Rainrot is more likely to strike older or immune-compromised horses. ©EQUUS

Winter can be rough on your horse’s skin. Moisture from rain and snow encourages bacteria and other pathogens to grow. And thick winter coats---plus layers of blankets---can allow conditions to go unnoticed for days or even weeks as they worsen. Treating established skin problems can be difficult when bathing isn’t an option. Your best bet for keeping your horse’s skin in good shape this winter is watching out for the conditions most likely to develop so you can begin treatment as early as possible.

Scratches. One of the easiest skin problems to identify and treat, scratches is a bacterial infection affecting the skin at a horse’s pastern. The bacteria take hold when repeated exposure to wet conditions strips away the skin’s protective oils, causing chapping and cracking. The earliest sign of scratches is formation of a crust on the back of the pastern, so do an inspection daily as you pick out your horse’s hooves. If you see signs of scratches, wash the affected area with an anti-bacterial shampoo, then rinse and dry it completely. Drying the area is extremely important and will probably require a hair dryer in winter months. Finally, trim the longer pastern hairs and slather the area with an antibiotic ointment followed by a layer of Desitin or ich-tham-mol to provide a barrier to further moisture. (If it’s too cold to wash the leg, skip directly to the trimming and ointment steps.) Avoid picking off tightly attached scabs because that can be painful to the horse. Instead, use a clean cloth to wipe the ointment from the leg every other day. The softened crusts will slide off easily. Then reapply the ointment.

Rainrot. The bacterium that causes rainrot, Dermatophilus congolensis, normally lives on the skin with no adverse effects. However, a rain followed by humid conditions can allow the bacteria to multiply and irritate hair follicles, leading to painful crusting and hair loss on the top of the rump and along “runoff” lines of the flanks. Older horses and those with compromised immune systems are most likely to develop rainrot. The earliest signs are ruffled-looking patches of coat---caused by hair follicles standing on end slightly---combined with warm and possibly sensitive skin.

A daily grooming session or at least a peek under the blankets is necessary to notice these changes. A course of anti-biotics at the earliest stages can head off rainrot, so consider calling your veterinarian if you see signs of the condition.

If scabs have already developed and bathing isn’t possible, slather the spots with mineral oil to loosen the crusts and allow them to slide off easily. With the scabs gone, you can treat the bacteria beneath them with an antiseptic wash. When the weather warms up, a full bath with a medicated, antidandruff shampoo followed by a long spell in the warm sun will help clear up rainrot.

This article first appeared in EQUUS issue #424.

On a chilly winter day, it’s natural for your horse’s coat to seem a bit “puffier” than normal. When he gets chilled, the hypothalamus, the primary control center for thermoregulation located deep within the brain, triggers the contraction of the smooth muscle that attaches to the lowest point of each hair follicle. As a result, each hair straightens up and stands on end. This extra fluffy coat creates a large insulating pocket of air right next to the skin. The same reaction, called piloerection, is what causes goose bumps in humans.

Keep all of this in mind if you decide to blanket your horse this winter. A lightweight blanket will simply press the hair down and eliminate the coat’s ability to hold and heat air, without adding any warmth. Either opt for a heavier blanket or, if your horse’s natural winter coat is thick, leave him without a blanket as long as he has adequate shelter.

A fluffy coat is not to be confused with one that is “staring,” however. Horses who are suffering from a systemic illness can have a coat that appears to stand on end. This is caused by poor circulation and a lack of oils in the skin, resulting in dandruff and scurf. If your horse has a staring coat, call your veterinarian.

This article first appeared in EQUUS issue 424.

If you live in a cold area of the country, take the following steps to ensure your horse’s nutritional requirements are met.

1. Increase his ration. In cold regions, the energy that a horse would normally use under saddle goes toward maintaining his body temperature. If your horse is losing weight during the winter, offer him plenty of hay. (See below.)

2. Supplement wisely. A little extra fat for insulation can help keep your horse warm in the winter. However, although grain and fat are higher in calories than hay, they won’t build an insulating layer of fat very rapidly. Use these supplements to maintain his weight or to add just a few pounds over time.

3. Consider high-protein hay. If the weather is really cold and you want to stoke your horse’s internal furnace, then feed him an extra flake of high-protein hay, such as alfalfa, every day. When his normal protein needs are being adequately met, the body will use the excess protein for energy, adding to his body-fat stores. Also, as he digests and metabolizes this extra protein, he’ll produce extra heat, raising his core body temperature by a degree or so for about half a day (significant in subzero weather).

If alfalfa hay isn’t available, you can feed your horse three to four pounds of alfalfa pellets once or twice per day. Work with your veterinarian to design an ideal winter diet for your horse.

4. Offer clean, warm water. Your horses will generally drink enough water if he has have good access to water that’s remotely drinkable. However, his intake might decline if the water is very cold and/or contaminated with debris. This can lead to dehydration and even colic, the No. 1 killer of horses.

To encourage your horse to drink, keep the water bucket clean, and use a safe heater to keep the water above 50 degrees. If he’s eating well, and seems bright and cheerful, with no signs of abdominal discomfort, he’s probably drinking all he needs.

Susan E. Garlinghouse, DVM, is the owner of All Creatures Animal Hospital in Montclair, California. Click on the link above for more equine-nutrition articles from Dr. Garlinghouse.

Rather than tell you any hard and fast rules (since there are none), we’ll give you some guidelines to help you figure out what’s best for your horse and his situation. You might be surprised to find that, in some cases, not blanketing is actually the best decision.

Equine Thermal Energy

We’ll begin by looking at the horse himself. Horses stay warm much better than people do, and they are quite comfortable even when you and I might be reaching for a jacket. In short, you can’t determine a horse’s need for a blanket by how chilly you feel.

The primary way a horse gets or stays warm is by digesting hay. Digestion is really a fermentation process, and one of the by-products is heat. When your horse is facing a cold night, the first consideration is to provide him with plenty of hay to keep that furnace burning. And in order for that digestion process to work well, he needs water. Ideally it won’t be ice cold.

The horse’s bulk is a great help in keeping warmth in. Think of how thick a horse’s body is, relative to the slender frame of a human. Just as a large block of ice takes longer to thaw than a smaller chunk, a large, warm body stays warmer longer than a thin one.

On top of that, a horse’s winter coat has the ability to fluff up, the hair literally standing on end, thereby creating a warm layer of air around the horse. Long “guard” hairs create an additional layer and fend off light rain or snow.

Even though it’s cold out, an average horse in good condition, eating plenty of roughage, and wearing his own hair coat is probably going to stay warm—as long as he can stay dry and isn’t in direct wind.

When to Blanket

The farther you get from the ideal, the more appropriate it is to consider a blanket. Not every horse has a wooly coat. Some breeds of horses have thinner coats, and others have thin coats from blanketing, being under lights, living in a warm climate or barn, or having been clipped. Even within a barn, you may find one horse who doesn’t need a blanket, another who just needs a sheet at night, and another who seems to require a winter parka.

But a fuzzy coat isn’t the only determining factor. Consider whether the horse is underweight, isn’t eating enough roughage, isn’t able to get out of the wind or wet, or has some health concern that compromises his ability to stay warm. Remember, though, when you put a blanket on your horse, you squash that natural insulating layer of air in his coat. In borderline situations, he may actually be more comfortable wearing his natural blanket than your store-bought one.

It’s usually necessary to blanket a body-clipped horse. You can layer blankets, the way you might wear a light sweater under your coat. And for any horse out in wet weather, keeping him dry is key to keeping him warm.

If the horse isn’t body clipped, you have the dual challenge of cooling the horse down after a workout without allowing him to get chilled. You’ll need to put towels or a wool cooler under a light sheet and remove the towel or cooler as it gets damp.

With any horse, you should periodically reach under the blanket to be sure the horse isn’t hot or sweaty, especially a horse who has been worked, because he can appear cool but then get sweaty again once he is back in the stall.

Though horses adapt to changes in climate, they don’t adapt well to rapid changes. So the horse who was fine when left unblanketed last week might benefit from light blanketing tonight as the leading edge of a cold front comes through. Remember that the big worry during weather changes is that the horse may colic, often due to decreased drinking. So while blanketing is important, having not-too-cold water is critical.

Some owners think they’re doing their horses a favor by closing up a barn to keep their horses warm. But they’re also closing in ammonia fumes and allowing moisture to build up. So instead of heating the barn, it’s better to blanket the horses and allow for plenty of ventilation.

It takes calories to stay warm, and some horses need all the calories they can eat. That’s especially true of older horses who have difficulty chewing or holding weight, and of horses who have been through a health or shipping stress. In those cases, blanketing helps conserve energy and boosts their ability to stay warm.

If blanketing is the best option for your horse, try to avoid having him wear the blanket 24/7. Even a little unblanketed turnout time in the sunlight on a winter day will do most horses good—whether to have a good roll or just to give their skin a breather from the blanket.

Blanket Commitments

Once you’ve decided that your horse might benefit from blanketing, you still have plenty of smaller decisions to make. Does he need a light blanket or sheet for daytime and a heavier blanket for night? Will he be turned out, necessitating a waterproof blanket, or does he just need a stable blanket for time indoors? Will he be turned out with other horses who will run and play? If so, he needs a blanket that will survive that.

Or will you turn him out blanketless, but then groom him before re-blanketing? If he rolls in the mud with his blanket, what will he wear while you’re washing the muddy one?

And aside from the cost of buying a blanket or two, there’s the time commitment that goes with blanketing and unblanketing, day after day. Who is going to do that work? If your horse is cold, blanketing may be your best option. But if you have choices, such as whether to body clip him or not, other time and nuisance factors come into play.

There’s the matter of keeping the blanket clean. Depending on the blanket materials, that may mean brushing the underside of it daily—or at least checking it—to remove any hay, hair, or stickers that could potentially rub against your horse’s coat. It may mean washing the blanket, which also means drying it thoroughly before putting it back on your horse. This likely means you’re going to need a second blanket. Don’t forget that it’s inevitable that you’ll have to do some repairs—even if it’s only to reattach a buckle.

Even with a blanket, which will help keep your horse clean, you should groom your horse every day. He’ll get itchy wearing a blanket, just as you would if you wore the same sweater day in and day out.

If your horse is turned out with his blanket, you have to make sure that the fabric doesn’t absorb and hold water when it gets soaked. A wet blanket will get a horse cold very quickly. Read the labels carefully. “Water-resistant” may be fine in a light mist, but you need “waterproof” if your horse is to stay out in the weather. And that means you’ll have to re-weatherproof it after cleaning.

Of course, you’ll have to be sure that the blanket fits well and doesn’t rub your horse’s coat. Even if it seems to fit, keep an eye out for the telltale hairs that seem as though they’ve been shortened, as if newly clipped or roughed up. This often happens over the hips, on the shoulders, or around the neck opening or withers after the horse has been wearing the blanket for a while.

When the hair gets rubbed, the skin will become tender also. For some horses, even a good-fitting blanket will eventually rub, so he may need an undergarment that will allow the blanket to slip along his shoulders more easily.

And even when everything works perfectly, you can still come home to find your horse naked and your blanket investment shredded by a naughty pasture mate.

As in most things, getting by as nature intended is generally your best option. But when blanketing is the right choice, you get to enjoy the warm feeling of knowing you’ve done your best for your buddy.

When October leaves start falling, you know that winter will soon be knocking on your barn door. And in many parts of the country, that means below-freezing temperatures, snow and ice, slush and mud. Sometimes the bad weather arrives surprisingly early, so to avoid having to struggle to catch up when cold winds are blowing, get started on your winter preparations now:

1. Protect medications. Check the labels of all injectable, topical and oral medications for information about proper storage. Many cannot withstand cold temperatures and will become useless, if not harmful, if they freeze. Either store cold-sensitive products in a climate-controlled tack room, or take them to your house for the winter. (While you’re at it, check the expiration dates and replace any products that have gotten too old.) If you’re unsure whether one of your drugs is still safe, ask your veterinarian. She can also advise you on how to properly dispose of old or damaged products.

2. Test water heaters. Before temperatures hit freezing, make sure any heaters you use for your buckets and troughs are working properly. Turn the heaters on and check the water temperature, then monitor the water meter to ensure your horses are drinking normally. If your horses’ water intake seems to be below normal, investigate the possibility that you have a stray voltage problem.

3. Insulate your hand tools. Slip pieces of foam pipe insulation over the handles of shovels, rakes, wheelbarrows and other barn tools, especially those made of metal, to prevent frost and help protect your hands. Use duct tape to secure the insulation in place so it doesn’t slip as you work.

4. Clean out gutters and drainage ditches. Fallen leaves and other debris that accumulate in your gutters and drainage areas can cause rain and melting snow to back up onto your roofs and along your foundations. If water pools and refreezes, it can create dangerous ice dams that can cause structural damage to your buildings.

5. Mow and drag your pastures. Cutting weeds before they go to seed will help keep them under control next year, and especially if you’re taking your horses off the grass for the winter, dragging the manure will give it plenty of time to decompose. But don’t mow to less than four inches---the grass still needs reserves to help the roots survive the cold months.

6. Inspect your roofs. Stand inside your barn and all sheds on a sunny day and look for defects that are allowing light to come through. Repair any problems you find or arrange to have the work done. If you’re unsure about the integrity of any structure that houses animals, keep it empty until you can have it examined by a professional. Also look out for holes, cracks and rot in the walls, especially along the floor, which may allow rodents and other small creatures to get in.

Check to make sure all your snow guards are in place and secure. These devices are mounted on the roof to prevent large snow slides. They also keep the weight distributed evenly over the entire surface while melting, preventing large buildups along the eaves that can block or damage gutters. Snow guards are more common in northern climates where snowfalls are heavier, but it’s not unusual in these times for weather patterns to fluctuate to the extremes, and you may get more than you expect. Even if you’ve never needed snow guards in the past, you might consider installing them.

7. Walk your fence lines. Shake the posts as you go, looking for loose boards or wires, protruding nails or fasteners, leaning or other signs of developing weakness. Carry a tool belt to make minor repairs as you go, as well as brightly colored tape to mark areas that will require more attention later.

8. Make sure lights are working. In the long daylight hours of summertime, you may not notice or care that indoor or outdoor lights at the barn have burned out---until suddenly the dark comes early, and you find yourself fumbling to change a bulb one evening. Make sure all your work areas will be well lit when you need them to be.

9. Stock up on snow supplies. A number of substances---salt, sand, ash, nonclumping clay cat litter---are useful for providing traction on icy footing. Salt is better at melting ice, but it can also kill vegetation and burn unprotected paws. Sand and ash are safer but can slow the melting process once temperatures start to rise and are very messy. Whichever choice you make, stock up long before snow is in the forecast. While you’re at it, replace any older or broken snow shovels, scrapers, deicers or other winter hand tools.

10. Service powered equipment. Late fall is a good time to change engine oil, flush and replace antifreeze, lubricate and tune up snowblowers, mowers, tractors and other powered equipment, whether you’re storing it away for the winter or prepping it for a season of use. Don’t forget to check and replace any worn tires. If you use a snow blade attachment on your truck, tractor or utility vehicle, make sure it is oiled and in good condition, and place it somewhere you’ll be able to access it readily when it’s needed. Stock up on extra belts, hoses, clamps, antifreeze and similar supplies should you need to make emergency repairs.

11. Stockpile hay, feeds and necessary supplies. It’s a good idea to have extras of all necessities on hand in case winter storms make deliveries or trips to the feed store impossible. How much hay you’ll need to store depends on many factors, including how cold it’s projected to be and how long your pasture can be grazed, but a good rule of thumb is to buy about 10 percent more than you think you’ll need. Also keep about two extra weeks’ worth of feeds and supplements on hand—just be sure to check expiration dates. You don’t want to buy more of a supplement than you can use before it expires. Make sure your first aid kit has anything you might need in an emergency, and stock up on any medications or bandages you use regularly, for a horse with a chronic illness or injury, for example.

12. Inspect your blankets. Even if you cleaned and stored your blankets properly at the end of last season, it’s a good idea to take them out and have a look at them well before you’ll need them again. Mold, insects or rodents may have gotten to them while they were in storage. Check for loose straps, frayed fabric, holes or foul smells, and repair or replace any blankets that need attention.

Also make sure each garment still fits properly. Youngsters, athletes, seniors or laid-up horses may have gained or lost a significant amount of weight over the summer and may not be able to wear the same blanket again. A properly fitting blanket allows a hand to fit snugly under and slide around along the shoulder, withers and rump.

13. Prepare your horse’s feet. If you’re going to pull your horse’s shoes for the winter, it’s best to do it while the weather is still warmer, so he can acclimate before the ground is frozen hard. If you’re going to keep him shod throughout the winter, consult with your farrier about your shoeing choices. If the footing will be slick, some horses may do better with traction devices, such as studs or borium. Snowball pads may also be necessary, to prevent wet snow from getting packed in under his feet.

14. Adjust the airflow in each stall. Too little ventilation in a horse’s stall means that airborne dust can accumulate quickly to unhealthy levels; too much airflow can mean bone-chilling drafts. Check how the air is moving in each stall with one of these two methods:

• Scuff your boots in the bedding, enough to kick up dust. After five minutes use a flashlight or other light source to check the air. If you can still see floating particles, the air is too stagnant.

• Hold a strip of toilet paper, about a foot or two long, at arm’s length at different places in the stall. You want to see it waving gently, to indicate a gentle breeze. If it’s either hanging motionless or flapping vigorously, the airflow is too low or too high. Open and close doors and windows until you reach the ideal amount of ventilation. Usually, a few open windows on the leeward side of the barn, sheltered from snow and rain, provide a healthy supply of fresh air.

Winter weather can sweep in unexpectedly. But if you prepare now, you’ll be ready to relax and enjoy the best the season has to offer, knowing that your property is safe and your horses are cozy.

Like the lightweight sweatshirt in your gym bag, a cooler is a useful part of a working horse’s winter wardrobe. Made from warm but breathable materials, coolers control the rate at which a hot horse cools down, reducing the risk of chills. Most coolers do this in three ways:
• by wicking moisture away from the horse’s skin and onto the fabric’s outer surface, where it evaporates.
• by blocking the wind, which will literally blow away the heat produced by the horse’s body.
• by trapping and retaining warmth between the fibers of the fabric to act as insulation.

To get the greatest benefit from a cooler, toss it over your hot, sweaty horse and walk him until his pulse and respiration rates return to normal. Then, keep him in a draft-free area, with the cooler on, until his skin feels warm---not hot---to the touch. But be watchful while he is wearing a cooler: Some do not secure as well as regular blankets, which makes it easier for a horse to become tangled.

When your horse’s coat is mostly dry and his skin feels nearly normal in temperature, you can put on his regular blanket and call it a day.

Even if your horse has never been inclined to chew on fences and trees, keep an eye on him this winter. Studies have shown that horses are more likely to gnaw on wood during wet, cold weather, perhaps because of an instinctive urge for more roughage as temperatures fall.

If you discover that your horse has begun this destructive habit, ask your veterinarian to perform a complete workup to rule out physical causes such as a nutritional deficit. If she finds nothing amiss, you can treat wood chewing as a behavioral issue and take some steps to discourage it:

• Provide more long-stem forage. This is the easiest and most effective method of stopping wood chewing. In addition, consider using a slow feeder, which will help reduce the potential for boredom by making hay meals last longer.

• Eliminate access to the wood source. Of course you can’t replace your fences or cut down your trees, but you might be able to cover them with PVC. Stringing an electric “hot” wire just to the inside of the fence line will keep your horse away as well.

• Make the wood distasteful. Treat the surface of the wood with an unappetizing substance. Many commercial formulas are available; just be sure to follow instructions.

• Step up your horse’s exercise program. Regular activity, whether part of a training program or casual trail rides, provides an outlet for excess energy that might otherwise go to chewing.

ANSWER: Poor blanket fit is certainly one of the most common causes of rubs on the shoulders as well as the withers and the backs of the hind legs. But there are several other possibilities you should rule out before investing in a new blanket.

Belly straps should be snug enough that you can fit just the width of one hand between the strap and your horse’s body to prevent him from getting his feet caught.

First, the rubs could result from a skin condition that is aggravated by the blanket. If you notice hair loss or sores on other places of your horse’s body that aren’t in contact with the blanket, this is a surefire sign. Consult your veterinarian to rule out a skin condition.

Second, your horse may be sweating under his blanket, which causes more friction and irritation. This can result either from using a blanket that’s too heavy for the temperature or from blanketing too soon after exercise. Always monitor the weather carefully when your horse is blanketed, and ­undress him as soon as temperatures rise to a potentially uncomfortable level. Also be sure to cool him out thoroughly before putting on his blanket after a workout.

To check that his blanket fits properly, put it on (always securing the front chest closure first, then working your way back to the belly ­surcingles and leg straps) and evaluate these areas:
1. The edges of the front of the blanket should overlap slightly at the chest. You should not need to pull or tug the blanket against the points of the shoulders to close it.

2. The front edge of the blanket should completely cover the withers and shoulders. It should not gap around the neck or shoulders, as this allows the blanket to slip back behind the withers and potentially get stuck there, putting pressure on both the withers and shoulders.

3. Each belly strap should be snug enough that you can slide only one hand width between it and your horse’s body. This helps to prevent a hoof from ­becoming stuck during play or when your horse lies down.

4. The bottom edge of the blanket should hang a few inches below your horse’s elbow, but it shouldn’t hang so low that extra material bunches up ­between the belly surcingle and his front legs. (This is less of a problem with ­angled belly straps than with vertical ones.)

5. The leg straps should not hang as low as your horse’s hocks. Instead of crossing the leg straps, attach the left strap to the left side of the blanket, then loop the right strap through the left strap before attaching it to the right side of the blanket. This helps keep the blanket in place and reduces contact ­between the straps and legs.

6. The back edge of the blanket should reach your horse’s tail. This will provide protection from bad weather and will also ensure that it doesn’t pull the leg straps—if your blanket has them—forward against the sensitive skin on the backs of his hind legs.

Once you’ve evaluated the blanket fit while your horse is standing still, walk him around and observe how he moves in it. He may change his natural gait (taking mincing steps, for example) if he feels the blanket restricting his movement. You may also notice places where the blanket binds tightly against his body. Even if this is a strictly indoor blanket, it still needs to move freely enough to allow the wide range of ­motion his legs need for lying down and standing up again.

Most of today’s blankets have a ­nylon inner lining, which creates less rubs than more textured materials. If yours doesn’t, stitch a piece of nylon or felt on the inside where it touches his shoulders to reduce friction and rubs.

If your blanket seems to fit well and has a good lining, your horse may just have especially sensitive skin. To protect it, consider buying a nylon undergarment designed to minimize rubs. The slipperiness of the nylon will help the blanket slide more easily over his body. Buy one that’s neck edge lies in front of the blanket’s neck edge, thus preventing overlapping edges, which might chafe along the withers and shoulders.

If you decide to buy a new blanket, take the time to shop around and find one that fits your horse’s particular size and body type. Different brands tend to suit different horse shapes—and sizes vary quite a bit from brand to brand. (I have a horse who has fit in everything from size 80 to 86.) Ask friends to let you try their blankets on your horse to get an idea of what brands work best for him.
I am a big fan of blankets with gussets—extra panels of material that allow more freedom of movement. The higher the gusset begins on the blanket, the more freedom it provides. More turnout blankets seem to have gussets than stable blankets, but the former have such light, breathable materials now that they work fine for indoor use as well.

When shopping for blankets with gussets, you will find that some are placed low and close to the shoulders, and some start higher and farther back, close to the withers. Do some experimenting to determine what works best for your horse.

Some blankets also have a new type of chest closure that wraps around the front of the horse and attaches on the sides. This seems to reduce the incidence of shoulder rubs.

If your horse does develop rubs again, try to stop them before they get out of control. Apply a heavy coat of diaper-rash ointment to the rubs. It will get all over the blanket and require extra cleaning later, but it will help save his skin while you work on solving the problem.

A former groom for several Olympians, Liv Gude is the visionary behind the ­Professional Equine Grooms website (www.proequinegrooms.com), which brings ­professional grooms of all disciplines ­together in a supportive, informative community. The website provides everything from grooming tips to job listings and blogs. It hosts weekly contests for the best tips, tricks and tools submitted by website guests. Liv now works full-time on www.­proequinegrooms.com and enjoys her Grand Prix dressage horse, Miguel, and hunter, Comet. Both horses earn their keep by posing as models for the website.

Insulation
Insulation is a layer of synthetic fibers between the inner and outer blanket materials. ­Often referred to as fiberfill or polyfill, this layer traps warmed air in the spaces between fibers. Here’s how fill translates to blanket weight:

Temperature Gauge
To blanket or not to blanket? Below is a starting point for deciding how to blanket your horse based on temperature. These recommendations don’t factor in wind chill or precipitation, so adjust accordingly, particularly for horses who are turned out. Keep in mind that layers such as blanket liners, stable sheets and blankets of various weights can be substituted to achieve equal protection and insulation.

Also remember you want to keep your horse warm, but you don’t want him to sweat, which is worse than being a little cold. Some blanket materials, when soaked with sweat, cause the moisture to evaporate from your horse’s skin faster than his body is able to warm it, causing his skin temperature to decrease and eventually chilling his body.

Find His Size
1. Set up your horse so he’s standing square on a level surface, either in crossties or held by a friend.
2. Using a cloth tape measure, hold the end of the tape in the center of your horse’s chest, even with the widest part of his shoulder (see Photo A).
3. Holding the tape parallel to the floor, bring it around his shoulder, along the side of his body, going as far as you can reach. Mark where the tape ends with your finger and note the measurement in inches. Then move the start of the tape to your finger and repeat the process. Continue measuring until you get to the edge of his tail bone (see Photo B). Add all of your measurements. This will be the size blanket your horse needs.

Stable blankets and sheets and fitted coolers generally come in traditional or “American” sizing (2-inch increments, more contoured fit, shorter drop) while turnouts are usually in European sizing (3-inch increments, higher neck, more belly coverage). If your horse’s measurement falls between sizes, choose the next size up.

One caveat is that blanket manufacturers have different sizing recommendations. Some companies suggest measuring from the center of the chest to the center of the tail or from the center of the chest to the point of buttocks. Other companies require you to subtract a certain number from the actual measurement. Check individual manufacturers’ Web sites for measurement and fitting recommendations.

This article originally appeared in the October 2009 issue of Practical Horseman magazine.