How often do you remove blankets to groom?

[PlanB]

I have one horse wearing a blanket 24/7 (they all live outside). I try to groom her every other day or so, but sometimes she’s wearing the blanket for 4-5 days straight. It fits her perfectly without shifting or rubbing, and I am out there feeding 3x/day, so I would see if anything was out of order.

I feel really guilty about leaving it on for so many days in a row but it’s been a rough winter with LOTS of snow and really COLD temps (this weekend, again, we are flirting with the -40 mark).

Just wondering how long people leave blankets on between grooming sessions. Horse is not in work because I. just. can’t. even. in this weather.

[sascha]

Mine demands clothing from September through April, sometimes into May. She gets no breaks from being fully blanketed although sometimes we are down to one layer. I mostly remove it daily to work her, but if she gets a day or two off I don’t worry that she wears it for a couple/few days without me checking that she is still alive underneath the layers.

Your horse will be fine!

[Scribbler]

I have known pasture horses to live in blankets for 3 or 4 months and be just fine when they come off. Not ideal, makes me itch all over to think about it, but no problems.

[GoodTimes]

All of mine are blanketed 24/7 and living outside. One gets ridden 5 days per week and thus brushed 5 times per week. One gets ridden 2-3 times per week, he might get brushed an extra day if a blanket change is happening. And the other is a baby (she’s only blanketed because she has a serious attitude and I wanted to get her used to a blanket and the straps before she got big), she gets blanket pulled and brushed 2-3 times per week.

Blankets go on end of Oct/Nov, earlier if someone is clipped. They don’t permanently come off again until April.

I mostly try to do it if the temps have warmed up. That’s when they’re itchiest!

[Seagram]

Mine are outside 24/7, and I try to groom everyone at least once a week, but with our weather swings and snow and rain, it doesn’t always happen. One gelding I try to get out in the round pen at least a few times a week without blankets so he can roll in the snow, which he loves to do! If the temperature are above freezing without rain (rare), I’ll take everyone’s blankets off for a few hours so they can all roll if they so choose. I need to keep on eye on their body condition, to make sure no one is losing weight, or gaining too much, so even if I don’t groom, I’ll take blankets off to check.

[PNWjumper]

I often have young horses (3-4 yos) who get left in blankets during the winter when they’re getting time off. They will often go 1-2 weeks without the blankets coming off. And then I usually head to Thermal mid-Feb to mid-March and the horses who stay at home usually spend the 4 weeks without blanket removal. I feel kind of bad about that one because that coincides with when they start to shed, and so it’s a huge mess when I get home and start the grooming process again. But generally speaking, the horses do just fine without anyone pulling blankets off daily.

[AMackechnie]

At our barn we groom daily, so blankets are adjusted and removed. If it’s extremely cold, such as down in the single digits, we will use the quartering technique of grooming. We undo all the clasps and fold the blanket back a bit at a time, front to back and back to front, until the horse is finished. We also wash the blankets frequently, so each horse has a change of clothes, so to speak.

[S1969]

I think most horses not in work don’t need to be groomed, period. If you are checking to see that the blanket is not rubbing, horse is not wet or sweaty underneath, weight is good, I would not feel guilty. My TB mare wears a blanket most of the winter and I almost never groom her - she hates it anyway. I check her most every day, change blankets if they are wet or icy, but don’t groom her except maybe to remove mud before blanketing again if necessary.

During the season they are shedding the most the daytime temperatures are usually/often warm enough to be blanketed only at night, so she does get groomed to help get the loose hair out. But that’s still a normal process for animals. They enjoy rolling in the snow/mud/sand to shed and scratch just as much as a grooming session.

[outerbanks77]

I minimally take them off 2x a week and give the horse a chance to roll, and then give them a good grooming. In those temps though, it would probably be down to 1x/week at best!

[Fharoah]

My horse is blanketed from October through April. I remove his blanket pretty much every day for grooming. I often remove When we have a mild sunny day but he is always blanketed at night. I change his blanket often if the outside layer gets wet, sometimes twice a day when it’s pouring rain that is definitely not the norm.

[Mallard]

I would take the blankets off and check your horse at least every other day.
Fistulous withers is a horrible painful thing. I have seen 2 cases and they both took weeks to heal.
Both horse owners were positive that the blankets were well fitting.

[Sunflower]

@Mallard

I would take the blankets off and check your horse at least every other day.
Fistulous withers is a horrible painful thing. I have seen 2 cases and they both took weeks to heal.
Both horse owners were positive that the blankets were well fitting.

This ^^^. Checking under blankets for rubs, as well as wounds, and weight loss or maintenance is important. Blankets can hide a lot and stoic horses not let on anything is amiss.

[Palm_Beach]

Every few days/once a week is fine. If you are worried about rubs, put a shoulder guard on.

[PlanB]

@Mallard

I would take the blankets off and check your horse at least every other day.
Fistulous withers is a horrible painful thing. I have seen 2 cases and they both took weeks to heal.
Both horse owners were positive that the blankets were well fitting.

Can you tell me what the first sign/symptom might look like? I haven’t been able to take off the blanket in about a week now, as I’ve been ill on top of this polar weather.

[Mallard]

http://www.infovets.com/books/equine/E/E105.htm

[Montanas_Girl]

In my area, it’s unusual for us to go more than a day or two without “naked horse” weather; twice daily blanket changes are much more commonly necessary. Our winter weather is notoriously inconsistent. For example, we went from a high/low temp combo of 82/60 Thursday to 58/35 yesterday. :no:

Regardless of temperatures, though, I try to at least briefly pull blankets and do a thorough grooming most days, if not every day. I worry about things like rubs, blanket shifting, etc. if I have to skip more than a day or two between checks. I usually do it while the horses are eating breakfast before turning them back out, so it doesn’t really take much extra time - I’d otherwise be standing around just waiting. Since my current horse is a yearling, this also gives me a chance to reinforce “civilized grown up manners” on a near-daily basis.

Do I think you have to groom daily? No. I think most horses, with well-fitting blankets, appropriate weather, and no leaks can probably go a week or so with no ill effects. But I do think daily checks are more ideal, when possible.