Wordless Wednesday: New Turnout Blanket

Ok, mostly wordless. I picked up this SmartPak Turnout Blanket (medium weight) on steep clearance late last winter, and it came out of storage this past week with the plummeting temperatures. I'll do a full review at a later date, but in the meantime: how fucking adorable does he look in it?!

Ah, there's the rub

We're used to thinking of winter as blanket rub season. That's the way I always saw it.

No more!

With Tristan's host of immuno-suppressed issues have come a series of generalized allergic reactions. Last summer, he broke out into really nasty hives several times. So I got out the fly sheet I had bought on a whim almost 9 years ago because it was on clearance, and he wore it a few times when he seemed particularly bad.

This summer, we thought, well, we'll get out ahead of it! He'll just be one of those horses who wears a fly sheet all summer!

Yeah, you can see where this is going, right?

It's not sensitive, did not open up in any way, etc., but damn it all. Next year, new fly sheet.

BEST Bombproof Pony

Last night, I had only a limited window between the end of work and date night with the boy. I sprinted to the barn, grabbed grooming tools, and decided to do a really thorough, end to end curry.

I was capital-L-lazy, and unbuckled the surcingles on Tristan's blanket, and folded it up over his shoulders while I curried away along his back and his haunches. We were both pretty pleased with life: it was snowing outside, which meant everything was quiet and still and muffled. He loosened and relaxed and chomped away on his hay.

Then he put his head down in just the right way and the entire blanket slid forward onto his head.

He picked his head straight up, and the ENTIRE blanket was covering from about mid-neck to well past his nose, still folded over. A heavyweight blanket, that was already one size too large for him

He just stood there. He was clearly nervous, but he stood like a rock.

I reached forward and slid the blanket back onto his body - thankfully it hadn't gotten twisted. He turned his head around to look at me, all "well THAT was stupid, MOM." He blew out. He put his head back down and went back to eating his hay.

BEST PONY.

Small Things

I got to see my horse last night! Whooooooo!

I did not ride, on account of still not being able to take a deep breath without wheezing. But I brought him out of his stall and let him hoover up the little bits of spilled hay in the aisle, and pulled his blanket, and curried and brushed him all over. He was happy to see me, which is always a nice feeling, and it was heavenly to spend even 30 minutes in the quiet with him.

He was wearing his heavyweight and not too warm. I remain amazed by this. It was 34 degrees outside, which is not that cold! Good grief. Of all the changes wrought on his body by aging, this is one that continues to flummox me. How is MY horse, Tristan, my tough little mustang, who lived outside 24/7 through multiple Vermont winters, who turned up his nose at going in the shelter in driving snow, how is he wearing a heavyweight blanket in November comfortably?

Also, what are we going to do when it gets actually cold? He is carrying a bit too much weight right now, so on the one hand being a little cold and burning some calories wouldn't be the worst idea; on the other hand, I am still utterly terrified of the one cold-induced colic that he had.

sigh.

No barn tonight, on account of our Thanksgiving storm. Hopefully Friday.

Tristan is pretty firmly in that 10" purple band.

OMG: Smartpak mentioned my blog!

So there I am, on my fourth piece of banana bread and third cup of tea of the day (don't judge) and I'm taking a short mental break. I click on this video, because I love the Stuff Riders Say series. This should be good, right?

Then I got to 1:13 on the video: they mentioned my blog! I can only guess it's because my review of their new SmartBlanket App came across their desk somehow. The power of the internet?

I laughed and laughed and laughed. Yes, that is how you say that. :)

Should I clip my horse?

I'm really struggling with this question this year, so I thought I would do a straight-up pros and cons list. I'm going to present Tristan as an anonymous case study, and ask you all to weigh in on what you think. Ok?

Background: horse is a 19yo mustang gelding in work 3-5 days per week for 20-45 minutes each, primarily dressage and trail riding. Never been clipped before. Not a huge sweater (rarely more than a slightly damp/tacky coat in the girth and chest area once the weather cools), but typically does get warm enough to require extended cooling off time 1-2x per week over the winter.

Factors:
- horse exhibited signs of cold weather-related colic when temperatures began dropping this season, and will now be fully blanketed through the winter for the first time ever
- though the plan is to stay at 3-5 rides per week, there will no doubt be periods of time during the winter when 1-2 rides per week at the walk of short duration are the most work he'll get due to extreme cold or snow
- horse was diagnosed with Cushing's in August, is maintained on 1mg/day of pergolide, and is essentially asymptomatic on medication, with a totally normal winter coat and no signs of the classic long/wavy Cushing's coat
- horse is heading into the winter at a body condition of about 5.5/6 after dipping down to a 4.5 or so this fall
- horse lost weight last winter, though not dramatically; say down from a 5 to a
- horse will have access to (essentially) free choice hay through the winter
- horse will have between 4-10 hours per day of turnout, depending on weather
- horse did not add muscle/wind well before starting medication for Cushing's, and work will be harder for him as he regains fitness now that his body is capable of building it again; he has been running hotter than normal for the last 3-4 weeks

Possibly extraneous factors:
- owner is neurotic and terrified that clipping will result in constant vigilance to prevent cold-related colic symptoms
- owner also does not want to pile coolers and walk out for an hour after each ride

So: in my situation, what would you do?

Tristan's Blanketing Plan for 2014-2015 - Fashion Show with Pics

So I've gone back and forth and back and forth on this blog and 30x as much in private about Tristan's blankets and sheets - what he would need this winter now that we know he needs some blankets, what to use, when to use them, what blankets to buy. I've had a dozen different solid plans that I've moved on and then discarded.

Here's what has emerged as our plan heading into winter.

1. Stable Sheet. Used sometimes as a straight sheet in the barn (40s-50s), or as a liner underneath a turnout sheet. Tristan's is a Tuff Rider brand stable sheet that I've owned for a few years but used primarily to keep him clean after baths until now. It's not the highest quality sheet ever and its a teensy bit small, but it does the job. Basically a previous style year version of this sheet.

2. Fleece cooler. Used on its own sometimes (low 40s, high 30s in the barn) but mostly as a liner for a turnout sheet to create a sort of light-fill blanket. Now, I had a previous fleece cooler, but I bought this one new this year because the previous cooler did not have a belly band. This one does. It's the Smartpak Fleece Cooler. I like some things about it a lot (styling, straps, length, and overall cut) and other things not at all (it's long for the size and the back gather is awkward, and there's no fleece at the withers to prevent rubs).

3. Turnout sheet. Unlined, basic, waterproof turnout sheet to use as a top layer over the sheet and cooler above, or sometimes on its own on a rainy but warmer day. This particular sheet has the distinction of being the one I've owned the longest for him: I used to keep him at a place that had the most incredible clay deposits in their pastures, and all horses in that barn went out during mud season in turnout sheets. Otherwise you'd be currying dried clay off of them for an hour before you could ride. It's a Saxon that I've always really liked, actually, for all that it's a "cheap" sheet. Basically the older model of this sheet.

4. Stable Blanket. One of the two blankets my friend J. gave to me, this will enter the rotation when it's 30s overnight and during the day, under a turnout sheet. I have no idea what brand it is, but I like a few things about it: the cut back withers, the belly band (which you can't quite see in this photo), and actually the closed front - less to fiddle with, less bulk under another blanket.

5. Medium Weight Turnout Blanket. Used for temps below 30s, possibly combined with the stable blanket when it gets down to the teens. The other blanket J. gave me, this is a Weatherbeeta that is clearly showing its age. The straps - as you can see - are hanging on, and the edging is almost entirely gone. There are rips in the flannel lining. That said, this blanket has been hard used for many years and the fact that it's even still intact shows its class.

6. Heavy weight turnout blanket. Used for single digits and below. Depending on how he handles the winter, might double over the stable blanket when it really starts to dip below zero. This is the blanket he wore last year for single digits and lower. Another gift from a very generous friend, this is the Rider's International Heavyweight Turnout Blanket. As you can see, it's a great blanket but it swims on him a bit - it's a size too large, and the cut of the blanket is too long for his legs. Not the end of the world, but I would not buy this blanket new, even in the right size, because of the length against his legs.

So, there's the plan, anyway. What's your rotation for the winter?

Product Review: Smartpak's SmartBlanket App

Eventing Nation had a post about the new SmartBlanket app yesterday, and being that I am in the midst of fussing about Tristan's blanketing options, I downloaded it instantly and spent some time playing with it.

The app purports to offer tips about blanketing, based on a series of customizable questions about your horse and your location. You can add multiple horses later on.

So here's Tristan's information in the add-a-horse phase. I liked the questions they asked, actually, and there were lots of options in each section. One option under clipping style was "show coat," which took me a while to figure out - they mean clipped short but not all the way down to the skin. I've never seen a horse clipped like that, but I guess anything is possible!

Here's the thinking screen. That little blue arrow circles the horse. Kind of fun. It made this thinking screen anytime I changed a setting for Tristan. It didn't last terribly long - a second, two or three at the most. I've waited much longer for apps to load!

Ta-da! Here's Tristan's recommendations. I really like that they gave separate recommendations for night versus day, keeping in mind that it would be colder overnight. They also took into account the rain - if you scroll down to days when there's no rain predicted, it suggested I leave him with no blanket.

I monkeyed back and forth with the settings quite a bit - pretending he was all the way clipped, partially clipped, overweight, underweight, etc. I got it to tell me he should go totally naked all the way up to a medium weight turnout overnight, depending on the settings. The little "i" next to each blanket type will lead you to more information, telling you what exactly they mean by each blanket.

It's easy to adjust the settings: see the horse head in the upper right-hand corner? Tap on that and it gives you a list of horses you have saved. Then you tap on the horse's name and it brings you back to the information screen that I showed above. You can just adjust things from there, save them, and then it will recalculate everything.

In general, I was pleasantly surprised to see this app erred on the conservative side for blanketing. I admit, I was expecting it to recommend all the blankets! all the time! and it definitely didn't. For example, on the night when it recommended just a turnout sheet for Tristan, he would probably wear a stable sheet + turnout sheet, or a cooler + turnout sheet. Yesterday during the day, he was actually wearing a stable blanket + turnout sheet. This year is the first year he's being blanketed that aggressively, though - remember, he colicked from the cold just a few short weeks ago. Any other year these recommendations actually would've been spot on, or perhaps a titch more than he needed.

Moral of the story? If you are really new to blanketing, or new to your horse, and need some rough guidance, this actually works really well! I love the updated weather information, I love the customizable features, I love that it saves multiple horses. If you need some more information to take in while considering your decision (if you're like me and can't get enough data points for neurotic things like this) it's a great thing to have around.

I think its recommendations are a lot like what an old trainer of mine used to say about Pony Club stuff: you will always be okay following their rules, but sometimes there's a better way to do things. It's a good baseline.

Another thing about which I was pleasantly surprised: it didn't push the Smartpak brand sheets too much at all. I didn't really even notice too much brand creep. Just the facts, ma'am.

The last pieces of the app were interesting, but not terribly useful for me, honestly. 

Again: if you're new to blanketing, or new to blanketing a particular horse, I think some of the fit tips, how to measure, and blanket type glossary information would be really useful. I read through a lot of it and it's good, solid information. I even learned some things I'd never heard of before: apparently a rain sheet is something even more specialized than just a waterproof turnout. HUH!

If you find yourself in any of the situations I listed above - new to blanketing, new to blanketing a particular horse, or in need of/curious about extra data points for your own blanketing - I'd recommend this app. If you're a longtime, confident blanketer with a horse you know well, I'd probably skip it.

Anyone else download it and play with it? What do you think?

Monday Morning Longeing

After a short hack out on Sunday -

hold please, I need to complain.

AFTER A SHORT HACK IN THE SNOW ON SUNDAY. YES, SNOW. NO, IT DIDN'T STICK AND IT WAS ONLY SPORADIC AND FOR 10 MINUTES. IT STILL COUNTS.

Anyway. After a short hack out on Sunday, Monday was for longeing, for a couple of reasons: I didn't have all day to tack up and go through a lengthy warmup for a dressage school, I didn't really want the kind of work that a dressage school promised, and I wanted to get back in to using the chambon and the resistance band.

(Side note, someone on COTH linked to my original post about my homemade resistance band and it has taken off in the last few days. Kind of cool!)

I was very glad I had chosen longeing, because I got a nice, clear progression. He started off a bit stiff when loose, and chose to canter for a while instead of trotting. I let him, because it was a nice, soft, semi-balanced canter, not careening around, and if that's how he wanted to warm up, I was ok with it.

After 15 minutes of warming up, I put the chambon and resistance band on. Initially, he fussed about them both, but within a minute or two he actually settled in to the work nicely. He had some lovely, LOVELY soft, stretchy work, especially to the right. Huge difference in length of stride and the way he used his body. I worked him for another 10-15 minutes, and then put him away in his wool dress sheet - he was the teensiest bit warm, and I wanted him to cool out but not get cold quickly, especially since the temperature has plummeted 40 degrees in the last 2 days.

I'm still learning and feeling my way through how to handle and manage him with blankets and the winter coat. When I got to the barn he was wearing his quilted stable blanket with turnout sheet over it, though it was about 35. I felt under the blanket and he felt cozy - not too warm at all. Good!

After a little while of putting away tack, I put his blanket and sheet back on and out he went. I scattered two flakes of hay all over his dry lot so he'd move around a bit, and he was happy as a clam when I left.

PS - Don't forget to vote in the Marguerite Henry Readalong poll! So far, King of the Wind is handily in the lead; add your vote for that to ensure its victory or pick another book.

PPS - Giveaway alert! Check out Equestrian at Hart for a Spreadshirt custom t-shirt giveaway.

5 Reasons I'm Happy Tristan Wears Blankets Now

It occurred to me last night that Tristan has, in the last two years, reversed the natural horse progression. He went from being an easy keeper, barefoot, tough as nails horse to one that had surgery, wears shoes, needs grain to keep weight, is on daily medication, and starts wearing a blanket when it goes below 40. When I lay it all out like that it sounds awful, but I've always said that he gets whatever he needs, and nothing has been done frivolously.

I started thinking, though, about finding a silver lining and to my surprise I kept thinking of good things, so I thought I'd share a little list with you.

1. He just looks so stinking cute in his jammies.

Seriously, I can't even.

2. When he gets his extra layer at night check, someone lays hands on him.

That's his stable sheet, out to tell the night check person to put it on him. That means that someone has their hands directly on him for a few minutes every night. It just makes me feel that much more secure that someone's not just looking in the stall at him but is actually interacting with him.

3. True friendship

The day after Tristan had his colicky episode, a good friend of mine had arrived to give him a massage and had brought with her two of her old horse's blankets. They fit him beautifully, and they were just what I had been about to take a deep breath and order from Smartpak. Some stitching, some new waterproofing, and they are not shiny new but they are practical and they are loved.

4. Matchy matchy

Okay, so I did buy one blanket. Tristan's old fleece cooler was the long kind, without any straps on it whatsoever. It was less than ideal as a base layer: it moved around quite a bit when he laid down. So I did order this Smartpak fleece cooler, and I got to order it in Tristan's barn colors of black, gray, and white. (I know, not exciting, but have you SEEN my horse? He clashes with everything!)

5. He's going to be okay.

It's not my favorite progression, and in an ideal world he'd still be that tough as nails easy keeper. He's not. That's okay. We have a plan, and that plan is feasible, and I have good people helping me out. He needs blankets. He gets blankets. He feels better. The rest is just gravy.

How to Re-Waterproof a Turnout Blanket

My good friend J. dropped off a few turnout blankets for Tristan last week. They are in need of some minor repairs, and re-waterproofing. I dropped one of the blankets off for repair (I don't have a sewing machine that will punch through the strapping), and yesterday tackled the first of the re-waterproofing.

I thought I'd do a bit of a guide, since many blankets lose their waterproofing after only a season or two but are otherwise good blankets. Since a wet horse is almost always a cold horse, keeping a blanket waterproof is important.

Step 1: Clean the Blanket

No matter what waterproofing you choose, this is important. The waterproofing chemicals have to bond directly with the fabric. So if it's at all dirty or dusty, toss it in the washing machine before you get started, and let it dry thoroughly.

Step 2: Select Your Waterproofing Method

Waterproofing stuff comes in a variety of options, but the vast majority are going to be a spray-on application. I went to Walmart and spent some time in their camping section reading labels. I chose this one because it had the most volume and only needed one application. I paid $5.97 for this can, which is 13.125 ounces. I used almost all of it on one 72" blanket, so I'll need to go back and get more!

Step 3: Apply Waterproofing

Find an airy and sunny place outside - this is the front porch of my family's house in Maine, where I was this weekend doing wedding stuff. It's very important that the weather be sunny and dry for a period of several hours, as this stuff really needs to dry very thoroughly or the waterproofing is ruined. It's also really something you can't do inside, as the chemicals stink and can be dangerous to inhale.

Hold the can about 8"-10" away from the blanket and spray the waterproofing on. Make sure you completely coat the blanket and get the fabric good and wet, every nook and cranny. In the past, I've waterproofed items by spreading the out on the grass, but I had the porch here and the yard was covered in dew.

Step 4: Let It Dry Thoroughly

Most systems strongly suggest a full 24 hours of drying time. This is something that should be done well in advance of actually needing the blankets. A sunny day is really key here: you can get it a good couple of hours of drying outside at least. I pulled this blanket inside when we were ready to leave for Vermont, and it's ready to head to the tailor to fix a few small rips on the inside lining that I discovered while washing it.

Any questions?

A Massage for Tristan

Whenever I tell people I'm headed to the barn so my horse can get a massage I get such a sideways look. I usually halfheartedly grumble and say that I haven't ever had a massage, but my horse gets them monthly, spoiled brat, sigh.

The truth is I feel very fortunate to have a good friend who is a talented massage therapist, and a horse who responds very well to the practice. I get to spend an hour or two with one of my favorite people, and get to have a monthly conversation with her about how Tristan is going. One of her daughter's horses was the first horse I'd ever met with Cushings, and she is a thoughtful, knowledgeable, and pragmatic horsewoman, and has been a source of comfort and information for me as I feel my way through managing the new Tristan.

This month, there was pretty much no bad news. Tristan's muscle tone has improved dramatically, and she confirmed that my eyes do not deceive me: his topline is returning. He was tight only in his gaskins, from all the hill work, when in the past he has had ongoing hot spots related to his RF and that whole drama. We agreed that he needed a little bit more weight, so he'll get a little bit more grain and we'll add some alfalfa pellets to the mix.

Perhaps best of all: J. arrived with two blankets that used to belong to her Standardbred, who was just the most wonderful horse and about Tristan's size. They are much-loved but perfectly serviceable, and fit him very well. So he has a stable blanket and midweight for the winter! I will take pictures for a fashion show at the earliest opportunity.

The New (New, New) Normal

Yesterday was not the best day ever.

I forced myself out of bed early to ride, and I was mounted by 7:10 am. It was 32 degrees, foggy, a crisp and damp morning. I had to be at work by 8:00 am (5 minutes away), so I only intended to do a mile. Tristan had already had his grain maybe 15 minutes previously; he was nibbling on his hay when I got there. He hadn't finished his grain, but had left the scrids of it mixed in with his supplements. Not totally out of the ordinary for him.

There was a thick frost on the grass and I wore my winter tall boots. We went a mile in 19 minutes, just on the flattest of dirt roads and then on a loop up and around the outdoor. My goal right now is to just keep him moving for 20 minutes a day as my bare minimum. Most days we do far more than that, but today I just wanted to sneak in a quick ride before morning meetings and then have the afternoon at home to do some much needed cleaning & relaxing.

I put him back in his stall and pulled his saddle, He nosed his hay, and then pawed at it, and I could feel my stomach start to knot up. He pawed again. He circled his stall. Then he kicked at his belly with a hind leg, then the other hind leg, then he circled his stall. The bottom dropped out of my stomach.

I listened for gut sounds - quiet, but present. Under my hands as I was listening, I could actually feel him start to tuck up, feel those hard stomach muscles clench, and when I stepped back he had clamped his tail down tightly. I went to the other barn and found the trainer's barn manager, M., and asked her to come look at him when she got back from turning out the horse she was holding.

When I got back to his stall, his flanks had started shivering. This was maybe 10 minutes elapsed time after I'd put him back in his stall. I pulled him out and brought him in to the aisle and started pulling blankets off shelves. He ended up with an Irish knit, a wool cooler, and then a midweight on top of that, none of which were his or even close to his size. Under the blankets, he started full body shivering, and I reached for my phone.

The barn manager got back just as I started dialing for the vet, and while on the phone with her we took his temp - 97.9 - and tried to get a pulse. He's tricky to pulse at the best of times, and I fumbled the stethoscope repeatedly before handing it over to the barn manager, who couldn't get a good read either. I would get 3-4 beats and then lose it. It was clearly a little fast, but I couldn't put a number on it.

Vet and I decided to go ahead with IV banamine, and I told her I'd check in in 30 minutes. While I was on the phone with her he started visibly relaxing and his shivering slowed, even before he'd had the banamine. It eased up even more, and then he got 8ccs of banamine IV. I started walking him - he'd never shown any real inclination to go down, but it gave me something to do.

In another 5 minutes, he had totally stopped his shivering and was looking around and considerably perked up. I walked him for another 5 minutes, and then brought him back to his stall. He attacked his hay and cleaned up his grain, and then I removed his hay from his stall. He was pretty ticked about that, but then took a good long drink and peed up a storm. He hunted around for the last little scraps of hay and started kicking his door to be let out.

I went into storage and dug out his fleece cooler and turnout sheet, and pulled the borrowed blankets off him to swap for his own. He looked and acted 100% normal at that point, barely 45 minutes after the whole thing started. I went into the tack room to brief our barn manager (main barn and trainer's barn have different BMs; sounds confusing but actually works just fine, since trainer's BM goes south with her for winter). 

A few minutes of conversation and we had fleshed out what the vet and I had thought: he got too cold. Many Cushings horses lose the ability to regulate their own body temperature. I knew this, and was watching him like a hawk in the summer, but he handled the really hot days just fine. It did not for a single second occur to me that cold might affect him more than heat. In any case, it wasn't really all that cold - it must have been high 20s at the barn overnight. That's chilly, but it's not downright cold, not relative to what it will be in January and February.

I left him to go to staff meeting, and when I got back he had been turned out in one of the round pens, which functions as a dry lot.

He's just to the left of the tree, in the light blue sheet. I checked in with him and he was happy and relaxed and just fine, nibbling on the hay bits on the ground. He was wearing the fleece cooler + turnout sheet (no lining) and it was about 45 degrees and sunny. I felt underneath the blanket and he felt cozy and warm - not too warm. If you'd told me this time last year that my horse would be wearing layers in 45 degree weather, and not sweating up a storm, I would've said you were crazy.

I put out a call on Facebook for some blankets, and as it turns out a good friend of mine - who was already planning on coming to give Tristan a massage tonight - has some that she'll bring. We'll go through what she has, and I'll see what gaps I still need to fill. I had a long conversation with the Smartpak customer service rep this morning and picked out a range of blankets that I will order tonight after seeing what J. brings.

sigh.

Blanket Repair

I mentioned just before Christmas that Tristan had shredded a corner of his one and only turnout blanket. It's a midweight that he wears when it's below zero - which happens more often than it should up here. He borrowed a barn blanket for a week while it was repaired.

I was looking through photos last night and found that I had taken some good pictures of the repair but never shared them! This was a local sewing shop; when I took the blanket in the owner immediately knew what she was looking at - apparently her in-laws have horses!

Here's what it looked like post-rip, pre-repair:

And here's the repair:

They did a really, really nice job. It was a fairly complicated fix in a number of different ways. Total cost: $47, far less than a new turnout would've been!

Best Laid Plans

Yesterday was going to be so straightforward: a quick meeting at work (on my day off), followed by a short bareback hack in the new snow, followed by a productive afternoon cleaning the apartment and working on Christmas baking.

That began unraveling with the meeting, which ran long, and then turned into a second, longer meeting, during which I lost my voice several times despite sipping tea constantly.

Then I headed to the barn and found that my idiot pony had shredded his midweight sheet. He only wears it when it's below zero, which unfortunately means he's been wearing it a lot lately. Best theory is that he laid down in the night and upon getting up again tangled a hind leg in the surcingle, and ripped the buckle clean away from the sheet, along with a nice rip along the seam. It was torn in such a way that it couldn't be stitched up easily and quickly by a conventional sewing machine.

No way is the average sewing machine going to punch
through that buckle.

I did get my hack in, though, down and around all the summer paddocks, and it was a beautiful crisp day. The snow was still so new it was clinging to the trees, and the air was clear and thin all the way to the mountains. We forged through fresh drifts and Tristan was happy and cheerful, though not thrilled to be working so hard on a restful walk.

Uncle Tristan babysitting.

Yak or pony?

Can you spot the bridle path?
Yeah, neither can I.

Looking toward the Monroe Skyline,
with Mad River Glen and Sugarbush
ski areas anchoring the ends.

After the hack we fitted him for a borrowed blanket from the barn, because it was due to start dropping in temperature as the sun went down and go as low as -10 up at the barn. It was that cold the night before and when the barn staff took his blanket off in the morning to go outside, apparently he shivered a bit until his coat was roughed up.

So of course now I am questioning myself and wondering if he should be blanketed more; if perhaps the threshold is no longer 0 but 10, and if I should get a stable blanket to add underneath his midweight, and aaahhh. He's just not holding warmth as he used to, and he went into the winter with less weight than I wanted.

Winter legs - this was AFTER a good brushing.

In his borrowed blanket for the night.

After I left the barn, I stopped by a sewing and alterations store, and showed them the blanket. They said they could definitely fix it, and described a plan of action that made a lot of sense and would reinforce the area going forward. The only catch: even though it was really in good shape for a blanket, it would still need to be cleaned before they would accept it.

Cue a frantic dash to the laundromat, a high capacity washer, and the discovery that the washer had not gone through a proper spin cycle, leaving the blanket dripping wet, and the office at the laundromat had closed at 2pm - 10 minutes before I discovered the problem. Of course. I squeezed it out as best I could and put it in the dryer and stopped it every few minutes to rearrange the blanket so the wettest bits were on the outside. Eventually it got dry enough and I dropped it back at the sewing store.

I then returned home and made a batch of cookies for a work cookie swap, wrapped presents with Lawrence of Arabia in the background, and halfway through realized my cheeks and forehead were much warmer than they ought to be and I was dizzy and a bit disoriented. Great. Perfect way to end the day.

This morning:

So no barn for me tonight! Hope pony stayed warm in his borrowed blanket...