Help, my horse is coughing! Now I have to take a lot of things into consideration and cover my horse extra early? Rain blanket or the 100g blanket? When should I start using the 300g blanket? With or without a neck part? A daily stable talk among many horse owners - especially among owners of horses with coughs, because they want to protect their four-legged friends particularly well from coughing. We asked Dr. Sommerfeld for you: Should you cover horses with respiratory diseases?
Basically, as long as the horse doesn't get wet, isn't exposed to a draft and isn't clipped, it can tolerate cold temperatures very well. Humans' perception of temperature is quickly transferred to that of horses, which is simply wrong.
Of course, there are also differences between horse breeds and types in terms of coat density, coat length and, accordingly, the comfortable temperature. A blanket may be necessary if the horse cannot adequately protect itself from the effects of the weather such as rain, wind or snow. Putting a blanket on when the temperature is too warm is fatal. The horse's thermoregulation mechanisms are destroyed under the blanket, heat can build up and put a strain on the horse's circulation. If the horse starts to sweat under the blanket, it can even start to freeze under the blanket because moisture cannot be wicked away. If it then gets colder and windier outside, the horse cannot raise its wet, sticky coat under the blanket and the moisture cools the horse down even more.
For an old, thin, immunocompromised or clipped horse, as well as for a horse with an extremely thin winter coat, it can be a good idea to put a blanket on it as soon as the weather conditions require it. If a horse that is wet and sweaty is exposed to a draft, it can catch a cold just like we humans do. It is therefore advisable to protect horses that are sweating heavily from training with a functional sweat blanket. If you want to train your horse diligently throughout the winter, it is a good idea to clip your horse. This will prevent your sweaty horse from having to dry off for hours. However, clipping destroys important thermoregulation bases - so a clipped horse must generally always be covered, with the exception of exceptionally high temperatures.
But should horses with lung disease generally be covered earlier and warmer?
If your horse has lung problems due to an infection, the horse should generally be kept a little warmer than a healthy horse in cold, wet weather. Horses with equine asthma (hypersensitivity to dust) generally do not need to be blanketed any warmer. For these horses, it is especially important to be outdoors a lot. Therefore, they spend more time outdoors and are more exposed to the weather, so they inevitably need to be blanketed sooner than in a box. However, you should always ask yourself whether a blanket is really necessary. Many horses do not like being blanketed - some blankets rub against the chest, pinch the withers, hinder grooming and are unnatural for our horses, not to mention the additional risk of injury. Have you ever stood in the paddock in cold temperatures with a winter coat and hat and wondered why horses still happily roll around in the wet sand even when uncovered? As long as they do that, they cannot be cold!
Conclusion
Unfortunately, as with so many things, there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Horses themselves and their living conditions are too different to make a general recommendation. Basically, you have to observe your horse and be able to judge when it is time for a blanket. Clear signs that the horse is too cold are shivering, pulling in its tail, raising its back and raising its coat. It is not the cold that is bothering our horses, but the combination of wetness, cold and wind that can overwhelm the horse's immune system. Horses with a thick winter coat can even tolerate temperatures down to double-digit minus without freezing. So it should be decided for each horse individually whether and when a blanket is necessary, without taking your own temperature sensitivity into account.
