Summer is a great time to purchase winter blankets for your horse, as many tack shops put them on sale to get rid of their winter inventory. If you know how to size your horse blankets before you go shopping it is much easier on you and your gas bill rather than making multiple trips to the tack store trying to get the right fit. This knowledge is also helpful if you are ordering a custom blanket online.
Begin by standing your horse up squarely. If he won’t cooperate have someone else assist you with either the holding or the measuring. If you don’t have help have him tied up and try to get him to stand as square as possible.
Stand on your horse’s left and place the end of your measuring tape in your left hand and place it where the horse’s neck meets the center of his chest. With your right hand, draw the tape along the side as far as you can. Be sure that the tape crosses the widest part of his shoulder. If you measure too low then the chest blanket will be too small. The tape needs to be level and taut as well or you will end up adding extra inches and end up with a blanket that is too long lengthwise.
Once you have reached as far as you can, hold your thumb on that spot of the horse and note your measurement. Then measure from your thumb across the point of his hindquarters, about 10 or 12 inches below where the horse’s tail meets the body. Note your measurement at the edge of his tail.
Add your two measurements to get the horse’s blanket size. Blankets tend to come in even sizes as small as 30 inches for foals and as long as 88 for large breeds. If you come out with an odd measurement, then round up to the next even number. If you are having a custom blanket made you may be able to get the exact measurement, but a couple extra inches will make sure that the blanket fits with a little space for movement as well.
By measuring your horse you will be able to have a good idea of what to shop for when you are hitting up all of the great summer sales at the local tack shop or online. These measurements will also work for other blankets such as fly sheets and coolers.
