Jaws and Houdini
So, as regular readers may know, Tucker has had his winter blankets ripped to near shreds twice already this winter.
Suspicion falls on Chance who has been know to rip up two of my jackets in the past and he is Tucker's most frequent play partner.
After two new waterproof blankets died a shredded death, I decided to dress Tucker in another option. I had a relatively new blanket I'd bought only to find out after dressing him in it last year, that it was not waterproof.
No problem. I have waterproof sheets. One of them is a lightweight Rambo--a brand noted for its durability. Solution, then? Put the blanket on first and then the Rambo. Result? Dry, warm horse.
The only drawback was that the Rambo was missing one surcingle. Since wet weather was in the immediate forecast, I didn't take the time to replace the surcingle, but opted to ring up a cord fastening the Rambo to the blanket beneath.
It worked a treat, so I thought.
Then the mystery began. For some reason, Tucker's blankets always seem to slip off to the right. I have no idea why. Morning after morning, I have to shift his blankets/sheets back to the left to get them straight. Either he and Chance play blanket tag only on one side or there is something about his body/way of going that leads to right blanket shift.
The new rig was no exception, but, I must admit, it was a little less likely to slip. The Rambo tended to stay in place even while the blanket beneath slid. So far, so good.
Until yesterday. When I went out to feed at late night, There stood Tucker, Ramboless. Pitch dark outside, so I decided not to seek out the missing sheet. I slid the blanket into place again, noticing both part of the Rambo's surcingle still attached, and a broken chest buckle on the blanket's front strap.
So, now Tucker was dressed in a non-waterproof blanket with only one strap holding it in place in the front.
When I found the Rambo lying in the snow, it was not totally trashed. But now both surcingles need work. I still can't quite figure out how Tucker slithered out of it, but I've seen escapes from totally intact blankets before, so extricating himself from a partially buckled Rambo should not have surprised me too much. Still.....
OK, so we've lost two full blankets so far, and now, one sheet which was half of a blanket combination, to that makes 3 1/2 for the season so far.
Plan C: I put another brandy new blanket on Tucker for now. I'm not sure it's durable enough to withstand "Jaws," but we'll see. In the meantime, I've ordered another new blanket in a high denier--1220D--which may be able to withstand a tooth assault.
Darn. At this rate I should have spent hundreds of dollars on something truly indestructible instead of trying to save money on lesser brand blanket.
Live and learn. I'll save my pennies and invest for next time.
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That sounds really annoying. We used to have a lot of blanket tag going on and lots of blankets wound up on the ground or hanging off a horse or in shreds. With seven horses it got quite expensive to buy, repair and clean the blankets.
ReplyDeleteOur solution was to just not blanket anymore. They grow a nice warm coat and don't seem the worse for wear. I know lots of people always blanket but we have found that they are just fine without them. They have shelter if they need it and they come in at night. It's not for everyone but it works for our herd. Good luck with your new blanket.
I went the same route as Grey Horse, and the horses actually seem a lot happier without the blankets. I notice they move around a lot more when they aren't wearing blankets, too. Good luck! They really should start making horse blankets out of kevlar!
ReplyDeleteI'd go that way too except our turnouts have no shelter from the wind and weather - have to blanket when it's really cold or wet. I've had best luck with the Rambos (not the Rhino line which uses a more rip-likely material) and also the Northwind line (store brand of Dovers).
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