This message is from: Mary Thurman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> --- DT <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: I just got back yesterday having been in Oregon for > a week. First thing I > did when I got home was go and say hello to Lars. He > is getting a fuzzy coat > already!! I read that Jean's horse was getting a > fuzzy coat but then she is > in Alaska. Anyone in the Washington area have their > Fjords starting to ready > for cooler weather?
Deb, Our Fjords here in western Washington normally begin putting in the fuzzy stuff the end of August/first of September. When we were going to the Libby show regularly our Fjords were generally more fuzzy than most of the others. I always thought it might be because we do not blanket ours - ever(unless illness requires it). One year I tried blanketing the two that were going to Libby. All that accomplished was sweaty horses, as they started their winter coats right on schedule with the rest of the herd. Where our winters out here are not particularly harsh in terms of "cold" weather(extreme low temps), they are very harsh in terms of ability to thoroughly chill a horse. Cool temperatures + wind + constant rainy wet conditions = lots of cold stress for animals living outside. Unfortunately, lots of horse people in our area do not seem to realize that, so their poor animals really suffer in the winter because they are provided with NO place to get out of the wind and rain and are not fed properly to help them produce body heat. Contrary to popular belief, pouring on the grain and alfalfa hay is not the way to help a horse produce more body heat. Slow digesting feeds - like grass hay - actually produce more body heat than the perceived "hot" feeds. Since our Fjords seemed always to prefer to be outside - no matter what the weather - even standing outside in torrential rain and 60+ mph winds - we have always fed free-choice grass hay, oat-based grain ration, and rice bran in the winter. We also locked them into their stalls when a 'big blow' was coming to protect them from flying objects. There, that's probably more than anyone wants to know about keeping horses/Fjords in the 'great Northwet'! Mary ===== Mary Thurman Raintree Farms [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes http://finance.yahoo.com
