We’re -7 right now with a windchill of -31 and dropping. Brrr!
I did double blanket (thanks for all the tips) and gave electrolytes and salt. My crew has tons of hay and got extra alfalfa cubes. We’re hunkered down until it warms back up 
1 Like
Went out at 5 this morning to check on horses. We are at -9 and feels like -29. I closed up the barn last night, but it still gets a LOT of ventilation from beneath the aisle doors. One horse was in a heavy, my senior was in a heavy and a medium stable blanket. Never-ending supply of hay for both (my one horse was super excited about that!). Happy to report that both were very comfortable.
1 Like
I had that same thought! But I think the difference might be that we don’t have fur to be our first thin layer, which traps air close to our skin? I also think that with newer blankets, it probably doesn’t really matter because they are pretty light, so the insulation is not likely to crush down much.
Prefer to put lighter layers on top of the horses because it’s easier to pull off the top layer if it warms up a bit during the day. But my herd is currently wearing two 300gm blankets each and they seem to be just fine in the -37C today.
1 Like
Our two came through just fine. More hay than they could eat (didn’t know that was even possible) and they stayed in their run it. It was cold enough that even with a tank heater the edges of the tank had frozen.
None of my (outdoor) Nelson waterers froze, hurray! (One has been known to; I am kind of shocked that it didn’t this time)
2 Likes
My crew is happy the temperatures are creeping back up!
I shoved so much hay and alfalfa cubes at them over the last two days that they barely wanted their grain tonight. They have hay nets in their run-in they haven’t even touched yet.
I am seriously impressed with my Bar-Bar-A waterer after these temps. It kept working all through the serious cold. There was ice all around the edges but the paddle stayed unfrozen and the horses had fresh water. I did take out a few warm buckets for our senior (27) just to make sure he drank enough.
2 Likes
The cold where my mare lives (low of -12, windchill around -33) was enough for the BO to bring them in last night. The horses are out 24/7, and this is the first time my mare has been stalled overnight since I moved her in July. They were double-blanketed, and the BO also gave them a lot of extra hay and warm water. (One of the reasons to not leave them out is there is no easy way to get hot water to the sheds, which are a bit of a hike down a bare, windswept, west-facing hill behind the house. The barn is at the top of the hill near the house. The horses are used to being brought up and stalled when the farrier or vet comes.)
All 4 horses were fine. They are back out today… and it’s supposed to be in the mid-40s tomorrow!
2 Likes
I’ve got 3 seniors. The oldest (28 years old and my heart horse) aged significantly over the last year. I have been a bit nervous about trying to get him through this winter, but he came through this cold snap really well. Our temperature is jumping up tomorrow, with rain in the forecast after being -35C this morning. So I know that temperature jump is dangerous for him too but I feel confident that he will get through it ok. This is my first time caring for a geriatric horse through a winter so I’ve been pretty nervous. But I’ve been checking him regularly and noting down temperatures and appropriate blanket combos and I feel like if he comes out of this well, I will have it figured out. Having had this horse since he was 3 years old, I’m really seeing how horse care changes so significantly at different stages in their lives. It’s a whole new ball game when they are geriatric!
3 Likes
Well, we went from an actual temp of -4°F to 50°F in just over 24 hours. I’m more concerned now about a sudden 50+° swing than I was about the -25°F wind chills Friday and yesterday.
Ugh!
2 Likes
We had that same crazy temperature swing. My mare sailed through the whole episode. She had a very heavy (400g) blanket over a 100g, and the barn owner told me she considered taking the 100g off when they took the horses to the barn, while the other 3 clearly needed the layers. Mare would have been fine; she’s a tough little thing. And she’s smart enough to just keep eating her hay when it’s cold. BO said she went through 7 flakes off a small square bale in 12 hours!
1 Like
