I agree with you on this. In our
country, it rains but not snows. It never gets below the high 30s in
winter. Their paddock is muddy. I feed them plenty and they weather
the winter successfully. We have pasture, but I don't turn them out
because their favorite game is going to the top of the hill to the water trough,
then galloping wildly down the hill, putting on the brakes, and plowing up 10
foot long furrows in the pasture. Very shortly, there IS no pasture.
I keep them confined in a large paddock so they can exercise, but they can't
damage the rest of the ranch. They are ridden when the weather
allows. I don't consider them abused. If it's raining, the wind
is blowing and a horse is shivering, then I will put on a
waterproof blanket. There is a rain shed, but two of the
horses dominate it and won't let the third one in.
I once was looking at a horse to buy, and
when the owners found out that I didn't stall our horses in
the winter, with hot and cold running water and carpeting on the
floor, they refused to sell to me. Oh well...........
" THEY ARE LEFT OUTSIDE 24/7, WITH NO SHELTER, NOT EVEN A ROOF TO GET
OUT OF THE SNOW AND RAIN. IN THE SPRING TIME HER PLACE IS JUST A MUD
HOLE. "
My horses are also left outside 24/7 with no roof
over their heads and I don't feel that is neglect . As I posted a few days ago
, our temps here were hitting up to 40 below with no wind chill factor , it
did not faze our herd of 15 that has 4 older retired dude/pack horses in it
between the ages of 25 to 30 . And in the spring our place like most others
becomes a mudhole until things dry out . I love my horses but they are not
house pets . They can handle it , let them live like horses and not something
that will melt if they get alittle wet .
