Five Essential Winter Tips For Horses
Winter Tips for Horses: Keeping Them Healthy in Cold Weather
As winter settles in and temperatures drop, caring for your horse means adapting their daily routine to meet the unique challenges of the season. These winter tips for horses will help you stay ahead of common cold-weather issues by focusing on nutrition, hydration, body condition, and overall comfort. With shorter days and less pasture available, horses rely on thoughtful management and seasonal adjustments to maintain health, prevent weight loss, and stay comfortable through the cold months. Understanding how to modify feeding, shelter, and daily care routines now can make the entire winter safer and more enjoyable for both you and your horse.
Experience, region of the country, facilities, and the type of horses are all factors that influence winter preparations. These five tips are a good starting point for properly caring for your horses during the winter.
1. Horse Blankets Aren’t Necessary
Blankets limit the natural hair growth that protects from cold and moisture. Let the natural hair growth develop and be sure you are routinely grooming. Hair coats and shelters are better protection then a blanket. There are also possible safety issues with blankets.
2. Monitor Drinking Water
Horses drink less when the water is cold. Less water intake slows the movement of food through the gut, influences the gut’s pH which changes the microflora. Water troughs that need a heating element and automatic water systems should not be an option. Horses drink less from automatic systems and even less during the winter.
3. Feed More Hay
Long-stem hay (bale hay) forces the gut to contract with more vigor, enticing the horse to drink more water if it’s not too cold. When the gut works more, cellular activity is higher which generated body heat. Skip the hay pellets and cubes and feed long-stem hay. Integrity Lite is a high fiber (20% crude fiber) balanced formula and will contribute to the gut contracting with more vigor and consistency.
4. Remove Horse Shoes
If you don’t ride on a regular basis in the winter then get rid of the shoes. Shoes restrict the natural mechanisms of the hoof that help blood flow and tissue health. Sometimes the winter dryness causes brittle hooves. Give those hooves a break!
5. Leave Barn Doors Open
If you close the barn shutters & doors, the temperature will not be warmer than the outside and can be colder during sunny cold days. Horses produce volumes of daily waste and ammonia vapors from waste products linger. Horses need ventilation from the ammonia vapors, the sun rays on their body and movement of their body parts. Poor air flow in the barn over time can affect respiratory health.
Putting thoughtful winter tips for horses into practice can make a big difference in how comfortably and successfully your horse gets through the colder months. By staying attentive to nutrition, hydration, shelter, and day-to-day care, you help protect your horse from unnecessary stress, weight loss, and weather-related challenges. Consistent management, small adjustments when conditions change, and a proactive approach to winter care all support better health, comfort, and performance until spring returns.