Tips for buying a turnout rug

Before buying a blanket, it’s important to know what size your horse or pony needs. If the blanket is too big or too small in size, it will have many adverse consequences. By putting on a rug that’s too large, it might slide and pull, whereas a rug that’s too small might chafe and fail to cover all areas. When in doubt about the size of the blanket your horse needs, you can always measure your horse or use our rug fitting guide. Please keep in mind that the horse blankets in Epplejeck’s product range are indicated in bottom sizes, measured from the centre of the chest to tail.

There are many different kinds of winter blankets, so it is important to find out which blanket suits your horse best. Factors you need to take into account are: does your horse have a thick winter coat, does it have narrow or wide shoulders and neck, does it demolish blankets or not and do you want an additional neck piece with the blanket or not? One thing you should always consider when buying a blanket for the winter is that it should be made from waterproof and breathable material.

When your horse has a thick winter coat, it often needs a less warm blanket than when it has been clipped. The thickness of the filling is indicated in grams; a 200 grams blanket is less filled and also less warm than a 300 grams one. If you do not want to change rugs all the time, it’s best to choose a rug with a liner system. With blankets that have a liner system, you can easily attach a stable blanket or underblanket if they also have a liner system. With the liner system there are attachment points on the blankets so you can securely attach blankets to each other. When you put two separate blankets on your horse, it often shifts around. Thanks to the liner system, the blankets form one whole and therefore will not slide.

Buying a suitable rug for a horse with big shoulders and neck can be a challenge. Often, the 'normal' blankets will be too tight due to the broad build. There are blankets in an XL or Big Neck variant. These rugs are especially made for those type of horses. You can find the full collection in the wide horses theme shop.

The thickness of the fabric for the outside of the blanket is indicated in D or denier. This indicates how thick and strong the fabric is. The higher the denier, the stronger the fabric. It starts at 420 denier and goes up to 1680 denier. Does your horse often demolish its rugs or does it play a lot with its companions? Then it’s advisable to buy a blanket with a higher denier, as these are usually more solid.

As if there's not enough choice between rugs yet, there are blankets available with a fixed neck piece, ones where the neck piece can be attached separately and rugs without one at all. A neck piece is especially useful for rainy days, as it prevents the rain from entering the blanket. This way, your horse's coat will stay dry. A neck piece does not provide extra warmth, although it’s recommended to use a 300 grams neck piece when your horse has a 300 grams rug on, for example.

To make the choice for the perfect winter rug a little easier for you, we have selected the ten best winter blankets. For this selection we have looked at the filling, if it's easily demolishable or not, if a neck piece can be attached and, of course, the price. We have divided the selection in rugs up to €160 and rugs up to €325.

This rug is made especially for the smaller ponies and available in size 95-145. With the 0, 200 and 300 grams filling, the blanket is suitable for both a clipped and unclipped pony. The outer fabric is 600 denier. The rug has no liner system, that means it isn’t possible to attach a neck piece. But there is a full neck version of this rug in 0 and 300 grams filling. As the name suggests, this blanket has a fixed neck piece. The Epplejeck Junior rug costs between €54.95 and €69.95.

With the full neck version, there is a fixed neck on the blanket. This blanket has a 0, 150 and 300 grams filling. Because of the fixed neck, a liner system is not possible. All variations are available in size 110-215 and are made of 600 denier fabric. The Bucas Freedom Turnout rug costs between €94.95 and €129.95.

This WeatherBeeta ComFiTec Plus Dynamic rug is suitable for both horse and ponies. The blanket is available in size 120-225 and has a 0, 100 and 220 grams lining. The outer fabric is very strong, as it’s made from 1200 denier ripstop fabric. There is a separate neck piece in 0 and 100 grams available for this rug, which costs €79.95. The blanket costs between €144.95 and €184.95.

The Eskadron Omega is a comfortable and robust turnout rug that has a 250 grams filling. It has a neoprene insert at the manes for protection from rubbing and a removable neck piece with soft lining at the mane. As this blanket comes with an extending piece, it is also suitable for heavy breeds, because you can adjust the rug to fit those horses. The blanket is available in sizes 175-125 and is made of 1680 denier fabric. It has no liner system. The blanket costs €204.95.

The WeatherBeeta Green-Tec rug is very special, because more than 340 recycled bottles have been used to make it. The blanket is available in size 120-225 and is available with a 0, 220 and 360 grams filling. The fabric is made of waterproof and breathable material and has a thickness of 900 denier. There is a separate neck piece available but the blanket does not have a liner system. The rug costs between €179.95 and €249.95.