Horse Blankets

Blankets are designed to help horses withstand cold weather. Keeping a horse well fed and in good condition is more important than blanketing.

Body Temperature

Horses can maintain their internal body temperature (within certain physiological limits) and remain healthy despite fluctuations of heat or cold in the environment.

Winter Coat

Horses feel the cold and grow a winter coat. They can trap air in a thick winter coat for added warmth.

Sweating

Horses remove heat from their body by sweating. The evaporation of sweat from the skin removes body heat.

Soft horses produce a soapy sweat that lathers easily. As they get fitter, the sweat becomes more watery and evaporates more quickly. An endurance horse at peak fitness will continually sweat, dry off, and sweat again.

Proper Use of Horse Blankets

Horses sweat to cool themselves, but the evaporative cooling effects of sweat cannot work if the horse has a blanket on. If sweating is prevented by a blanket, the horse will overheat and develop a condition called heat stress.

If a horse becomes too hot its body actually starts to cook. In its severest form, heat stress can be fatal as seen when children or dogs are locked in cars on a hot summer day. Other health issues include dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, and lack of vitamin D.

Horse trailers, even if well ventilated, can become warm inside due to the body heat generated by horses. Check regularly to make sure they are not too hot or sweating under blankets. A horse's body temperature can be judged with your hand.

Once you start blanketing for the winter you should blanket every night. Otherwise, allow your horses to grow their winter coats to keep warm. Working horses that have been clipped in winter to sweat efficiently must be blanketed.

Blanketing does not reduce feed consumption in cold weather. It's better to let horses grow winter coats and add corn to to their feed.

Blanket Types

Blankets are measured from the middle of the chest to the point of the buttock.

There are many types of blankets available, from heavy canvas to lightweight cotton. There are quilted and fiber filled blankets of various weights, some of which are breathable. Stable blankets are traditionally wool or synthetic mixtures.

Lighter materials are available for paddock use which have rip qualities that prevent them from getting torn by teeth or fences. A standard paddock blanket is secured on a horse with a front chest fastening and leg straps crossed between the hind legs and clipped to the back of the blanket. A blanket which slips to one side can hobble a horse.

Blankets are not entirely waterproof in wet weather. A wet blanket is worse than no blanket at all.