How would the horse do it??

Question

ok soo i want a horse like really badly. I am thinking about building a simple run in shelter for 1 horse. during the winter tho like how would the horse stay warm?

Answer 1

with a horse rug.

Answer 2

I completely disagree with the concept of blanketing I read here.  When a horse is kept inside 2/3 of the time in winter as most stalled horses are, blankets may be helpful.  I have never once blanketed any of my horses.  Blankets can actually make the horse colder as they flatten down the coat and eliminate the air spaces between the hairs that insulate the horse from the cold.  Winters here get very cold...back in the 70s it reached 40 below zero F.  Last winter it got down to 30 below.  My horses have a run-in and are free to choose 24/7 where they want to be.  Wind howling, snow flying, miserable cold, and they'll be standing outside rather than in the shed.  They have a winter coat...it works.  Forget the blankets.

Answer 3

Buy her a blanket also known as a rug. It's like a saddle pad for the body that helps keep them warm

Answer 4

You will have to rug it. They do grow coats but not enough to keep them warm enough i dont rekon. Unless they can run and move  around heaps lol. I live in an area that only gets to about 5 degrees celsius at night (quite warm compared to come places), and my horse has 4 rugs on him, 2 cotton ones, a skinny hood, a cotton hood, a polo fleece combo and a heavy duty weatherbeta rug (one of them really warm ones). He would generally have more, but he has to go out for a spell in 6 weeks and i wont be able to rug him there, so the poor bugger has to get used to it! lol

Answer 5

ok everyone else has pretty much covered it but i just wanted to mention one thing about blankets.

horses stay warm by puffing out their coat kind of like how we get chill bumps on our arms. when the puff it out the hair traps warm air so they create a little blanket of warmth around their bodies. when you put a blanket on the hair lays flat and cannot puff out therefore taking away their ability to keep themselves warm.

if you are going to take away your horses means of staying warm then you have to provide enough warmth in return. i would suggest getting a medium and heavy weight blanket.

please please please do not use a light weight blanket unless you clip. this is a wind breaker and doesn't provide warmth. i cannot tell you how many times i have seen horses with a thick winter coat whos owners decide that they want their horse to have some extra protection for a cold night and put a sheet on it. this does not add to your horses coat. it takes away the horses coat and then doesn't provide enough warmth in return.

if you are in a mild climate like here in georgia and don't mind a little fuzz then i would suggest not blanketing at all. blankets arent that comfortable for them anyway and as long as it has shelter to block the wind it should be fine. just remember that if you do blanket, that blanket is the only thing keeping them warm so make sure its sufficient.

oh also hay helps them to stay warm so throw some extra on a cold night.

Answer 6

you will need to buy a series of blankets for the horse, check out Dover to get them, you will want a light weight, a medium and a heavy   (and make sure they are all waterproofed)

and check out some reviews on the blankets you buy, make sure they are good quality!!

Answer 7

Keeping it warm in the winter is going to depend on the shelter you give it- needs to be DRY and facing out of the prevailing wind.

In extreme northern climates just a run in shed may not be warm enough for your horse.

The amount of calories the horse gets in the winter will also be a HUGE factor in it's ability to keep warm.

Sounds like you're pretty inexperienced in keeing a horse-  in addition to a run in shed do you have dry storage for feed?  You'll also have vet & farrier exenses.

There's much more to having a horse than just building a run in shed!  Perhaps you should do a lot more homework & research on horse management BEFORE you buy!

Answer 8

I wouldn't buy a blanket unless it's going to be 13 degrees outside horses hairs stand up on there own to ventilate warm hair around there body. But if you clip there body's you will want a light weight blanket becasue there hair can't stand up when they are clipped. A run in shelter will be fine. Blanket's just cost you $100 or more.

Answer 9

with a thick winter coat and a thick blanket if it gets really cold.

Answer 10

A run in shelter is a good thing fir them to have during cold weather to keep both the wind and rain off them but you need a lot of other things before getting a horse.

Most horses as long as they aren't clipped or been kept in a heated barn they start shedding their summer hair and growing winter hair as soon as the days start getting shorter so that's not really your worry.

Before getting a horse you need at least a 1 acre pasture for it to move about in, more is better but 1 acre per horse is pretty much the bare minimum. The area should have good solid safe fencing as well. You need a clean dry storage area to store enough grain for at least a week, can't keep it to long or it may mold, enough clean dry storage area to hold enough hay to last it through out the winter. You have to have both a vet a farrier lined up before hand as well.

Answer 11

honestly,i hav had horses for years and hav never put a blanket on them.they grow thick winter coats that keep them warm.if u use a blanket,it can keep him from being able 2 grow a winter coat and ull hav 2 keep it on all winter.a good sturdy run in shed that keeps the elements out will do just fine.Good luck!

Answer 12

By building it a proper shelter.

Answer 13

A run in shed is fine and all, but the question is

"do you have a place where it can run in from?"

Any land?

Have you had lessons?

No offense but if you didnt even know about blankets or even that its fur grows thicker then maybe you shouldnt be getting a horse just yet.

Answer 14

If you don't clip your horse and you have a run in shelter the horse will be fine and be warm enough. I live in South Dakota where it gets real cold in the winter and my horses just have run in shelters. The get through the winter fine. They just need a place to get out of the wind. If they can't get out of the wind they can get frost bite.

Answer 15

it depend on where u live

for the most part a horse can take care of its self cuz they grow a winter coat they shed in the spring

if the winters are severe then a rug(full body blanket) mayb necessary

but please do no there is much more to a horse that just a simple run in shelter

please make  sure a horse i right for u and that u can take care of it  first no matter how bad u want it

Answer 16

If the horse is allowed to acclimate to the weather...instead of being clipped and covered with blankets.  Nature will produce the BEST way for the horse to keep warm...a winter coat.  The owner having quality hay for the horse helps also.  The process of digesting hay produces warmth for the horse.  

Ours live outside 24/7 and have run in shelters to go into if they wish.  They are dry and NOT facing the prevailing wind...[Joe B reminded me to say that]  Most of the time they don't.  They will stand on the outside of it or under trees for protection.

Horses are not made of glass or cotton candy.  They won't break from the weather or melt if they get wet.

If you have a horse you are showing in high end shows...then by all means...clip and blanket away.  For the regular horse...I think it's a disservice to them.  We take away their natural ability to survive by introducing and applying 'human thought' to a horse.  They are not humans...they are horses...allow them to be one.

**EDIt...I have lived in the high desert where days in the summer are over 100 degrees.  And nights in the winter are 30 below.  Mine and hundreds others all over the area survive that with what nature gave them...with just a place out of the wind and wet.  Most of the time in a group of trees...which the herd preferred over the run in shelters.

Answer 17

Well, horses grow hair in the winter that is way thicker than their summer hair. but if the horse you get is like a thoroughbred being hot blooded it grows less hair than say a quarter horse. If you get a hot blooded horse than you would most likely need to get a horse blanket for him/her. Also, no matter what breed of horse you get you would need to get some kind of bedding. Shavvings do great, I reccomend cedar because it smells great but it doesn't matter. hheres a link on keeping your horse warm in the winter...

http://www.ehow.com/how_2067856_keep-hor...

I hope this helps and good luck getting your horse! ♣