Daily Poll: Horses & Winter?

[Smaug the Dragon]

1.) Do you ride at all in the Winter (when it's more chilly out)?
I barely do anything outside if it's chilly, never mind riding. But then, 40F is chilly for me. I've gotten used to 60F winters in the past ten years.

2.) Do you have a feeding and riding schedule for your horse(s)? If so, explain when you feed and ride your horses and dodging it all with school/work/etc.
24/7 hay. Supplement breakfast after I have my cereals. Grooming in the evening once the day has warmed up as much as it's going to. That's about all the routine we have.

3.) What type of feed do you feed your horse? How much do you feed him/her? Is he/she at the right weight, a little chubby or needs to put some weight on?

Nothing special. They get all the hay they want and I give them a few pounds of Purina Senior to mix their supplements in. They're both chub buckets.

4.) How much do you work your horse in the Winter? Do you ride indoors and/outdoors? Either or, how long do you ride for and what do you do with him/her?

If it's a nice day, we might go for a walk or lunge a little. Maybe work on some old exercises. Depends on the weather and if I've got stuff done that I needed to do. We usually do stuff for a minimum of one-two hours -- but it's not all exercise. I get them out, groom, walk, laze about, hand graze, test, yadda yadda. Then they can go do whatever they want to do and I can go do whatever I want to do.

5.) When turning your horse out and/or stabling him/her, do you blanket him/her just yet? If so, what type of blanket do you use (brand, thickness, etc). If you do not, why don't you just yet or even at all?

No. They blanket themselves for winter. It's the best kind of blanket because it's free, and made to the horse.

6.) When hauling your horse (no matter how long the ride is), do you blanket your horse in the trailer? Do you have him/her wear shipping boots? Wear anything else or even nothing at all?

They never go anywhere. We're all lazy.

7.) What does your horse wear out in the pasture? (Blanket him/her? Fly masks? Boots?) **Even though it's Winter.

They wear their dignity, but sometimes it's covered in mud.