Horse Riding In Winter

Riding in winter weather, especially during the evenings can leave you with a sick horse if the necessary precautions have not been taken. A horse returning from a winter ride can be warm and sweaty, no matter how low the temperature, which makes them very susceptible to catching a chill if left to stand uncovered afterwards.

Blanketing your horse

For many of us, blanketing or rugging our horse in winter is commonplace, but how should you go about it after a trail ride? NEVER put a blanket on your horse if they are still sweaty and turn him out for the night! Follow these tips before turning your horse out for the night after a trail ride in the colder months, and you will have a warm and happy horse to greet you the next day.

Walk your horse

It is important that you thoroughly warm up your horse before every ride. It is also just as important that you do a proper cool down for your horse after every ride. How do you do this, through a lot of walking. Proper warm up and cool down, as important as it is throughout the year, becomes critical when the temperatures drop during the winter months. Just like us, after a workout your horse will need to stretch its muscles through a relaxed walk until the respiratory rate lowers, and he literally cools down.

Dry that horse off

So you did a proper cool down by walking your horse, now what? Un-tack your horse and check for sweat where the saddle was. Any remaining sweat here needs to be dried before rugging. Rub this area in a circular motion with a soft towel…or two. After most of the moisture has been removed, you can place some dry towels under the rug on his back to soak up any remaining moisture. Just remember to remove these towels before turning your horse out to the paddock or stall for the night. If you don’t have towels, fluff the coat, this will allow better air circulation, and will help dry him off faster.

Turn your horse out for the night

If you plan on putting a blanket on your horse for the night, always ensure there is little to no moisture or sweat present. Any moisture left will be trapped and soak into the lining, not able to evaporate. A wet horse with a blanket on its back is worse off than one without.

Follow these simple steps and your horse will be much happier for it.

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