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Re: [RC] Horses Outside/Weather - AprilI hate the 33 and raining. We get that a lot here in Nashville. I have two horses. Tanna shivers if he's wet and it's below 40. I've never seen Serts shiver. I was blanketing both when Tanna shivered, but quit that when I discovered rain rot on the non-shiverer. I believe his wet coat covered by a blanket made a nice warm wet place for the rain rot fungi/bacteria to fester and grow. Now Serts goes without his blanket. If he shivers, he'll get it in a heartbeat, but otherwise, I wait for shivering before blanketing. (I will blanket Tanna if I know for certain for sure it'll be raining with dropping temps.) I've not seen Tanna shiver when he was dry, even at 10 degrees outside. We do have some shelter. Just not man-made. Lots of trees. And unless we put up a man-made shelter next to the neighbor's pasture, I seriously doubt they'd go to the shelter. Seems when there's bad weather, my two horses, the neighbor's horse and the neighbor's 2-ton cow commiserate together by the fence (tree line on our side, utility shed on their side). All I can figure is misery loves company and they're getting some protection from the trees and the shed. There are more trees in the back pasture, more sheltered places, but they choose their friends across the fence. BTW, the Maryland Horse Council thinks that "Trees and natural weather barriers providing shelter may be considered adequate shelter." I believe each of us here do the best we can for our horses. We all like them and like spending time with them (hey, endurance training and riding requires us to spend time with them...if we don't like it, we wouldn't be here, would we?). Each horse is in a different living situation and requires different management. While I don't choose to stall my horses at all (a stall for hurt times *would* be nice, but I have friends with stalls if I need to go there), I have no doubt that my horses are well-cared for and happy, well-adjusted animals (not to mention the 4 cats and the dog). April Nashville, TN ----- Original Message ----- From: Truman Prevatt The worst condition is not 20 degrees and snowing, it's 33 and rain. The rain beats down the hair in the coat - the fluf in the hair is what keeps them warm. You get it wet and it's about as much use as a soaked down jacket. You will die in a soaked down jacket in the cold. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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