Horserugs - Re-use Or Buy New?

The winter has arrived and its time to sort out your horse rugs for the season

. Hopefully your rugs have done well in storage, no rats, mice or moths have managed to eat away at them.

At the end of the summer, I would try to set aside a weekend to give all your rugs a good wash, clean and fold. This way you can package them up for the winter in a safe and dry storage cupboard (preferably not the stables) but I know that space can be an issue.

But, back to the here and now, winter is over and you are unwrapping your stored rugs. How do they look?

Here's a checklist of what to look out for:

Rips, teras or frays in the fabric

Locks/fixings that are broken

Broken seams

Elastic that doesn't stretch

Broken buckles

Matted fleece

Mold

Wornout straps

The key here is that we don't want your horse injuring themselves. If a strap is breaks a horse could become entangled in the rug and hurt themselves.

And so, the best idea, si to sort them into 3 piles: GOOD, REPAIRS BIN.

But don't throw away the 'BIN' pile just yet; you can use the buckles and straps for the repair pile. You should then be able to find a local rug repairer to help.

As for buying new rugs, if needed, you should always re-measure your horse before you start shopping. It is more than likely that he'll need the same size rug as before, but as with all things it's wise to double-check. If you have a particular brand of horse rug in mind, I would suggest that you refer to the manufacturer's sizing system to see what measurements are required.

Finally when the new horse rug arrives, be sure to try it on the horse and assess its overall fit. Be careful, however, as even the most liberal tack shops with return policies won't appreciate having to take back a rug covered in dirt and hair. So the first time you try a new rug on your horse, cover him with a clean bed sheet. This bed sheet will protect the rug without interfering with the fit.

by: Sally Robins

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