thing. 

https://www.sstack.com/horse-blankets-and-sheets_waterproof-turnout-sheets_contour-collar-euro/stormshield-contour-collar-classic-surcingle-turnout-sheet/

**edited because I read the comments about individual needs**


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## george the mule (Dec 7, 2014)

Csim; the _simple_ answer: "It depends."

Depends on the horse, depends on the blanket, depends on the weather forecast.

I'm both the barn owner, and primary caregiver. Mine are on 24/7 turnout, unclipped, and grow wooly winter coats. Except for The Mare Mandolin, they are all seniors. They have access to stalls, but rarely use them in the winter. All have heavy-weight waterproof blankets.

They get blankets when the forecast is for heavy precipitation (usually snow, but around here, sometimes winter storms start off with cold/freezing rain), accompanied by rapidly falling temperatures.
They get blankets when night-time lows well below zero are expected.
They get their blankets if it is both very cold (teens), and also very windy.
They get their blankets pulled when the sun comes back out, unless it's very, very cold (sub-zero), and get them back in the evening when the sun drops behind the mountains.

This winds up being a lot of work. I will add that my neighbor never blankets hers, and they do just fine, but she does put them in their stalls in bad weather.

Steve and The Hay Creek Mob "Coming in for breakfast; twenty-five below zero"

edit to add: They are also on free-feed hay, so there is always fuel available for the equine furnace.


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## LoveGus (Oct 4, 2016)

Where I've been riding most of the horses are 13+. Most are retirees living the life in a huge pasture. There winter saying is "if the horse looks like a small mammoth then he doesn't need a blanket". My sisters been there for years and in that time of going with her I've seen one horse were a blanket in winter. Most other people there they have blankets in case it's going to get unseasonably cold, rain etc.


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## 6gun Kid (Feb 26, 2013)

While we have blankets for every horse, they rarely get used. Most often it is wife's retired eventer, he is 21. he can be shivery, but with him it is the wind more than the air temp. Funny story, my horse came from Mexico, Chihuahua to be precise, and the winter after I got him was the coldest we have had in many years. I figured no way a horse from the desert could handle the weather it was in the teens with wind chill in the single digits, so I rushed out to the nearest tack store and bought a blanket for him. Wrestled him into it, being battered and bruised in the process. Finally got him stuffed and strapped in and went home feeling triumphant, came back to feed that night and found it shredded in the pasture. So after that I figured if he wasn't worried, I wasn't gonna be. I let the horse tell me what they need, if they are shivering they get a blanket and more fuel. That said, I realize not everybody has the luxury of horses in the backyard where to check on them all I have to do is look out the window.


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## ChasenT (Apr 25, 2016)

I board both my horses. We are in Las Vegas, so temperatures are much warmer than where many of you are, but we do get freezes mostly every year. I board at higher elevations, so a bit colder, but both my horses get nice thick winter coats and I don't have them blanketed at all as long as they remain healthy.


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## csimkunas6 (Apr 18, 2010)

Sorry I havent replied all, completely forgot about this post! Thanks for all the replies!! 

It truly does depend on the horse, which I understand completely, such as my BO has 3 horses, one grows a heavy winter coat, healthy, and a tad overweight, he does fine in just about all weather (that we have here), whereas his full brother has heaves, is a tad underweight, and gets cold faster.

There are 6 horses that are pastured outside 24/7, they have a nice run in, and acres of woods they use as shelter at times as well, they go all winter in all weather with no problems, super thick coat, ideal weight to a bit overweight, they just handle it well.

All in all if its below 32F the stalled horses are in, besides the one with heaves, the foal we have here, no other horses IMO really "need" a blanket. Again, my opinion.

I like the thought/idea of letting the boarders do it for themselves, and really as a BM, I have no problem with blanketing or unblanketing I just think it would be nice if there was a range where they should be, would make it easier on me rather than a few boarders telling me at 50F on a sunny day theyre horse needs a blanket and the next day at 30F and snow it doesnt need a blanket. LOL

Considering these 2 boarders have several other issues besides the blanketing, it might be time for them to move along. Anyways, thanks again for all the replies!!


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## beau159 (Oct 4, 2010)

I'm of no help. My horses live outside 24/7 and I live in North Dakota. I've never owned a blanket in my life and I've had horses for 30 years. They have plenty of windbreak and food/water - they handle it just fine.

But I agree with the others for YOU to set the temperature guidelines on blanketing, and then *IF* a boarder chooses to have you blanket, they pay a blanketing fee. Or they can do the blanketing themselves. 

You are doing extra work so I would have no problem paying an extra fee for something like that. Yes, some horses WILL need blankets (some are sissies ;-) ) but the vast majority are fine.


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