Preparing For Winter With Your Horse

Preparing your horse for those cold winter months can be difficult. So what can I do with my horse? I will help nudge you to ideas to keep you and your furry friend busy and full during the winter

• Find some fun tricks to do! Teach them to lay down, bow, pick up items off the ground for you. This is one of the easy ways to keep you and your horse entertained when you can’t ride around the arena.
• Buy your winter supply of hay and alfalfa. Buying hay before winter hits can actually save you money since hay prices will rise heading more into winter. Along with making sure that the hay that you purchase is loose, green, and most importantly free of mold. Recent nutritional guidelines suggest that a horse should receive 2% of his body weight in hay (or forage) per day. For the “average” 1,000-pound horse with moderate exercise, that will be about 20 pounds of hay per day, or approximately 600 pounds of hay per month. If you buy hay by the bale, be sure you know what the bales weigh and compute your needs. One ton (2,000 pounds) of hay will last about three to four months per average-size horse. Some other supplies for your horses you might need will be in this article.

Keeping hay in a place to were its out of the sun, and away from moister. That includes it being on concrete, wood, or on the ground. This is important for your hay not to gain mold. If you have a neighbor that needs hay the two of you could buy hay together. This can reduce the cost in total.

• Keeping their water drinkable. Horses will drink 8-12 gallons a day so keeping the water unfrozen is essential. It’s proven by researchers that horses actually prefer water of about 45-46 degrees. Breaking the ice in the morning and in the evening is recommend since lack of water can lead to colic. Tank heaters is an option to keep the water warmer. You have to plan ahead of time since they sell out fast.
• Blankets to keep your horse warm. Horses will grow a winter coat. Most of the times you won’t need to have a blanket on them but if it starts to rain or storm its needed. Also make sure that the blanket is breathable and water proof so if the horse sweats or gets rained on it doesn’t make them cold having the reversed effect. This is a good example of a turnout blanket.

It’s a good thing to get ahead and start preparing for winter with your horse for the harsh winter months. Doing the following things listed will prepare you. So have fun while it’s hot outside and get ready for the tough months ahead.