That's the question I ask myself when the temperatures drop.
See above - that was the temp heading home from the barn this afternoon.
It has continued to drop. And the wind has picked up.
So the windchill is ... well, I don't even want to think about it.
The horses stayed in today because of the temperatures. No problem with that, they tend to get silly outdoors on days like this when it's super cold. Plus, I certainly sympathize with the barn folks, who I'm sure don't want to do the back-and-forth, back-and-forth of turnout in this weather.
So what DO I do when the temps drop?
1. Have a heckuva grooming session. When it's really cold Bestie tends to get the spa treatment with three rounds of currying (mitt, gelly scrubber, and rubber massager), brushing, and then some argan oil leave-in conditioner in her mane and tail.
2. Hand walk. I find hand walking kind of boring, but necessary to give her some movement and a change of scenery from her stall when there's no turnout. Sometimes we'll do serpentines or smaller and smaller circles just to mix it up a bit. About 15 minutes is my limit. If no one else is in the indoor, I'll let her off the lead to wander around and roll. When it's super cold like today, we hand walk in the barn aisle. Typically not too many people are out in weather like this, so the aisle is free. This afternoon they had just fed hay, and she got a lucky score of some of the 2nd cut "salad" that had fallen in the aisle. Bestie the vacuum.
3. Add warm water to her bucket. Whenever it's chilly, I'll clean out her water bucket and then fill it half way with warm water before filling it the rest of the way with the usual tap water. It ends up somewhat lukewarm, and I have to say that when I do this, she *always* takes a drink as soon as I'm done filling it. So I think she likes it. And it's good to encourage her to drink since they get extra hay when they're stuck indoors. Keeps her system moving.
4. Make a bran mash. I haven't done this yet this winter. One winter I made Dude and Bestie bran mashes every Sunday. I bought her a special bran mix for Christmas, but Christmas Day was so warm I never made it. Maybe I'll do that tomorrow (which is supposed to be even colder than today).
5. Hang out in her stall. Our barn is an old dairy barn with a low ceiling, and when the doors are shut it tends to stay pretty warm inside - typically around 40 degrees. It's plenty warm to just sit in the stall and watch her eat hay. I love being in the barn when it's quiet and you can hear all the horses munching. It's very peaceful.
6. Cancel my lesson. Regretfully, because I missed last week being out of town. But my personal comfort zone for riding is about 20 degrees and warmer. Plus, it doesn't seem very kind to her to ride when it's colder than that.
The good news is that we've only got one more day of this, and then Monday is in the 20s, and Tuesday is in the 40s. Those will be riding days, for sure.
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