Can you rug up a wet horse

Thanks guys, I would normally leave a light no fill type on during the day but it was very mild they were only clipped last week and I got caught out Will drag them into the field shelter and towel dry snd then chuck a rug on Sprout Well-Known Member 10 November Its not something I like to do, but to be honest, if towel dried, then a modern breathable rug popped on, they seem to be absolutely fine.

NealaTorin Active Member 10 November Joined 3 March Messages I rug wet horses with no problems at all. Rugs are breathable now a days and they soon dry off underneath. I personally don't towel dry as you do inadvertently move the wet down the hair shafts to the bottom where they are actually dry, this ends up getting the skin wet which is more likely to cause a chill.

NealaTorin said:. Antw23uk Well-Known Member 10 November Joined 3 October Messages 3, Location Behind you. I took his neck off at lunch as it was supposed to be dry all day Ive left it off purely as its only a neck, he isn't clipped and its not going below freezing tonight! Towel dry, chuck it on. They will be ok. Do what we always used to do and chuck some loose straw over their backs, then a rug any rug on top, and go about your business in the yard for a wee while, then go back and you'll have lovely dry backs!

The old tricks are the best. MiJodsR2BlinkinTite said:. Well it will if you rub 'em down like some sort of maniac. Not so if you soak up some of the moisture as most people might do. Thanks guys Towel dried and rugged up, thankfully they weren't as wet as I thought they'd be.

Cortez Well-Known Member 10 November Joined 17 January Messages 11, Location Ireland. Erm, horses are actually waterproof you know: as long as they are warm rug then they will dry out under the rug. You can also ride them when they are wet - no idea why people don't I do.

Some manufacturers now make breathable, water-resistant turnout sheets with mesh linings that create the air space necessary for wicking moisture. These can be used on damp horses without a cooler underneath. With this clothing secured in place, you can leave your horse to dry off on his own, so long as you're sure he's completely cooled down and not overblanketed.

To check this, slip a hand under his cooler to feel his chest and flank areas. They shouldn't be any warmer than your own skin. The first few times you use the cooler, you may want to check him again after half an hour or so. Depending on how wet your horse is, it may take him an hour or more to dry off completely after a ride.

I often go back to work after a midday ride, leaving my horse's cooler on until I get home in the evening. If you ride late in the day and need to turn out your horse for the night, it's OK to leave a cooler and turnout sheet on overnight. When you do remove his clothing, "fluff" up any matted or flattened hair with a stiff brush to restore its normal texture.

Like wet hair, matted hair loses its ability to trap warm air around the horse's body. On most days, the process I described above should dry your horse sufficiently. However, if he's extremely wet, you may want to do a little manual drying before applying a cooler. I've had the best success with a household-cleaning product called Micro Fiber Miracle Cloth. It is made of super-absorbent fabric that holds many times its weight in moisture. You can rub it over your horse's dampest areas, such as the saddle and girth area, ears and flank, wring it out when it's saturated and rub some more.

In rare cases, an extremely wet horse may saturate a cooler with sweat before he's completely dry. This will slow down the drying process. You'll know it has happened when the cooler feels wringing wet. Leaving a saturated wool or polar fleece cooler on your horse is still better than exposing his damp body to wind and cold. However, if you have more than one cooler , replacing the saturated cooler with a dry one will speed things up.

Placing handfuls of hay or straw underneath your horse's cooler or between two coolers can enhance the wicking even further. Not only does the hay or straw absorb some of the moisture, it adds an extra layer of air space around your horse, helping to draw the water droplets to the outer layer of clothing where it can then evaporate.

Be sure to put hay in front of your horse as well, so he's not tempted to reach around and eat what's under his cooler. It's usually not a good idea to try this on horses turned out together, as it encourages them to nibble at each other's coolers. All of the above techniques also work for drying a horse brought in soaking wet from rain. However, if the weather has chilled your horse, too, he won't have the added benefit of body heat to drive the moisture away from his skin.

So to keep him from getting too cold and to speed up the drying process, you may need to use a heavier cooler or an additional blanket layered over the cooler. A little extra rubbing with the Magic Cloth will help, too. As your horse dries, be sure to monitor his temperature carefully, feeling his chest and flanks for overheating and watching for shivering that would indicate he's too cold. In the latter case, you may need to replace the first cooler with a dry one or add more layers to warm him up again.

She also has competed in trail and endurance riding since the late s. Down-to-earth stable management techniques help her make time for conditioning two horses for and mile rides, in addition to working a full-time job. Common Problems. However some breeds of horses have a very fine skin and coat such as Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds.

This means that they feel the wet and cold more than tougher, hardier breeds of horse. There are always exceptions though so treat each horse individually. Rugs should not be used as a substitute for shade and shelter see the article Do I need to provide shade and shelter for my horse? Using rugs on horses in summer can be a welfare issue. Rugs do not keep horses cool. A horse naturally has a sleek coat which reflects the sun and a horse will seek shade when they are hot as a natural response.

All large bodied animals, such as horses, take longer to cool down and warm up than smaller bodied animals. Rugs prevent any cooling breeze from cooling the body. Also horses are one of the few animals that rely on sweating to cool down and rugs impede this process by preventing air from passing over the body, evaporating the sweat and cooling the body. Many people rug horses in summer in order to prevent their coat from fading in the sun.

If horses have access to shade they will utilise it in the heat of the day.