dimanche 17 novembre 2013

Understanding The Purpose Of Horse Rugs

By Katrina Wheeler


Protection from severe weather is extremely important to animal lovers. Horses occasionally need assistance cooling down, warming up, staying dry and staying warm. The purpose of horse rugs is to provide that assistance without restricting the animal's ability to move around.

Placing a blanket on your equestrian friend is much easier than you would think. There are clasps, clips and straps to allow you to keep the blanket in place once it is properly positioned. There are straps that wrap around the belly, straps that go between the back legs and fasten to the sides and straps that wrap around the chest. These strategically placed straps assure you that the animal will not be able to remove the blanket easily. Covers come in a wide variety of colors, weights and styles. Thicker weighted coverlets are for the winter months, while the lighter weighted ones are for the warmer seasons. Some will even provide protection against mosquitoes and flies.

In order to keep your equestrian friend warm on harsh winter days, use a thick and heavy weighted fleece blanket. Many blankets have the added benefit of being water resistant or water proof. If you need even more protection, you may choose to add a neck cover.

Each different style and type of blanket has a purpose. There are turnout, cooling, fly and stable blankets. You will find that the weight will also vary according to its use. Some people use an anti-sweat cover to assist in absorbing excess water, before using one of the other types of blanket.

Stable cloaks can be provided to keep your equestrian friend warm when he is in his stall. Turnout coverings are best used when your animal is out in the pasture on a sunny winter day. Fly sheets are used to protect your animal from being bothered by flies during the summer months. Cooling rugs can be used to cool your animal's core temperature after a vigorous workout. There are many different types of coverlets to choose from depending on the need of your horse.

It is imperative that your horse be dry before blanketing. Placing a blanket on a damp animal can cause him to become ill. If he is damp, use an anti-sweat sheet to absorb moisture before placing a turnout or stable blanket on him. Make sure you remove the anti-sweat sheet first, otherwise the exterior blanket would hold the cold, damp sheet against him which could cause severe problems.

As the weather changes and the temperatures begin to drop, allow your animal to adjust to the temperature changes naturally. This will allow him to grow a winter coat. His winter coat will provide him with a great deal of protection. Make certain that you only blanket your animals when it is necessary. Blanketing early in the season means less natural protection for you animal.

During extreme weather, you will need the correct equestrian provisions. The safety of your hoofed friends takes precedence. Horse rugs provide exceptional protection from the harshest of environments. They provide warmth in the winter, cool in the summer, protection from irritating insects, fleece for additional comfort and warmth and water-proofing for rain and snow. No matter what season, there is a perfect rug and the horses will look so cute wearing them too.




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