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With Phoenix going into training within the next week or two, I'm likely going to have to do some sort of body clip. I've never had to worry about it before, so I'm really a bit blanket dumb. She wont get a full body clip, likely just a trace clip or a blanket clip. Our winters aren't too harsh, but we CAN get some super cold temperatures. We had a wind chill around -15 or -20 a week or so ago, but that is extremely unusual and we've been above freezing again since before Christmas. Today we're in the 40's. I'm going to need to get something for her, but I don't know what I should have since she's on pasture. I also know it depends a bit on the horse. I haven't had to blanket her at all previously so she's got a good amount of hair. I'm thinking of requesting she go into a spare stall if its going to drop below a certain temperature but would like to keep that to a minimum.
I'm on an extremely low budget with her training costs and all her equipment I'm working on getting together, so I've been looking at the Tough 1 blankets and sheets on amazon. I've seen a few cheaper ones elsewhere but I also really need it to hold up to pasture wear (suggestions welcome!) I was leaning towards a blanket and a sheet. Is a fleece liner something she could wear in turnout also or is that more for stabling uses?
The blanket I was looking at is 300g, and I thought when its really really cold I could layer the fleece liner, blanket, and the sheet? Or really any combination of the 3 based on the temperature? What blankets/weights would you start with or suggest?

There is also a Derby Originals 400g blanket for about $30 more and it comes with a hood. I wonder if that and a sheet would be a better option.

If i clip a horse that.lives out, i clip where the blanket goes with a few inches of overlap. Ie some hair under the blanket. A midweight and a lightweight are most useful and yes you can simply double them up for very cold days. That has been my experience. My other experience is higher D is worth it definitely higher than 1200D.

What size is she?

I like the Country Pride blankets from Big D. Usually around $100.00 but feel and wear like they are more expensive. I have not had success with the Tough 1s staying waterproof.

I think she's a 75. I need to try on this cooler I got for Christmas this weekend and I'll be more sure

A medium plus a fleece would probably be a good start. You can layer the fleece under the medium if it starts going below zero. You might check out the Schneider's blankets. They are pretty nice for the money and I think they're having a sale right now. Their high neck blankets offer a little more coverage which could be helpful with a trace cut. This looks like a pretty good deal - $79.99 for the high neck in 1200D. I have the 1680D version of that blanket on Pickle, and like that the shoulder gussets go up so high. We'll see how it goes this winter, which is looking to be harsher and longer, but last winter she didn't get shoulder rubs. http://www.sstack.com/horse-blankets-an ... t-blanket/

Tough 1 are thenopposite of tough. My friend sold them so i tried several. They tore very easily and did not stay waterproof.

So no Tough 1's. Got it! I'm glad I asked!
Is there harm in getting a blanket a size or two too big knowing she's only about to turn 3 and will grow more still? It would be nice to get more than a few months use out of it.

A size up should work. Pickle measured 78" when I got her last year as a long 2 yo, so I bought her an 80" and it still fits her comfortably. An 82 would have been way too big though.

I also wonder if I measured correctly. I'm going to measure again tomorrow and hope I got it right the first time. If not, the cooler I already have may not fit. I think I might have measured more towards the top of the tail instead of the "widest point" of the hip. She may actually be a bit bigger than I thought? I need to clip soon so I don't really want to deal with having to return and exchange anything because I ordered wrong

Check to see if netequestrian.com still has any sizes left for her - I found them to have very good prices for quality top named blankets. I got my mare an Amigo 300 gram weight for $96.00 !! My friend has the same one and paid over $200 for hers.

They also have a very nice cooler/liner made by Centuar - I got the horse size for my 15.2 mare and my friend whose horse is a good 16.1 can fit in the same size, very nice and stretchy- it's called the Turbo-Fleece and it was around from $25.00 Netequestrian while others paid around $50.00. It stays in place very well, no shifting under another blanket/sheet.

Once you start to blanket - you will have to continue to blanket...So, I would definitely get a stall for her for the cold nites.

Bit of Britain had a few Weatherbetta's on sale with an additional 25% off.

Look around for sales since you will need more than one for her.

Also check Adams Horse Supplies; they have Amigo blankets on sale. The closeout colors seem to be really good deals.

PhoenixRising wrote:I also wonder if I measured correctly. I'm going to measure again tomorrow and hope I got it right the first time. If not, the cooler I already have may not fit. I think I might have measured more towards the top of the tail instead of the "widest point" of the hip. She may actually be a bit bigger than I thought? I need to clip soon so I don't really want to deal with having to return and exchange anything because I ordered wrong

Check for measuring instructions specific to the brand you decide on. Some measure to the point of the edge of the tail and some measure to the middle of the tail or other such variations.

I'm excited; I just got my first Rambo. Ordered it from SmartPak yesterday morning and it was delivered this afternoon Only problem: it's too nice to put on a horse.

Thanks everyone for the help! I ended up going to the local tack store and picking up a Saxon on sale. I would have gone with something a little nicer but I don't really expect it to fit next year and it was either nice blanket or nice bridle. So we went with the nice bridle (a bobbys )
She started training last week so today I got her clipped and blanketed. My trace clips are getting better but I still need some work on my straight lines. One side came out better than the other

Your clip looks pretty darn good and IMO Saxon blankets are very very nice for the price. Good job horse mom!