I know its been discussed, but question re:unlined rainsheets

[2boys]

Does anyone, under any circumstances, put an unlined rain sheet on?

[saultgirl]

Of course; why wouldn't you?

[risky business]

I have never had any luck with unlined rainsheets. They tend to blow around and off easily. The weight of a lining helps keep it in place.

Other than that issue, I would certainly use one if that was all I had.

[kahjul]

There is a girl where I board that uses one. She doesn't clip or blanket in the winter, but puts that on when it calls for rain. This is her 2nd winter with us and I don't remember any problems.

[Nipntuck]

I don't do routine blanketing (my elbows can't handle it and the horses don't need it), but ask all my boarders to provide a rain sheet for cool rainy weather. Works well. If you keep the horse dry and don't body clip them they stay warm without overheating.

The only ones I've had a problem with were TuffRider which were VERY thin and didn't hold their waterproofing, even before being washed. But even with them, they didn't blow off or anything.

[Hopeful Hunter]

Yup....that's my spring and fall "raincoat" for when the temps may be in the 60s but rainy.

There is a bit of a lining - it's the Northwinds turnout sheet from Dover - but it's only a meshy interior.

I think the use depends on your climate and your horse's living situation. My guy is field boarded for his preference, with a run-in shed that he rules and lots of tree breaks, so the unlined raincoat works for him in milder weather. In summer, he just lives in a fly sheet.

[2boys]

Of course; why wouldn't you?

Because it has been widely discussed in reference to the sheets flattening their coat, hence decreasing their own body's ability to keep warm. Then, because there is no lining, they have no true way of keeping the chill away. I asked though, because after a week of frigid temps, it is now very warm but raining. My dumbdumbs are afraid of the gutter on the barn, so choose to stay out and get wet a lot. So I wanted to maybe just throw on their rain sheets with nothing else. I put one on over a stable blanket last night though, and now it is SOAKED. So they are naked, with tons of hay, and a prayer for bravery-against-gutters today. Thanks for all of your replies. :)

[sweetpea]

Supposedly since there is no fill , when you put it on a horse that has hair for the winter you can actually make him cold---- Supposedly it flattens the hair which interrupts the insualtion process of the fluffy hair.

[Ibex]

We use them spring/summer/early fall just to keep them dry, OR, it works well over a stable blanket as a back-up to a regular turn-out.

[BramblewoodAcres]

I guess you have to decide on the lesser of two evils: Horse cold because he's wet and can't get warm....or horse cold because his hair is a bit flat while it rains on the rain sheet.

That said, mine get unlined rain sheets when it's cold and raining or sleeting. They prefer to stand OUTSIDE the run-in. As soon as it's done raining, the sheets come off. They are certainly more warm under their flattened, rain-sheet covered DRY hair than they would be under their flattened, wet, frozen, non-rainsheet covered hair.

[2boys]

I guess you have to decide on the lesser of two evils: Horse cold because he's wet and can't get warm....or horse cold because his hair is a bit flat while it rains on the rain sheet.

That said, mine get unlined rain sheets when it's cold and raining or sleeting. They prefer to stand OUTSIDE the run-in. As soon as it's done raining, the sheets come off. They are certainly more warm under their flattened, rain-sheet covered DRY hair than they would be under their flattened, wet, frozen, non-rainsheet covered hair.

**Good point.**
So the Dover Northwinds is good? I can't believe how soaked my Dover sheet got.:mad:

[sweetpea]

OOPS I am sorry -- what I meant was not for the protection of rain & sleet . It was using as a regular blanket with their winter hair. Totally agree about keeping them dry --- definetly warmer that way!!

[saultgirl]

Because it has been widely discussed in reference to the sheets flattening their coat, hence decreasing their own body's ability to keep warm. Then, because there is no lining, they have no true way of keeping the chill away. I asked though, because after a week of frigid temps, it is now very warm but raining. My dumbdumbs are afraid of the gutter on the barn, so choose to stay out and get wet a lot. So I wanted to maybe just throw on their rain sheets with nothing else. I put one on over a stable blanket last night though, and now it is SOAKED. So they are naked, with tons of hay, and a prayer for bravery-against-gutters today. Thanks for all of your replies. :)

I doubt a light rainsheet would flatten coats that much. I think that's an idea that comes from the days of New Zealand Rugs.... jmo

[BramblewoodAcres]

2Boys...yes, I use the Dover Northwinds unlined rainsheet and I like it very much. Fits well and doesn't leak. And really, because they are light, they don't flatten the hair that much...over the wither, yes, and a bit over the top of the rump where there is the most pressure from the sheet, but belly and barrel hair are nice and fluffy (and DRY!) when the sheets come off.

[sublimequine]

I use one on my mare all the time. She lives outside 24/7, and the TO sheet is for temps from 40-20F. Once we start dipping into the teens, we go for a medium weight blanket.

I honestly think the whole "the hair is flat so they stay colder" thing is nonsense. If my mare is outside and shivering with her hair fluffed, and then I go out there and toss the sheet on, she will stop shivering.

Horses fluff their hair so they can trap the warm air close to their body, it creates a layer of insulation and still, warm air that isn't blown away because as I mentioned, it's trapped by the fluffed hair. It's called piloerection.

In theory, if you put a turnout sheet on your horse, yes, piloerection under the sheet will not occur. But think about it, they no longer NEED to fluff their hair up, as the turnout sheet is serving the same purpose. It traps the warm, still air under the sheet, keeping it close to their body. It serves the exact same function as piloerection does, but is superior in that extremely high winds can pull the warm air away from even a fluffed up horse, or if the horse is completely soaked or gets icey sleet on them, the hair is matted down, and cannot stand on end. With a sheet, high winds and rain/sleet are not an issue.

[BumbleBee]

Supposedly since there is no fill , when you put it on a horse that has hair for the winter you can actually make him cold---- Supposedly it flattens the hair which interrupts the insualtion process of the fluffy hair.

Thats bull, the coat is flat because they are warm. Trust me even under 300g fill blankets if it's cold enought they can fluff their coats I have seen/felt it first hand.

[woops]

Sweetpea-- I don't think it is bull.I was told the same thing by a tack store who sells tons of blankets. I was told just to make sure it has some fill -- if they had a coat and to brush their coat real regular to let it fluff back up!! But I guess since you put supposedly you must wonder about the truth about it too!

[lovemyrobin]

Never again....

I had one and I used it on my mare. Well, somehow it got soaked all the way through--actually I think the water seeped under the sheet. I got to the barn to check on her and she was a soaked, trembling, very cold pony girl. I immediately brought her up to her stall and threw her a flake and proceeded to towel dry her. Her fellow turnout buddies (who were naked) were wet, but not soaked and they were not shivering like she was. I felt like a horrible horse mom that day.

[lauriep]

Supposedly since there is no fill , when you put it on a horse that has hair for the winter you can actually make him cold---- Supposedly it flattens the hair which interrupts the insualtion process of the fluffy hair.

The light weight ones don't weigh the hair down enough to make them cold, but a cold rain WILL. I always put a sheet on when it is cold AND raining. Warm and raining, no.

[lauriep]

I use one on my mare all the time. She lives outside 24/7, and the TO sheet is for temps from 40-20F. Once we start dipping into the teens, we go for a medium weight blanket.

I honestly think the whole "the hair is flat so they stay colder" thing is nonsense. If my mare is outside and shivering with her hair fluffed, and then I go out there and toss the sheet on, she will stop shivering.

Horses fluff their hair so they can trap the warm air close to their body, it creates a layer of insulation and still, warm air that isn't blown away because as I mentioned, it's trapped by the fluffed hair. It's called piloerection.

In theory, if you put a turnout sheet on your horse, yes, piloerection under the sheet will not occur. But think about it, they no longer NEED to fluff their hair up, as the turnout sheet is serving the same purpose. It traps the warm, still air under the sheet, keeping it close to their body. It serves the exact same function as piloerection does, but is superior in that extremely high winds can pull the warm air away from even a fluffed up horse, or if the horse is completely soaked or gets icey sleet on them, the hair is matted down, and cannot stand on end. With a sheet, high winds and rain/sleet are not an issue.

Well said!!!

[mothermucker12]

Yup....that's my spring and fall "raincoat" for when the temps may be in the 60s but rainy.

There is a bit of a lining - it's the Northwinds turnout sheet from Dover - but it's only a meshy interior.

I think the use depends on your climate and your horse's living situation. My guy is field boarded for his preference, with a run-in shed that he rules and lots of tree breaks, so the unlined raincoat works for him in milder weather. In summer, he just lives in a fly sheet.

i have the same rainsheet and I think it is very heavy for a sheet and I hate the meshy interior, hair gets caught in it and then you get these huge hair balls stuck down in the bottom of the liner!! I got it because of their 2 years rip guarantee...

[sublimequine]

Well said!!!

Thanks, I just had a test on this stuff; environmental temperatures and how to keep your livestock comfortable. :lol:

mothermucker; I was thinking of getting a sheet with mesh lining, but you hate it? Do tell, I might need to reconsider!

[2boys]

Did you guys read the article posted the other day about how horses stay warm? I can't remember who posted it. It was so interesting. It referenced the whole piloerection thing, which is in line with what I have been told. I guess someone needs to calculate the efficiency of piloerection vs. efficiency of a sheet. Then we will have a nice clear-cut answer of which is *better*. Something the horse world never seems to have! :lol:

[TheOtherHorse]

Mine don't have a run in shed at their current barn so they wear turnout sheets until it gets cold enough for midweight blankets. However, their current sheets do have 80 grams of insulation so I guess it is not technically unlined. I have in the past used the kind without any lining at all and had no problems, as long as you upgrade to a blanket once the temps drop low enough.

[lauriep]

sublimequine, I hate the mesh-type sheets, too. MUCH prefer the nylon-lined, as it smoothes and shines the coat (really!).

[sublimequine]

sublimequine, I hate the mesh-type sheets, too. MUCH prefer the nylon-lined, as it smoothes and shines the coat (really!).

Good to know, I think I'll be reconsidering the purchase of a mesh lined sheet! :eek:

[Pippigirl]

In the cold wet rain I put an unlined rain sheet on my horse. It's a Gore-tex sheet from Classic Cover-Ups (Club Dry version). It keeps the horse dry. I've had to put it on when the horse was still wet and the horse was still able to dry off with the sheet on and warm up.
They are expensive but are well made and last a long time. I also have the HIB sheet as well. It's going on...5 or 6 years of use now. I wish the company was still in business!

[2boys]

I was in the Smartpack catalog last night, and I saw that the Weatherbeater Landa was one of the FEW turnout sheets that actually had the "waterproof" icon next to it. Do you think those icons are legit, or just something the marketer paid extra for? Because it was also the cheapest!

[Kementari]

I PREFER an unlined rainsheet - if it's COLD and wet, then they go out in a blanket. But when it's just chilly (as in, I wouldn't even think of using a blanket if it wasn't raining), the lighter unlined sheets seem to allow the hair to stay a bit fluffy while just keeping the wet off.

I also have two horses who are exceptionally sensitive to the wet - the older guy gets muscle sore very easily if he's wet and it's even 60 or 65 degrees, and my girl is a wimp: she shivers when she's wet all the way up to 70 or 75 or even 80 (even with no wind). At those temps, they DEFINITELY don't need any insulation in their clothes!

[Alexie]

Because it has been widely discussed in reference to the sheets flattening their coat, hence decreasing their own body's ability to keep warm. Then, because there is no lining, they have no true way of keeping the chill away.

i think that's a load of ballony, i use them on unclipped fur monsters in winter when its forcasting rain

it's really funny but before i started using them they would shiver in the rain if it was cold and the wind was blowing it right into them

since using the rugs they don't shiver

this kind of rubbish does my head in, it gets spouted off by someone who thinks its clever and stops people doing a good thing for their horses :mad:

sorry for the rant :o

[ponyjumper4]

I don't buy it either. A lady in my barn sheets/blankets her horses early to keep them from growing hair and staying clean. He was very warm under his thin rambo t/o sheet and this horse has no hair to fluff up.

[18handsoffury]

Where I live (Alberta, Canada) it can go from 0 (F) to 45 in a matter of 48 hrs. My Tb/Canadian mare goes au naturel 24/7 except when it's below 0, but my Tb gelding lives in a heavyweight(400g) blanket almost all season, and in a mesh-lined pink Pessoa sheet with a wool liner on warmer winter days. He wears the sheet all spring and fall, and I don't even consider the flat haircoat debate...If its cold outside and they aren't all-around toughies then they need a blanket. I check on them a couple times a day, and I use this very scientific way to determine whether they're too warm or cold:
I FEEL UNDER THEIR BLANKETS WITH MY BARE HAND. If they're really warm or cold I adjust their wardrobe as necesary.
I've never had any weird hair-balls or anything (despite his relatively impressive hair growing/shedding skills that he's learned from his little sister since coming to us 2 years ago) My poor Saddlebred mare who came to us as a rescue from New Jersey last month has lived 24/7 in her M/W blanket since she arrived lol.
I think that a good quality high denier rain sheet is a good investment because you can always add a liner to give a little more weight without going to a heavy blanket. Also, for those looking for added "waterproofness" should consider using a wool/fleece liner as sometimes its just an issue of the sheet getting wet and "sticking" to the horse, and that's when the water soaks through...kind of like a tent if you've ever been camping in the rain and touched the tent from the inside...