Over Rugging Horses Australia

Are you over rugging your horse this winter.

Over rugging horses australia.

Horses actually handle the cold better than heat and a common misconception amongst horse owners is that horses needs to be rugged at night as soon as it is getting a bit cooler at nights. Sweating causes the skin to become hyper hydrated the effect you get when you stay in the bath too long and more prone to damage and infection. Over rugging can also affect the appetite causing a horse to eat less as well as the body s ability to control its metabolism. I often see horses rugged 24 hrs a day in winter rugs basically wearing winter rugs from.

With the arrival of winter your horse may appreciate an extra layer of insulation to keep them warm in cold temperatures wind and rain. One of the horses i saw in winter rugs during my ride on that warm winters day standing in the shade to try and cool down. Risks of rugging or over rugging rubbing especially if causing the horse to sweat. Horses are mammals and they maintain their internal body temperature at around 38 c through a well developed mechanism known as thermoregulation which has developed through evolution so that the body temperature is maintained within a narrow range.

Horse owners have different opinions when it comes to rugging your horse correctly for temperature rain humidity sun and protection from insects. As detailed in pony club australia s revised syllabus of instruction c certificate manual every living creature has a tnz. If horses have access to shade they will utilise it in the heat of the day. If this is an issue for you confine your horse to shade through the day in hot weather with access to hay and turn them out at night.

Horses have a very different thermoneutral zone tnz to humans. This is especially important for horses that have white skin over areas such as the nostrils and therefore get sunburned easily. Just like us every horse is an individual so changing your horse s rugs. All too often are horses over rugged as their owner is feeling a bit nippy.

Horses have a wonderful capacity of self care of which their internal thermostat is included. A basic guide to rugging horses. The owner may think the horse is losing weight because it is feeling the cold and so they put another rug on making the situation worse. Rugs and stabling prevent sunlight from reaching the skin which is necessary for the generation of vitamin d.

So some horses will lose weight when they are too hot all the time. First the science bit. Over rugging actually causes many more problems than those associated with a cold horse and many manmade issues can be avoided with correct usage of rugs. Overheating in rugs has got to be terribly unbearable for horses.