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Written by: Jenna Tranter
Published on: 09/08/2022
The days are starting to look and feel a little bit shorter with the sun disappearing a little earlier by the week. While its still hot, the heat just doesn’t feel quite as intense as it did mid-August. Most noticeable is your horse! The fur is starting to fly and if you have a few ‘hairy canaries’ like me they are starting to look almost shaggy. Not quite yet but on the verge. It can’t be- the winter coats can’t be growing already can they! It’s not even fall yet! There are tons of myths regarding horses and winter hair so we wanted to give you some facts.
Much like other animals, horses actually grow their coats based on daylight hours, it has very little to do with the temperature at all (we’ll come back to that later). The shortening daylight and longer darkness triggers your horse to start dropping their summer coat to make way for their winter hair. The same applies to the end of winter when daylight hours get longer and they start dropping the shag. You may have come across breeders putting their broodmares under lights to bring them into season- this is because mares cycle at their ‘best’ when the daylight hours are longer. Putting mares under light can help breeders in specific industries, like the thoroughbred industry, who want their foals to be born as early in the calendar year as they can. This again is a cross-specie ‘trick’- many egg producers will keep their chickens under lights to encourage them to continue to lay as egg laying decreases as the days shorten. A good omega 3 source is vital during this time as your horse focuses some of their energy on getting ready for the winter and will help improve the quality of the hair growth, help reduce shedding, and ensure their winter coat has that summer sheen year round.
A common myth is that blanketing your horse as soon as daylight hours shift will prevent the growth of winter hair. This statement has some grains of truth, but is inaccurate. Blanketing your horse while daylight hours shorten does not stop the growth of winter hair but will cause their winter coat to grow in shorter. When horses are consistently covered we are able to trick their bodies into thinking that they are in Florida, rather than the northern USA & Canada.
This one is also a bit of a myth. Ideally in a perfect world you want to wait until their new coat is clearly growing in otherwise you may end up with ‘blotches’ after clipping. When you can see the shag start clipping. Clipping at this stage will be faster and more comfortable for both you, your horse, and your clippers. The downside is that you may have to do a couple clips throughout the winter. Once your winter coat has completely grown in, their hair is thick, dense, and traps more dirt, natural oil and grime. This makes clipping much more difficult for you. Care and consideration should be taken when deciding whether or not to clip your horse. There are many factors including whether or not your horse is in a heavy workload, whether they sweat a lot throughout the winter, your climate, your horses living conditions, and yes, inevitably, the contentious subject of whether or not you blanket your horse (that’s a discussion for another day!).
As that shag starts coming in and pasture becomes less available Smart Earth is here to help. Keep that pasture glow year round with our convenient omega 3 oil and keep that winter shag looking tiptop.
✅ Single ingredient, 100% pure Camelina Oil.
✅ Non-GMO
✅ Ideal balance of Omega-3 compared to other products, like soybean oil.
✅ Canadian produced and operated.
✅ Single ingredient, 100% pure Camelina Oil.
✅ Non-GMO
✅ Ideal balance of Omega-3 compared to other products, like soybean oil.
✅ Canadian produced and operated.
Jenna Tranter is Smart Earth Camelina Corp's equine nutritionist. She is the owner and operator of Four Corners Equestrian and has been involved in the industry for over 20 years.
Jenna is a lifelong equestrian and lover of all animals big and small. She has both studied and worked within the industry for 20+ years in both the feed sector as well as being a coach and hunter/jumper facility owner with time spent in the UK and Canada. She holds a number of equine certifications from universities in both countries. She also has completed numerous courses in equine body work, including equi-bow, but is not a practitioner at this time due to there just not being enough time in the day! Jenna lives on her farm in Ontario, Canada with her husband, 19 horses, 2 goats, a flock of ducks, a flock of chickens, her barn cats and her 3 loyal dogs, Bosco, Evaa & Eeyore.
