Starting to Put Winter Away

I am really trying to get a jump on blankets this year. Normally I wash them through out the summer and then end up rushing to waterproof and repair before winter. This year I have already washed all the mid weights, most of the light weights and a couple of the heavy weights. I am making a concerted effort to repair and waterproof as I go along. Fortunately most are snags that I can glue with Storm Sure.
Hopefully this year I will manage to get all the "extra" blankets that are at home brought to the barn. It is tough when you need one of the spares and it is 45 minutes away. Part of that process includes the wonderful Ziploc Space Bags. Specifically the cube design. It is pretty amazing how may you can fit in their XL and Jumbo sizes.
Here are the mid weights in a jumbo. This has four 69", one 72", one 81" and Ember's Foal blanket.

50 gal tote before

Once it was minimized, I could fit a new mid weight and a spare next to the bag. Of course it makes the box heavy so I will need help getting it up in the attic.

After

I have two more jumbo size cubes and will hopefully only need one for the heavy weights. Of course the rain needs to stop so I can be more productive. There is not enough hang space in the house for drying blankets. I have at least started to put winter away.

Maybe by the end of the rainbow?

Lucky Buys

Over the last six months I have had a few lucky buys. The first had my jaw dropping.

Back in February I saw a notice about a sale on an Amigo blanket. I clicked on the link for CountryandStable.com expecting the typical $50 off or other minor discount. What I found was a mid weight Amigo Bravo 12 selling for under $60. That was over $100 off the normal price then and now the regular price is $229.95. Even though it was not a blanket I would normally buy, I clicked to order one. At that price it was worth trying. At one point I thought I lost the sale when I went to ask my Mom her opinion. They were sold out, but luckily one was still in my cart. Six weeks later I received the blanket in a size that will work on 4 of my horses.

Amigo Bravo 12 plus mid weight 250gm photo from Country and Stable

So when I saw a sale on blankets at the same site, I looked further. This time I choose a Pessoa Light Turnout Sheet that was selling for $45. That price could not be passed up. At check out, I scored an additional 15% off. Roscoe is now wearing a really light, great purple sheet. He is so narrow I had to knot the surcingles, but otherwise the sheet fits him well. Country and Stable is one I will keep an eye on for future blanket sales.

Just the other day, Mom and I went shopping for things we will need for Ember when he arrives. We had no luck at the first store finding those items, but I found a Full Cheek three piece sweet copper bit in the markdown area. Once we verified it was dressage legal I decided to buy it for Roscoe, who has not been thrilled with the rubber mullen mouth full cheek. Regular price was $84.99 and the markdown was $59.50. When I got to the register the cashier said there was an additional discount, so the bit ended up being $47.60. Everything I bought that day was less than the original price. Definitely meant to be. Roscoe took the bit right away when I tried it on him. Pony approved.

 

Peggy also had a lucky buy when she purchased a Marathon Wagonette for a price that saved her nearly $1300. It needs some work, but overall is a great carriage. Plus with a purchase of a team pole, we can start the path to driving a pair. The best part is it seats six people and is great for the dogs too. It came with a not so great plastic harness that can serve as a back up to the two leather harnesses.

Deliah said she wanted her drive

Time Flies

I wish it was because I was having fun, but no such luck. I can say I am almost done with my crazy work schedule, yay. Horse wise, well it is cold and hard. I have hauled a lot of water since our barn pump decided to freeze. Luckily at least one other pump on the grounds was working.
Some good points that have come out of all this cold:

1. 30 degrees feels warm after all negative days

2. We don't have to worry at all about Winston eating grass because it is basically just frozen hay.

3. Rubbing alcohol applied to the pump has helped with our freezing problem.

4. Roscoe got a new heavy weight blanket and he is getting to use it plenty.

His new Schneider's blanket



 

He is up to a size 66, only a size smaller than the other three

Hard to believe he used to be this small. Dec 2011

 We do get lucky with Roscoe. He wore his first blanket for two seasons, his sheet almost as long and he is able to fit some of our spare blankets. Mom only bought the new one because the waterproofing  failed on his red blanket and the Picador (fleece lined)is a bit long on him.

Roscoe does give us hope for spring. His hormones have started up which must mean the weather will change. Of course the real sign will be when Dottie responds to him too. I am so ready to be done with frozen ground, poop and air.

Now I need to pick my pictures for the photo contest the Welsh hold every year. I have two in mind, but need a third.

Stay warm everyone :)

Brr, Chilly PT

I have to say I am not totally sad about this weather. If it was perfect weather I would be so bummed to miss riding time due to working all these hours. With the cold, crappy weather I am not missing out.
I still get my PT, pony time though. Roscoe almost made me late yesterday with his antics. I put DaVinci into his stall and then as I was putting Winston into his stall, Roscoe decided he wanted to be with DaVinci. So he went UNDER the stall guard. Well limbo champion he is not, so he ended up opening the eye hole. I told him he had to go to his stall, silly boy.
I did not have time to go get the hammer and beat the eye hole back into shape, which meant DaVinci got to roam the barn. Before he left his stall though he had to rub his wet neck on the door frame. Later I found that he had rubbed on the open eye hole, tearing the lining of his heavy weight blanket. Since tonight is bringing the coldest weather we have seen in years, I had to patch up the liner so he could wear it tonight. My quick patch included cutting a piece of an old lycra tail bag and sewing it over the hole. Let's hope my sewing holds up.
As I was going horse to horse dressing them in coolers and heavy blankets, they all knew I had cookies in my pocket. They each went to their "go to" trick to try to earn cookies. DaVinci is head down, front leg up and cute ears pricked. Winston does the controlled pawing we taught him during his rehab time. Roscoe's is head down. Rosemary is stretch in any direction you are standing. Dottie just uses those big brown eyes of hers. Of course their antics made it difficult to put on blankets. I told them they could have cookies afterwards. They made sure I kept my word.
My PT was chilly, but definitely worth it. 8 days till my day off, Yay.

Here is our double layer marshmallow:

He is a lucky to get one of the real liners we own. Mom put some darts the neck to help the fit.

I have another late inventory tomorrow, but at least I have caught up on sleep. Plus I should not have to clear snow off the car after this one :) Bundle up everyone and stay warm.

A Litte Cool, A Little Warm

A constant question during blanket season for us is whether to dress them where they could be a little cool or a little warm.
16 years ago when we started blanketing Sherman and Barry, the answer was pretty easy because they had a sheet and a heavier weight blanket. Now each of the horses, except Roscoe for now, has at least 4 levels of blankets.

Turnout Sheet: Temperature range of use 50-60F Brands: Weatherbeeta, StormShield
This is the blanket I would have for any horse I own. Perfect for wind and rain. Studies have shown that horses are just fine being naked during the winter, but wind and rain can both undermine their natural insulation. Plus it is a great way to keep the ponies clean too.

Light Weight 100gm fill: Temperature range of use 40-50F Brands: Weatherbeeta, Baker, Off brand
This is the newest edition to our blanketing scheme, but a very useful one. During some of the days where the temperature briefly goes above 50 then drops low again this blanket breathes great. For indoor use we have Baker rugs for some of the horses that fit in this category.

Mid Weight 200gm fill: Temperature range of use 30-40F Brands: Weatherbeeta, Rambo, Off brand
This blanket along with a sheet made our original batch of blankets. As blanket technology has improved over the years, this blanket has gotten lighter in actual weight so the horses are so much more comfortable. With VA weather the horses end up wearing this blanket a lot so comfort is very important.

Heavy Weight 300gm fill: Temperature range of use 30F and below Brands: StormShield, Turtleneck, Stateline, Kensington
This blanket allows us to avoid layering. We used to put a cooler beneath the mid weight to achieve the same level. Though we do not use it often, I am so glad to have this option for the freak freezing snowy days we sometimes face.

Since we only go out once a day blanket choice is key. Whether we let them be cool or warm, they are burning calories which according to Joyce that is what winter is for. We have used many brands of blankets, but now we lean towards Weatherbeeta. Their blankets are broad enough to handle my wide ponies preventing rubbed shoulders. Plus they breathe making dressing for day to night easier. We take into account winds, clouds and sun when we decide. For example today the temperature was close to 40F and the horse were dressed in light weights, but the wind was high and it was getting cooler. I decided to put on mid weights since tomorrows weather looks similar. If it had been sunny with no wind, I would have let them be cool.

Blanketing benefits me and it is a responsibility I take seriously. Fortunately my horses enjoy their blankets which makes the decisions easier.
And for laugh,

Dog blankets too. Kayla's heavy weight and sheet on the left are both like horse blankets with two crossing surcingles. Griffyn's just have one Velcro belly band. They have their own blanket bar to match the horses.