Why do horses get coats and cows don't?

[noblegiraffe]

Today I was driving in the pouring rain past a horse field, and they were all, bar one, wearing coats. Then there was a cow field, obviously no coats.

Which led me to wonder why some animals get coats and others don't. Who decided that horses need coats, and why? Was the coatless horse just like a cool teen who will not wear a coat however much you tell them to, or a rock-hard horse who doesn't actually need one?

Why do some dogs get coats and others not? Did they try to sell coats for cats but cats said no way?

Do other animals get coats?

Some would. Lots of native and cold weather breeds are fairly shaggy.

So many people think cows aren't well looked after in this country! We love our cows. Horses usually go into stables when the weather is rubbish so they don't have it that bad either.

Perhaps they were jealous. I know I would be!

Many horses in work are clipped (so they can work without getting too hot) and then rugged (so they can stay warm in the field).

But it depends on the horse. Mine is a fat hairy type and rarely gets rugged. I clipped him the other day as he was sweating just standing in the field. It's turned colder now, but I'm still not rugging, and won't put a rug on him unless it's very cold and very wet for a few days in a row - then he gets miserable.

A lot of horses in this country are overrugged. Many people think that if they themselves feel cold their horse must be cold too, but that's not the case.

if we give horses coats because we clip them, why do sheep not get coats when we shear them?

Because they are sick of the 'mindless follower' sheep stereotyping they've been subjected to for years, so now they go their own way and have no interest in what horses are doing (also if they were going to dress up, they'd choose knitwear)

Most horses come into a stable at night - which during the winter becomes more like 4pm to 8am, and some even less out time. But some live out permanently.
When ds had a hairy native pony, the only time he wore a rug was a very thin layer to try and control the mud a bit as it took a long time to chip it off. But usually he'd remove it and stamp it into the mud in the furthest corner of the paddock. My SILs very slim eventer who is fully clipped otoh, goes out for 3 hours a day in winter, wears a thick rug with a neck outside, comes in, has a clean rug and a hot mash and is tucked up in his cosy stable.

Some horses / ponies grow incredibly thick coats , particularly the native breeds .

So cows get a nice warm shed and some silage and horses get a damp field and a coat?

Mine has a stable, but she mostly lives out-out in the summer. She’s been in overnight about 3 times this summer.

Once the weather gets shit, she comes in overnight but is out during the day as much as possible.

She prefers to be out though so as long as there’s another horse out that she can see, I leave her to it unless the weather is truly vile.

Some ponies like Shetlands can have quite thick fluffy coats. But no they wouldn't look like highland cows if not clipped. My last horse had quite a fine coat and needed a rug from November time when it was cold/wet.

Our sheep are clipped in summer so by now they have more of a fleece. Their wool is thick with lanolin which is like a waterproof treatment.

Our cows are neither clipped or coat wearers and they live out all year. They have dense coats and so far have not complained about feeling cold.

My goats are not waterproof and have a cosy barn to live in. As soon as it spits rain they run inside. I will probably get them little goat coats this winter, much to my husbands annoyance I'm sure!

HTH

My horses aren't rugged for various reasons. One being they aren't ridden (I collect the damaged ones!), so aren't clipped and don't need to be kept clean. Plus the natural cycle of being a bit colder in winter helps keep the weight in check. This includes the Arab x Appaloosa, she hates being rugged and the few times I tried (thinking she'd need it due to her breed), I found her naked and plastered on mud, and said rug discarded somewhere in the field 🙄
Some of our baby calves get coats if it's particularly chilly or they are poorly. You'd be surprised at how much heat a cow can generate though! With regards to sheep shearing, we shear because it would be too hot in summer with all that wool, and to minimise fly strike - long fleece holds dirt, which attracts flies, which lay eggs in the wool and the maggots then eat the sheep alive 😕

Because we only shear them in the summer when it's hot. Some sheep actually shed their wool naturally themselves in the summer too.

My dogs have coats in the winter and rain as they’re much easier to clean from all the mud. One of my dogs actually gets quite cold and shivers too so she gets a coat more regularly than my other dog who doesn’t feel the cold.

For horses I think it’s because they get clipped and also in the winter with all the mud it reduces the amount of grooming required.

Love this thread. Better not Google cow coat with any cows around- it might traumatise them. There are covers in the UK for show cattle. Also Jute coats being made for cattle in India (where they are sacred and roam but it looks like cared for in some places in winter.)

Otherwise you come up with coats for humans, cow patterns or leather.

I saw a post the other day from a farmer explaining that they shave their cows backs in winter so they don’t get sweaty in the barns over winter.

little goat coats

Some of our baby calves get coats

OMG. Those sound adorable.

I’ve tried to put a coat on my dog but he refuses to move and just gives me a look that’s says ‘I’m a dog, not a fashion accessory’ and then refuses to go out in the rain

Why are goats not waterproof? That sounds like a design flaw.

Our cat had a parka, in classic green with orange lining. I think it's fair to say he wasn't a fan. Maybe he would prefer navy....

@noblegiraffe I googled......

@noblegiraffe have you ever spotted newborn lambs with "coats" on?
If it is wet during lambing time, they have what looks like sticky back plastic stuck on their back so they don't get wet and cold.

Sticky backed plastic lambs have been known to frighten the horses 🤣

We’ve got a zebra print fly rug and it scared the shetlands in the field next door.

My pony is hilariously terrified of them, so it was a kind of pay back.

Yep the poodle (originally bred to retrieve from water) gets very soggy and shivery and refuses to go out of the house.

Collie had a coat for daycare as she would refuse to come in whatever the weather, and whilst she didn't soak to the skin, it meant my car didn't pong as much. She actually seems to quite like it though

Up here young lambs wear little clear plastic coats to keep them dry

I totally assumed that these were fake, but no!

That cow is an absolute unit, must have taken a tonne of wool.

As a child "Animals should definitely not wear clothing" was one of my favourite books.

I feel this will answer many questions.