Sure, I see no problem as long as the horse is not wet and dirty.
IOnly ride horses that don’t mind it, unless I absolutely have to. My one horse hates being ridden with a wet back. She is just really tense and upset. She’s the type that tries hard, so I don’t put her through it. She will barely even let me touch her when she’s wet from rain.
If she is wet and I have to ride I will put a cooler on her for an hour or so before I saddle get up
Well I am feeling much better now. I shall go forth and ride. I did buy a sheet last night (50% off!) so she will be more comfortable wearing that rather than the heavier blanket she had been wearing. She is a mudder so not only would she be wet but caked in mud as well.
[QUOTE=S1969;7922453]
No turnout? LOL. That was my experience boarding - horses were always dry, and never muddy, because they almost never left their stalls. :no:
.[/QUOTE]
Hardly. Mine go out. Show barns tend to cater to their clientele and the horses. My horses were turned out weather appropriate when boarded out. You can’t paint all show barns with the same brush.
Ah, waterproof sheets…Great for this weather but in the summer, too hot even for the Bucas sun shower sheets here in SE GA. But well, I always had enough saddle pads that my horses did not wear one more than once without laundering. Who wants to put a sweaty, even dried sweat, saddle pad back on the next day? And 2x a day on weekends with Cloudy and Callie getting ridden. So lots of saddle pads, lots of washing machine action. Wish it was cool enough down here for my horses to wear sheets in summer back then and now. I bought those bucas sun shower sheets for Hattie and Cloudy a few years ago because Cothers in the PNW recommended them…Too hot and humid here, and the Bucas sheets shift on my 2 “thifty” as the British say, warmbloods. But yesterday and today in the fog and rain, they went out all rugged up and dry. Always buy the neck rugs to fit each sheet and blanket.
Yup. When it’s hot out I’ll purposely get her wet before tacking up and riding - it helps cool her off.
I sometimes hose beforehand on a hot day too, but with a caveat. The studies they did leading up to the '96 Olympics reinforced the need to scrape water off after hosing, otherwise it is just trapping heat.
[QUOTE=Beverley;7923435]
I sometimes hose beforehand on a hot day too, but with a caveat. The studies they did leading up to the '96 Olympics reinforced the need to scrape water off after hosing, otherwise it is just trapping heat.[/QUOTE]
Yes, this is what I do, and if I can, stick them in front of a fan; they end up cooled off and barely damp, not soaking wet. Everyday in the summer, I find my horse covered in dried and wet sweat (see location…), no way am I going to accomplish anything by brushing.
I’ve no problem tacking up a wet horse. It doesn’t come up too often, although when it’s very hot, I hose the horses before AND after riding due to humidity. They get wet when they sweat, so it’s no different as long as your gear is clean. Don’t worry, you won’t hurt anything!
I have, and have had no problems with it.
how about wet & sandy?
Rained last night & early this am… warm temperature, felt like a spring day (what a bummer to remember it’s only December!)
Of course, my mare simply HAD to roll in the sand after standing out in the rain all night, ignoring her nice, roomy covered area.
I brushed her off as best I could, tossed the wool pad on & the saddle, and went for a lovely ride in the woods. Brushed her off well after untacking, and let her go.
She had no complaints. 
Sure. Towel dry over their back and girth areas and make sure they’re brushed the right direction. If they cared about being wet they wouldn’t be standing out in the rain!
[QUOTE=Mtn trails;7922534]
Well I am feeling much better now. I shall go forth and ride. I did buy a sheet last night (50% off!) so she will be more comfortable wearing that rather than the heavier blanket she had been wearing. She is a mudder so not only would she be wet but caked in mud as well.[/QUOTE]
Sometimes it’s inevitable, especially with a horse like mine who will stand out in the pouring rain under a tree, as if he doesn’t have two fully enclosed stalls available to him 24/7. Even moreso if, like me, you do not have an indoor and end up riding in the rain.
The only thing I would keep an eye on is a proper cool out if she’s still wet at the end of the ride - much like you would manage an overly sweaty horse, I might keep a cooler handy or at least a quarter sheet or something you could throw on for walking so she doesn’t end up wet AND cold.
The only time I’ve seen a problem when tacking up a wet horse, was during a trek this summer in the mountains
- horses had been out in the pouring,cold rain and were soaked and shivering 2) rider didn’t scrape off rain nor towel off 3) rider didn’t walk horse before getting on, and plopped down heavily in the saddle. Horse took off bucking and fell down with his rider. No one was hurt, but it was very scary. My horse and the other one were fine - we had tried to dry them off as best we could, and we got on carefully and lightly, letting them walk off before sitting down.
