Is anyone using SmartPak's SmartBlanket app?

[french_fry]

I’m sort of obsessed.

I know, I know. You shouldn’t need an app to tell you what blanket to put on your horse, but I am attracted to shiny things and the interface is so cute with a photo of your horse, the horse’s name, and a little location-specific weather guide for the next couple of days/nights with their blanket recommendation (i.e. sheet, turnout sheet, medium turnout, etc.)

When you download the app you build little mini profiles for each of your horses (i.e. if they’re clipped, what their barn/turnout schedule is, if they tend towards being over or underweight, if the barn is usually significantly warmer than outside, etc.) that supposedly inform the recommendation.

I’ll also admit to particularly liking that it validates my minority opinion (at least in my barn) of not over-blanketing. For example, today the high is 55 and Smartpak says no blanket, whereas I’m sure pretty much everyone has something on their horse…

I promise I don’t work for Smartpak! Has anyone else tried it?

[CaitlinandTheBay]

I have it. Though smartpak is definitely more into blanketing than me. I like that I can just open it and not have to scroll or think about what I need. The temps and blankets are all there. Necessary? No. Convenient? Yes.

[wyeoakequine]

I adore it from many perspectives - the interface is so well designed and it is absolutely brilliant from a marketing perspective. I expect nothing less from SmartPak, of course.

I use it mostly for a chuckle, though - my horse is unclipped and living outside 24/7 and I don’t even own a blanket for him. If I followed the recommendations I’m pretty sure he would be sweating like crazy most days. Given my boarding circumstances, it would be practically impossible to change blankets twice a day anyway.

But! I still thing the app is pretty awesome!

[french_fry]

I’m now wondering if I can mount an iPad to my horse’s stall that will display the SmartBlanket app 24/7 so I never have to argue with the barn staff about blankets again. :lol:

(The barn staff is actually amazing and they really care about the horses, which is probably why I can’t win the “He’s not cold, I promise. I PROMISE HE’S NOT COLD!” battle…)

[NurseHorsey]

I actually really like it! They are definitely more pro-blanket but I can balance their assessment against what my weather says.

It’s definitely a great app for me because I board at a small barn run by just the BO, so unless I want to pay extra (and I don’t) to have her switch blankets for me, I need to be able to plan ahead.

[riverrunak]

I really like the app, as well! I’ve had a lot of fun playing around with it. I did have to mark my horse as overweight in order to get it to suggest more a long the lines of what I would typically do. I like it for the days that I can’t decide what my horse needs to wear.

[yellowbritches]

I downloaded it for fun. It’s cute, and I can see it being a little helpful to a clueless owner, but I am a little baffled by some of the choices they suggest. One of my horses is clipped and comes in to his stall at night. The other is a woolly beast and lives out. The app suggested a lot of naked days for the clipped horse that I thought were quite inappropriate (and not just because my horse is a big wimp. A drizzly, rainy cool day would have had any clipped horse I had anything to do with in a sheet!). Yet, the same day, same weather for the woolly beast was supposed to be in a sheet. Maybe because he’s older???

[french_fry]

yellowbritches, this whole week my clipped horse is supposed to be naked even though I’m 100% sure everyone will be in sheets. I was actually thinking that maybe the unclipped horses “need” a sheet (according to SmartPak) in drizzly, cool weather because their coats get more saturated? Or maybe it is just an age thing in your case…

[yellowbritches]

I had a similar thought to yours. Maybe since he’s out in it ALL the time, he “needs” it. He doesn’t. He’s a tough old dude. But it was funny seeing all the blanket suggestions for him (I HAVE blankets for him, but he almost never wears them), while my delicate little flower, who’ll shiver at 55 BEFORE being clipped, is supposed to be naked.

Wish they had a “my horse runs hot/cold” option, along with the weight question. It just goes to show there is no scientific method for blanketing ALL horses. They are all vastly different, just like people!

[NurseHorsey]

[QUOTE=yellowbritches;7838331]

Wish they had a “my horse runs hot/cold” option, along with the weight question. It just goes to show there is no scientific method for blanketing ALL horses. They are all vastly different, just like people![/QUOTE]

This would be a really great improvement to the app - you should contact them! My guy runs on the colder side, being a lean TB and he’s clipped, but one of the Arabians at the barn can probably go blanket-free up until late December unless it gets super cold - she just is much more warm-blooded!

[CaitlinandTheBay]

okay, I just switched my boy to ‘overweight’ and it’s still telling me to put a medium weight blanket on him when it’s 45 out. Am I insane? Is everybody else’s horse getting blanketed at that temp? For what it’s worth he lives out and is undlipped with all the hay his heart desires.

As an aside, this is my first winter at my current barn and I can feel the blanket battle beginning. Apparently everybody else just has one blanket that they throw on whenever it’s below freezing. My guy just has 2 that he wears between 40ish and below with some layers to add in. Am o crazy?

[french_fry]

I think the living out thing throws the results - they definitely have you blanket up when they live outside, which is sort of counter-intuitive since most of the horses that live outside have thick coats and tend to be pretty hardy.

If he doesn’t run really cold I’d actually put that he’s stabled but answer the “is the stable significantly warmer” question with no.

See if that gets results more like you’d expect?

[pony_powered]

I just downloaded it today for fun. My guy is 30-ish with a better wardrobe than I have. I’ll be interested to see what it tells me as the weather gets colder

Definitely ask about the hot/cold issue, I’m sure that they would be able to add that to a future update.

[Appsolute]

I haven’t downloaded it…

I just - I don’t know, I can’t imagine needing an app for this!! I have been blanketing in this part of the country for 25 years. I think I know what my horse needs and when more than any app.

That said - I find the weatherunderground app very helpful! With maps showing the locations of weather stations so you can pin point your micro climate - its the one I reach for most.

[beowulf]

What would be more convenient and more customizable, I think, is creating your own app – which is not incredibly hard. Granted, you won’t have the beautiful interface SP employs, but you can plug in some scripts and variables, and have the guesswork eliminated by catering the function to your own personal expectations.

I mean, I am not tech savvy – when I was the BM of a large eventing facility, I had a YES/NO flow chart sort of thing going on - ‘IS IT WET?’ - yes, blanket – no, don’t blanket – IS HE CLIPPED/RUNS COLD? etc etc.

I am surprised, and had to laugh – I downloaded the app just for giggles and put our four geldings into it… and the answers were laughable; 45 degrees and they needed mediums? :eek: they live outside, and unless it is raining or snowing and below 20s, they are naked!

[EmJ628]

I just downloaded and I actually think the colder weather suggestions are more accurate- but it suggested a sheet when it’s 65 out during the day for an unclipped 9 y/o. The suggestions for night and wet weather I get but 65 and clear is a no blanket day for me. Our horses don’t live out but they are pretty hardy. FWIW think it also adjusts for the part of the country you are in.

[Lord_Helpus]

Waaahhhh. I want to download it, but I do not put a lot of apps on my cell phone (I have a limited data plan). Can it be downloaded to a computer?

[beowulf]

[QUOTE=Lord Helpus;7839095]
Waaahhhh. I want to download it, but I do not put a lot of apps on my cell phone (I have a limited data plan). Can it be downloaded to a computer?[/QUOTE]

I don’t think so – maybe you can get a friend to download it on their phone? :winkgrin:

[billiebob]

I’ve had it for three days and already disagreed with it twice :lol:. I wonder what it’s going to say when the temps get below zero. Maybe it’ll just go haywire and ask if I’m crazy for wintering horses in South Dakota.

I really feel like it needs an option for “is your horse a crybaby”…

[TWH_Girl]

I am so loading this app right now!!