To rug or not to rug new youngster
 

Merry Christmas to you all. I think I may need to rug my new two and a half year old WB cross filly. We have had her three months and she came what I think is underweight, but definitely scrawny, ribby, hip bones visible, very little padding on her rear. Although we are in Spain, we are quite high up and the weather has been rubbish this past week. No signs of improvement in the next two weeks. Daytime highs of 5 -6 but pouring with rain and windy, lows of around 1 or 2, with the driving rain and wind. We are on top of a hill with little to no natural shelter, although the horses do have a field shelter. I am all for keeping them as natural as possible and my other two are naked. They are all out 24-7. The thing is one of my horses is not always letting the new youngster into the shelter so she is spending quite a lot of her time outside exposed to the elements. She doesn't have a huge winter coat and she is still just as thin. I think she is growing upwards and not outwards right now. So I am thinking of getting a rug to tide us through the next six weeks. What do you all think? I have never rugged my horses before. I am not sure whether just a rain sheet would be sufficient or if I need something more insulated. The new youngster isn't losing weight, but it cannot be much fun in the wind and rain, being soaked for days at a time. Wishing you all a healthy and happy new year.

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