Willow Acres Pony Time

01/05/2025

madbarnequine
📚🔬 Does Blanketing Affect Hay Intake in Cold Weather? 🔬📚

❄️Horses have incredible adaptations to thrive in winter, including heat production from fermenting hay in their hindgut. However, these adaptations require extra energy, meaning horses need more calories to maintain their weight. This study explored whether blanketing horses in cold weather reduces their hay consumption.

◾️ Key Finding: Blanketed horses consumed around 1 kg (2.2 lbs) less hay per day compared to non-blanketed horses. While hay costs vary, the study estimated this could save around $35 per horse per year. This may not cover the cost of the blanket, but it also doesn’t account for storage or hauling expenses.

✨When deciding whether to blanket your horse, consider factors like age, weight, health, environmental conditions, and coat length. If you have questions about blanketing, consult your veterinarian and check out our article:
🇺🇸 https://madbarn.com/blanketing-your-horse/
🇨🇦 https://madbarn.com/blanketing-your-horse/

To blanket or not to blanket? In the colder winter weather, that is the question facing many horse owners. Like blankets, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Whether you should blanket your horse depends on the individual horse and management situation. According to a survey completed by 1450 re...

01/03/2025

FUN FACT FRIDAY!

Are you familiar with the many adaptations that help your horse stay warm during the cold winter months?

🌾 Hindgut digestion of hay produces the most heat, acting as a small furnace inside of the horse. This is why free choice; good quality hay is so important in the winter.

💪 Horses have a huge muscle mass and muscle activity produces heat. This includes running and playing and even shivering if their body temperature starts to drop. It is important to remember that these activities also will result in a bigger caloric demand so free choice hay and in some cases, grain, is often needed.

🧥 To blanket or not to blanket is a constant debate but either way, as it starts to get cold your horse will grow a thicker coat. If you decide to leave your horse unblanketed you may notice that they look “fluffy”. This is due to a phenomenon called piloerection where the hair stands up to better trap air within. Two layers of the coat also help with warmth. The inner layer is softer and has air pockets to create an insulating layer. The outer layer is coarse and has oils that keep moisture from penetrating the insulating layer and keep the horse warm.

⚖️ Wild horses go into the winter heavier than ideal, and the fat serves as an extra layer of insulation. However, if a horse is going to be kept heavily blanketed and in a barn during the cold weather months this is unnecessary and can lead to obesity related issues.

🦵Their distal limbs (below the knees and hocks) are made of mostly bones and tendons, tissues that are resistant to the cold temperatures.

🦶The hooves have an alternative route of blood circulation through larger vessels that can be used in low temperatures. This is why horses can stand in snow without detrimental effects.

👃A horse’s nose has a robust blood supply and is rounded so that it is less susceptible to frostbite than a human’s nose.
•
Courtesy of the AAEP Horse Owner Education Committee

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12/31/2024

❄️🐴 How Do Horses Stay Warm in Winter? 🌨️

Horses are naturally equipped to handle cold weather with unique adaptations that help them conserve heat and stay cozy. From their hair coat to their digestive system, they’ve got tools to help them thrive in winter conditions.🐎❄️

While they’re built for the cold, extra care—like proper forage, shelter, and monitoring—can help support them all winter long.✨

Want to learn more about how horses stay warm and how to support them during the colder months? Visit our article:

🇺🇸 https://madbarn.com/feed-horse-in-winter/
🇨🇦 https://madbarn.ca/feed-horse-in-winter/

What do you need to know to properly care for and feed your horse in the cold winter months? Horses are very adaptable to a wide range of temperatures and are well-suited to living in cold climates. However, you may need to adjust your feeding and management practices when the weather turns cold to....

12/30/2024

Apple day! It's been raining so much this winter so every one is muddy.

12/20/2024

Thursday Special
Pulled Pork Sandwich Combo
Topped with Housemade slaw and Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce
Served with a side and fresh brewed tea
$8.95

12/20/2024

Bramble nibbling ASMR. She is not on a diet and does not want your healthy apples!!!😤

12/20/2024

Delmar doesn't care if you put scary grocery bags on his ears. As long as he gets treats he'll be okay. ( He's not sick. We're just desensitizing him)

12/20/2024

Feeding the minis apples! They wouldn't back up so we got some really close up shots.

12/16/2024

As the cold winter weather trudges on, Dr. Sarah Reuss, AAEP Vice President and a horse owner herself, shares the following advice to keep your horse safe during extreme weather.

1. While lots of hay is ideal for horses to eat to keep warm, now is NOT the time to introduce a round bale if they’ve never had access to one before. It may be more work, but keep throwing them their normal hay source, just more frequently.

2. Similarly, if your horse is not used to being in a stall, now is NOT the time. The stress of a major change and the decreased activity can be risk factors for colic. Be sure they have access to shelter, hay, and drinkable water but let them move around if they choose to do so.

3. Horses that are thin, older, or fully body clipped are those most at risk in extreme weather.

4. Well-fitting blankets are great but be sure that horses do not get sweaty under them, or that the blankets don’t soak through if snow or rain covered. Wet, cold and covered is worse that dry, cold and naked.

5. Some of the highest risk times are when the temperatures hover right around freezing, as that can result in sleet/freezing rain/ice that can make horses wet and therefore colder. Slippery footing is a concern, too.

6. If using electric water heaters, be sure they are functioning and not shocking horses. Take your gloves off and stick your hand in the water (briefly!!!) to double check.

7. Entice your horses to consume extra water by flavoring a bucket, adding electrolytes to their meals, or soaking their meals in warm water. If you’ve never fed beet pulp before, be sure to add LOTS of warm water. Dry beet pulp is a common source of choke.

8. The tips of your horses' ears can be at risk for frostbite. Putting on a jumper-style ear bonnet or other ear cover can protect them from wind chills.

If you have any questions or concerns about keeping your horses safe this winter, contact your veterinarian for advice.

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12/07/2024

Gastric ulcers are a common issue in horses, with prevalence rates ranging from 11–100% depending on the population studied. 🐴 Horses in active training, those fed high-grain, low-roughage diets, or experiencing prolonged fasting are at higher risk for ulcers. 🌾 Stress from intense work, travel, or changes in routine can further contribute to ulcer development. Proper feeding practices, consistent access to forage, and stress management are crucial for prevention. Early detection and intervention can help keep your horse healthy, comfortable, and performing at their best. 💡✨

Check out this article to learn more about gastric ulcers in horses:
🇨🇦https://madbarn.ca/equine-gastric-ulcers/
🇺🇲 https://madbarn.com/equine-gastric-ulcers/

Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome (EGUS) occurs when sores develop in the horse’s stomach lining. Learn about ulcer causes, signs, diagnosis, treatment & remedies.

11/25/2024

Water remains as important for your horse in cold weather as it is in the summer. As a matter of fact, decreased water consumption in the winter is thought to be the primary inducing factor for impaction colic — although there are other predisposing factors such as poor hay quality, lack of exercise, internal parasites and dental problems.

Impaction colic is essentially constipation and most often includes the accumulation of hard, dry f***l material in the colon. The usual signs of impending impaction colic are depression, a decreased appetite, and decreased production and dryness of manure.

Studies demonstrate that you can increase your horse's winter water consumption if you provide access to heated water, but ONLY if that is the only source of water available. As always, if you have any questions about preventing colic in your horse, your equine veterinarian remains your best source of information!

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11/23/2024

Bramble is today's District Goat.

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11/23/2024

Feeding forage is key to helping horses maintain body temperature during winter! ❄️ When horses digest forage, microbes in the hindgut produce volatile fatty acids (VFAs) for energy, which also generates heat as a natural by-product. This internal heat from fiber digestion helps keep horses warm in colder weather. 🔥🐴
Non-fiber carbohydrates (like sugars and starches) and fats don’t produce heat directly during digestion but still provide calories to support metabolic heat production. Ensuring your horse has access to quality forage is one of the best ways to promote a stable body temperature all winter long!

Learn more about keeping your horse healthy in the winter in our article:
🇨🇦https://madbarn.ca/feed-horse-in-winter/
🇺🇲https://madbarn.com/feed-horse-in-winter/

Send a message to learn more

11/22/2024

While there isn’t a specific time of the year for “flu season” in the equine world, any time is good to learn more about this highly contagious respiratory condition—particularly because it’s one of the most common infectious diseases of the respiratory tract of horses, and recent years have been unusually active for Equine Influenza Virus (EIV) on a global scale.

EIV spreads rapidly through groups of horses in aerosolized droplets dispersed by coughing, and the severity of clinical signs depends on the degree of existing immunity within the affected individual, among other factors (i.e., correctly vaccinated horses are less affected than unvaccinated horses).
Any horse showing signs of respiratory disease (cough, nasal discharge, persistent fever) should be isolated immediately until your veterinarian can determine the exact cause.

To learn more about Equine Influenza Virus (EIV), visit these resources:
https://aaep.org/resource/aaep-infectious-disease-guidelines-equine-influenza-eiv/
&
https://www.equinediseasecc.org/equine-influenza

As always, your horse doctor remains your best source of information. Contact them to learn more about how to prevent this disease through an appropriate vaccination protocol and biosecurity practices

Equine Influenza is a highly contagious though rarely fatal respiratory disease. The virus is distinct from influenzas viruses in other species. The most common form of transmission is airborne droplets in  from affected horses. 

11/12/2024

G.Y.A.D.O.T.

11/10/2024

I guess you could call her nosey.

11/10/2024

New hat, Same attitude.