Normally I don’t blanket weanlings, as we have fields with shelters, but during winters when we have endless rain I do. I really don’t think putting a rain coat on a baby is a bad thing, and the more they get used to the better, IMHO.
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We don’t blanket weanlings or young horses. Their hair grows so when it stands up it provides warmth. And horses breath through their skin. We are in NJ and do have rough winters and rain - we have sheds in the fields for all the horses. Some never go in them even in the worst weather.
We also don’t want to deal with youngsters tearing horse clothes off each other or getting legs hooked on straps.
Believe me - they are healthier when you just let them be horses!
Another one here that DOES blanket weanlings (and yearlings, and two year olds, and broodmares).
Our horses live out 24/7 with a huge shed, free choice hay (usually alfalfa or orchard/alfalfa mix), and we blanket everyone.
We find that it really saves on the feed bill, which may not be a huge issue if you only have a horse or two, but if you have more can make a huge difference. Plus we just think they are more comfortable.
Sheila
Rain + Wind = sheet
I am in temperate CA (probably simular to GA) - but we do get some days with howling wind and pounding rain / small hail in the winter.
My weanling (when she was one!) was out in a pasture with a large oak tree, and a roof (no sided shelter) that helped with summer sun, but not at all with wind + rain.
I used a turn out sheet on occasion. Mid 50’s and rain, not much wind? - No sheet (shelter works). Lower 40’s with rain, and wind? Turn out sheet. Cold and dry? No sheet.
She stayed out… in all but the NASTIEST of weather (came in maybe two three nights a year - when we were having flooding and loosing roofs to wind!)
I don’t blanket my weanlings and don’t know anyone else who does here in western canada. It seems like they have the thickest coats of their life at that age and as long as they have a wind break they do well.
I do a agree that spring is the worst time with the freeze/thaw and sometimes freezing drizzle.
winter - I’m curious, how much freezing drizzle do you guys get? Other than the beginning and end of Winter, is it pretty much too cold, always, for anything but snow? You’re right, the freezing drizzle is about the worst, and where I am, rain and 30-33* is not uncommon. Rain and temps in the 30’s is the most likely precip scenario, followed by freezing rain and sleet, then snow. And a majority of our snow is wet and heavy, so it doesn’t tend to sit on top of coats and further insulate the horses - it weighs the hair down and soaks them to the skin.
Not trying to dissuade the “weanling blanketers” (we all do what we think is best for our situation 
) but fwiw, I have introduced my young horses to blankets at ages ranging from 3 - 5 and no one has ever really cared much about being blanketed at that age. I don’t blanket until they start living the life of a “grown up”.
Freezing rain
Personally, we don’t get tons of freezing rain. Sometimes in October/November or March but probably a handful of times per year. I do monitor the horses closely when it is freezing rain; I check to see if anyone is shivering or has cold ears. I am always amazed to find the youngsters are the least affected.
Mine can get into a shelter and I put their hay in the shelter so they don’t have to leave it to eat.
The false information in that “blanketing study” astounds me. Years ago, I had a horse arrive in January from a previously very warm climate. It was a boarder and we had wet snow, cold conditions. The owner never came to put a blanket on the horse. I walked out in the morning to find a horse in a life threatening situation. The horse was beyond shivering, had severe ataxia (difficulty walking, could no longer swallow his own saliva) - The poor boy was BEYOND cold and slipping into dangerous hypothermic shock.
Husband grabbed 2 hair dryers and scads of towels, and I called 2 boarders to come help me with hair dryers (could not locate the owner) and we piled on blankets, vigorously towel-dried and air dried that poor horse. Later, putting on those fuzzy moisture-wicking coolers did more magic and wicked the last of the damp off the horse. A few more hours and he would have been dead. It was only about -5 degrees Celsius (just barely below freezing), but it was windy, cold, and wet and the horse was not used to the cold. As he started to develop a trace of shivering (a promising response), I even, very carefully, syringed warm sugar-water into his mouth. He needed not only sugar but warmth. It took a while, but finally he was able to start swallowing properly again.
Later on when he was nicely dry and violently shivering (which is a very healthy response to cold and a good sign he was going to pull through), it was safe to blanket him in a couple layers, put in a stall, and feed him a mash of hot beet pulp. He survived, but I was admittedly rather angry with the horse-owner. I never had to deal with the owner though. I overheard a couple boarders speaking up. She was a bit green for a horse owner, so it was a lesson learned for her. She’ll never know how close it came to her horse dying.
I now live in a climate much more severe. But my horses are acclimatized.
Always do what is best for your horse. Age also plays a role.
I have a 19 year old mare here who grows a good coat, but she’s older now, has a bit more difficulty keeping weight on. I watch her carefully and I have a very low threshold for intervening with regards to her care. In other words, I will act much more proactively with her than I would with any other horse on our farm at the moment.
And for what it’s worth, if a blanket is fit properly it is snug around their neck at the front-side of their withers and the lift of their withers allows an air space along their spine. This provides excellent insulation. You stick your hand in there and it is toasty warm. If it’s toasty warm there, your horse is toasty.
Of course there is false information in the study. THERE IS NO STUDY!!
The only time I ever blanketed a weanling was our friends horse who was born with significant health issues and just never grew much for thick coat. My own weanlings all got lovely thick coats, even the one that was born late summer!
With how much they grow and change in the first few years, I think making sure the blankets fit would be more complicated, and with how obnoxious my young ones were, I could also see it getting expensive!
The bugs were worse up North than the cold, my weanling was introduced to a fly sheet her first Spring…she still hasn’t ever worn a winter blanket (she’s 4.) I actually weaned her during her first winter, and kept an eye on her for signs of cold…nothing. She was 100% fine. Even when the snow falls and melts on their backs, it doesn’t seem to affect acclimated horses much.
I think because she was born up North (500km North of Edmonton, AB) and because she’s part draft, from a tough-hided mare…my mare grows one of the best winter coats I’ve ever seen…and she sleeps sprawled out on the snow most nights, all winter long. Once it drops below -25C, she might edge into the shelter for part of the night.
My Kentucky-born TB on the other hand…well, he really needs a stall at night, especially in winter. No question that he needs tons of hay and usually a good quality blanket during our winters.
CHT - I love your signature! 
I bought blankets for my weanlings this winter. I got the Kensington grow-with-them style so that they last a bit longer. The blankets seem to be well made for the price and are easy to get on and off. I live in the PNW and we get rain for literally weeks on end, and I like them to be able to be outside as much as possible. The blankets have some fill but not too much. I think keeping them dry is part of keeping them warm and here between the damp and the never ending rain blankets seem to be the best option for this. I also really like that blanketing from an early age helps to get them used to lots of handling and things that they will encounter as they grow and eventually end up in the show ring.
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I do not blanket weanlings either, and I live in Ontario where the winters can be quite cold.
IMO the worst situation is when it is driving wind, cold rain, sleet, and I bring them in these conditions.
They also have big shelters and lots of hay.
I do blanket my adult horses, at least rain sheets to keep them dry.
I worry more about the weanlings running, playing and getting too hot and sweaty under their blankets, and then chilled, and also with playing, getting tangled up in blankets and leg straps. The weanlings always get big fuzzy coats in the winter.
I’ve never blanketed a weanling. The ones I worked with were kept in big herds where they played a lot and I would have worried about them getting tangled in each other’s straps. If I had one that was obviously not handling the weather well, I would consider it, but otherwise I think they’re just better off left alone.
I have raised a few weanlings, and I do blanket mine when we get sleet or cold rain wind combo. I also like getting them used to the idea of having something on them, if even for very short times. Mine are out 24/7 with access to wind breaks, and run ins. At times, they may not need the blanket…but if it helps me sleep at night, I go for it. If its just really cold, I throw out extra hay.
I rarely blanket my weanlings, but sometimes I do. If it’s below zero and windy or blizzarding, I will put blankets on them. It makes me (and the people driving by my farm) feel better 
The foals get second cut square bales that I can put inside their shed when it’s nasty out, so they don’t need blankets very often.
All of my adult horses that live outside get blanketed. I live in a wind tunnel and they eat round bales, which require them to stand outside to eat. I do notice that the harder keepers will spend more time in the shed and less time eating the round bale when they aren’t blanketed, which leads to a skinnier horse and the cycle perpetuates. Also, I have noticed that blanketing ABSOLUTELY cuts down on my feed bill. They don’t require as many calories to keep their weight up.
I have always blanketed mine in the cold weather. I’m sure they’d survive without their blankies, but I just don’t enjoy seeing horses of any age with their butts to the wind shivering like crazy.
I find that it has the added benefit of getting them used to stuff being thrown over their heads and wrapped around their bellies and legs. Makes everything ever so much easier when you go to break them.
I do not blanket weanlings. We get below zero temps in harsh wind. They have access to a shelter and wind break. If it is freezing rain then they hay goes in the shelter (otherwise outside). I will say rain is not a common thing in the winter. More of a spring issue and random fall day. Hay is in front of them 24x7. I haven’t seen shivering, but I will admit I don’t go check at 3AM. Babies grow crazy yak coats.
They play hard and I’m way too worried about something getting snagged, or a leg caught, etc. when I’m not there. Babies are so mouthy, and I guess I’m more worried about that, personally. But I’m not saying it is wrong to blanket either, just what works for me.
I’ve had no issues introducing a sheet, saddle, or anything else even though a horse was not blanketed as a weanling.
