Hot Horse

[Seriously79]

Forgive me, I'll be the first to admit that I don't know much about horses.

And I'm sorry if this is in the wrong place.

There is a lovely horse in a field down the road from me, very friendly and always comes over to the gate when we pass.

Walked by today and he has a big ( not sure what it's called) - sheet/ blanket/ coat on - completely covered apart from his ears and the bottom of his feet, and a mask over his eyes.

Now while I understand that this is to stop the flys, there were loads buzzing around him, the poor thing was so hot! We gave him a stroke and under the coat he was sopping wet with sweat. We are in the south west of the uk and it's been in the low 30's today.

He hasn't got any shade in his field, I couldn't see if the gate to his stable was open.

Is this normal? Should I report this?

It might be a sun reflector rug, specifically designed to keep them cooler although it does sound like it was too hot even for that to help

Sounds like a fly rug. They won’t be that hot and will keep the horseflies off it which are a different breed of awful this year

One of mine wears a fly rug like this, specially designed for hot weather. She would rip herself to shreds scratching if the flies got to her, its awful to see.

I still think the rugs aren't ideal in this weather, but I'm nit sure what the answer is

Yep to add to the above there is a little pony on our yard who will without a fly rug on literally scratch himself raw. Being a bit warm is preferable

Some horses can’t be left without sheets or they become seriously itchy and uncomfortable or burn. If the horse is dark, the white ought to keep them cool too. As long as the horse has water, they should be okay but it is too hot for a fly sheet imho