Well, someone needs to be a killjoy.
My fella’s winter coat is starting to come in. It’s very subtle, but after being away for a week, I came back and noticed that his neck has an extra plushiness. Hmm. What does Mother Nature have in store for us this winter, I wonder?
Since it has been a dry, hot summer we will probably get bone chilling cold and plenty of snow blown around by brisk winds. It didn’t snow much last winter but it didn’t melt, no January thaw, no visible lawn until March. We’ve had heat waves, 3 days above 90, for the first time in something like 8 years. The sign of truly frigid weather at the barn is when the drain pipe from the toilet to the septic tank freezes and DH digs it up to clear it. It’s been a few years since that happened. This is where I put in the ad for heated Nelson waterers. My horse is on pasture board at age 26 with the BO’s herd. He has a nice winter wardrobe. Knowing he has a constant source of warm-enough water makes me more comfortable, having pounded ice and wrestled hoses heaters years ago. This is one of those deals where I’m tempted to shut it down so the kids get a real sense of how much work it is to take care of horses, especially in January.
Horses and other animals grow or shed their coats triggered by the amount of sunshine they are exposed to. Our horses here in Colorado are just shedding their summer coats. Our regional championships are (or were, till this year…) held in late September. Most of the horses by then have started their winter coats.
You folks, being in Massachusetts and Maine, are a bit farther north – so your horses start a little earlier.
Mine is shedding in for sure, nothing subtle about it. My mom described it as a crime scene outline of shed fur around him when you’re done brushing. But he’s no good at predicting weather, gets just as plushy for a winter that barely happens as for one that has the “arctic blast”.
Just was wondering today, could not believe the little bitty but fuzzy looking hairs coming in on his shiny short hard summer hairs.
We were 101 today, tying a record and the record tomorrow is 103 and we may be there also.
Crazy, no telling what will happen, but it has felt in the mornings like early fall already, so maybe we will do that and have a decent winter.
Sigh… X (
Try owning a mini.
Not completely shed out until June, now starting to lose the shiny Summer coat & edge toward plush.
He will be fuzzy by the time we go to the Ntl Drive in early October.
Horse & pony are hanging onto the Slick… for now.
Mini last August:
Mini last October:
(intentionally ungroomed for Tacky Tack class)
Winter coats actually start in the end of June, when days start to again get longer. Summer coats and shedding actually starts inn the end of Dec, when days again start getting longer.
Say it ain’t so… Was currying my boy last night and, what do you know, he’s shedding…
I’m not ready for summer to end!!! We just started doing all the fun things again… :no:
On the plus side, he’ll be growing in his normal dark chocolate coat… I’ll take that any day over his summer “graham cracker” hue. Since he lives out 24/7, and gets flysprayed daily, you can imagine how light his coat is right now…
We started shedding a few weeks ago, but it was really noticeable yesterday. I gave my horse a full bath, and my jelly scrubber was full of loose shedded hair :no: We always shed our bum first, the rest will follow soon I’m sure. He won’t really start to look fuzzy until November, then he gets an explosion of hair. I usually have to clip him twice for the winter.
I’m still in denial because I love summer and hot weather. Don’t get me wrong, fall is my favorite color pallet, burgundy/navy/brown I LOVE them all…but I don’t love the chilly temps or shorter days.
The amount of daylight hours we experience is gradually dwindling. That is what triggers the body to stimulate the change to winter coats-- even though they don’t need it yet.
Yes, it’s always been my understanding that it is light induced. I remember hearing that the quarter horse folks would keep lights on in the barns all the time to help with this. I don’t know if that’s true or not—sounded logical to me.
About thirty years ago a friend had a horse who routinely got clipped before Labor Day and again if he was still showing in October. I don’t think our winters are noticeably worse now—just some are hairier than others.
Generally I start to notice the fuzz on mine the first week of August ~
I’m in TN, it is hotter than h**l and just as humid, and my Haflinger is shedding. My quarter horses are standing in the run in sweating up a storm. They have a thinner coat than my Haffie does. Our daylight are definitely shorter!
I haven’t noticed any winter fuzz yet but she is shedding all that lovely short summer hair. I am sad :(.
Susan
That looks like so much fun!
Thanks for the pictures.
Definitely depends on length of daylight, but I think if there are a few days of very cold or very hot temps it may slow the process down a tad. My Paint gelding has an astonishling deep fuzzy coat. Kids look at him, never seen him before and its’ “look he has teddy bear ears.” Sheds his winter coat through early June. Started shedding summer coat about 8/1. Most Paint/pinto owners know that they shed or grow the white first, the color after the white is well underway. When the winter coat gets going he looks like a my mother’s trapunto handwork on quilts.
An easy way to pick up the mess on the floor is raking with a pitchfork. The birds take little bits when building nests. Also, Epona has a flexible curry they call Glossy Groomer. It does a great job, particularly on the summer coat, and dirt ground into the summer coat. Really flexible so you can put some muscle into the legs. I found it by accident because some stores don’t put under “curry combs.” Much better than regular curries and jelly scrubbers.
My paint pony is losing mostly white hairs. It seems like just last week we stopped shedding the winter coat. He looks like a wooly mountain goat, complete with beard, in the winter.
My mare sheds her summer coat in late Sep/early Oct and her winter coat is lost by late February. Unlike her thoroughbred friends, she also seems to just POOF out of coats. They take 2 months or so to shed completely and she seems to take only 2 weeks. She does sometimes get a bit of a spring or fall coat that isn’t as woolly as her winter coat but more than her summer coat. She is not starting to shed yet, neither are any of the other horses on the property in my Mid Atlantic farm.
Feronia started shedding out a few weeks ago. She is still shedding a little, but for now it’s subsided. She does the same thing in late January - starts to shed, and then hangs on to her winter coat for a while.
/waves hi to SharonA
You’re welcome 
It IS fun!
The National Drive (October pic) is a totally relaxed GTG with learning opportunities & miles of trails to drive at will.
We get to play with CDE/Eventing Obstacles including 2 water hazards.
Classes are just for fun - Carriage Dog (stuffed variety too) & Tacky Tack.
Minis try to do a drive together. Referred to as The Swarm :lol:
Last Fall there were 160 entries.
Including lots of pairs, tandems & one 4-in-hand. So well over 200 horses, ponies, minis, mules & donkeys, all breeds & sizes.
You get to see a variety of vehicles.
And then there are vendors…
BTW: riders are welcome too :winkgrin:
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