Horse blanketing FAQ

For an unclipped horse turned out, a common guide is: above 50°F no blanket, 40-50°F a sheet, 30-40°F lightweight, 20-30°F midweight, 10-20°F heavyweight, and below 10°F a heavyweight plus a neck cover. Clipped horses blanket earlier and heavier, and wind, rain, age, or low body condition shift everything warmer. The calculator does this math for you.

Many healthy, unclipped horses with shelter do fine without a blanket well below freezing. A horse's winter coat traps a layer of warm air, and the ability to fluff it up (piloerection) is remarkably effective. Blankets matter most for clipped horses, seniors, hard keepers, horses with no shelter, and during cold wind-driven rain that flattens the coat.

A sheet (turnout or rain sheet) has no insulating fill - it is a waterproof, windproof shell that keeps rain and wind off. A blanket has polyfill: roughly 100g lightweight, 200g midweight, 300-400g heavyweight. More fill, more warmth.

Reach for a neck cover in hard cold - generally below about 10°F - and for clipped horses whose necks have been shaved, since a lot of heat escapes there. Many heavyweight turnouts offer a matching or attached neck piece.

Definitely. An over-blanketed horse sweats, the damp coat then chills it, and it loses the ability to self-regulate. Watch the daytime warm-ups too: a heavy blanket that was right at a 20°F dawn can cook a horse by a sunny 45°F afternoon.

Slide a hand under the blanket at the chest and shoulder. Warm and dry is correct. Sweaty or damp means too warm - drop a weight or pull it off. Cold skin, a tucked tail, or shivering means add a layer. The horse always overrules the chart.