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Ready for the Freeze: Winter Barn Essentials from Teskey’s
Getting the Barn Ready for the First Freeze
The leaves are starting to drop, the morning air finally has that crisp bite, and before we know it, the first hard freeze will be here. As winter creeps in, keeping the horses comfortable and healthy jumps right to the top of the priority list.
You don’t have to wait until the weather turns to start scrambling, though. We’ve got the barn fully stocked at Teskey’s to help you get ahead of the cold. Here is a quick look at what you should check on before the temperatures really plummet.
Blanketing is never a one-size-fits-all situation. A clipped performance horse, a hard keeper trying to hold onto every calorie, and an older senior horse all have completely different needs when the wind picks up.
Now is the perfect time to pull your blanket stack out of storage and audit what you have. Whether you need to replace a heavyweight turnout entirely or just need a few replacement straps to patch up a favorite stable sheet, we can help you get it sorted. If you aren't quite sure about sizing or weights, you can check out our quick guide on Determining Your Horse's Winter Blanket to find the perfect fit before the freeze hits.
Heaters and De-Icers
When the temperature drops below freezing, the absolute last thing you want to do is head out to the pasture with a sledgehammer at 6:00 AM just to break ice. Dehydration is one of the quickest ways for a horse to develop winter colic, so keeping fresh, open water in front of them is huge.
Depending on how your place is set up, a few different options can save your routine:
For individual stalls or smaller pens, Allied Precision (API) makes great 5-gallon and 16-gallon heated buckets. If you just want to retrofit the stock tanks you already have, API also makes universal drain-plug de-icers, floating pond de-icers, and utility de-icers that work with almost any container.
If you're looking for a permanent, hands-free upgrade, we also carry Classic Equine by Ritchie automatic waterers with built-in heating. You can put a Stallfount inside to keep stalls dry and functional, or install a heavy-duty Autofount or Ultrafount out in the pastures to service multiple turnouts at once.
Salt and Electrolytes
Horses naturally drink less water when the weather turns cold, even if you keep the ice broken. Because their natural thirst drive drops in the winter, you sometimes have to trick their system a bit to keep their digestive tracts moving smoothly.
Adding a tasty electrolyte top-dress to their daily feed is one of the easiest ways to get them hitting the water bucket. Highly palatable options like Farnam Apple Elite, MVP Apple-Lyte, Horse Health Apple-Dex, Electro Dex, or First Companion Equi-Dex work wonders for triggering that natural thirst instinct. Beyond the loose supplements, just making sure every stall and pasture has a fresh salt block gives them a way to self-regulate their sodium intake all winter long.
Hay and Forage
When the weather gets genuinely bitter, high-quality forage is your herd's best defense. It helps to think of hay as your horse's internal heater. The fiber is digested in the hindgut through bacterial fermentation, and that slow process continuously releases thermal energy to warm them from the inside out.
In fact, throwing just an extra five pounds of hay can noticeably raise a horse’s body temperature for up to four hours. Just keep an eye on the total daily intake so you don't overdo it—you generally want to keep them at or below three percent of their total body weight. If you want to dive deeper into dialing in your feed room strategy this season, take a look at our companion piece, Maintaining Weight for Your Performance and Older Horses in Winter.
Prepping the barn for a cold snap doesn't have to be stressful. Taking a day to audit your blankets, secure your water sources, and adjust your winter feeding plan now means you can actually enjoy the crisp winter riding days ahead without the worry.
Stay warm out there, and happy riding!