Best Horse Blankets in 2022 – Turnout & Stable

There is another one with two horse owners leading their horses down the barn aisle. One horse has an au naturel winter coat with no horseshoes, and the woman leading him wears simple barn clothes. The other horse has a thick stable blanket layered over a fleece cooler with insulated stall boots, the owner wearing brand name English riding gear. Both riders have the same words filling their thought bubbles: “Poor horse.” While there is some truth to these jokes, blanketing is a concern for all horse owners who are not blessed to live in a climate where the temperatures are moderate all year round.

The first thing to assess is how much winter coat your horse has and how cold your winter will be. Then look at the blanket’s fill, measured in grams from 100 grams to over 300 grams.  If your horse will be living primarily in a stall, he may be able to do fine with a stable blanket with appropriate fill. If there is a chance he will go outside in the cold and wet, however, you may want to consider a turnout blanket for him. Turnout blankets have fill as well, but they also often have a liner and a ripstop, waterproof exterior. The strength of a turnout blanket’s outer material is measured in denier: the higher the denier number, the tougher the blanket. If your horse is active in the field, has a lot of things in his turnout area to rip a blanket on, or likes to roughhouse with his buddies, it is better to invest in a high denier blanket. If you live in an area prone to wind, freezing rain, or driving snow, it may be a good idea to invest in a tail guard or hood to go with the blanket as well.

While many see these blankets as a luxury, riding horses may benefit from quarter sheets, such as this Wool quarter sheet from Equinavia, during warmup and cooldown if clipped. Any riding horse that is ridden in cold weather should have a fleece or wool cooler in order to help them dry off from sweat after riding.

B Vertigo Concord (Wool Quarter Sheet)