How to beat the winter blues: 5 tips and tricks

It is dark the entire time and the only bright hours are usually spent working, in school or in university. It is raining, windy and cold. Horses love to lay in the mud so everything is just wet and dirty the whole time. Autumn and winter can be beautiful – but they also can be a lot to handle. This year it is even more difficult for a lot of people due to Covid-19 lockdowns. So to cheer you up a little bit, Jasmin from @teampuppenkiste has collected a few tips and tricks to beat the winter blues!

1. Me time

It can be difficult to take time to oneself because we like being active and getting things done. But do you know that feeling of being really cold after a few hours at the stable? Make yourself some tea, fill up a hot bath tub, put a face mask ok, play your favourite songs or horse podcasts and enjoy! And in case you do not have a bath tub: take a hot shower first and then wrap yourself in a cozy blanket and take your chill time on the sofa, it is almost as good!

2. Ride without a saddle

We all know those moments where we do not have the energy to properly exercise our horse for an hour and are just too cold anyway. There is a great solution: just ride a bit bareback – it is much warmer, more cuddly and you are still spending time together and exercising! For me personally, My Riding Underwear was a big game changer as I had always loved riding bareback but it used to hurt so much. Now it is not an issue anymore with the comfort pad!

3. Be creative

I absolutely love those afternoons when it is cold and dark outside but I am doing something fun and creative inside where it is warm and cozy. Creating your own things, especially for your horse is just an amazing feeling and not difficult at all. Options are crochetting fly nets, creating an individual browband and – by far my favourite for this time of the year – building a Christmas wreath for your horse. It is so easy and just the perfect Christmas card photo! I tried it myself! If you want to know more about it you might want to read... DIY: Christmas wreath for your horse

4. Bake horse treats

After having built something that makes your horse look nice, you can also create things that make your horse feel nice! HORSE TREATS! Super easy to make, with common ingredients such as oats, carrots and apples. With a bit of baking skills, you can also form them into little stars and Christmas trees! The good thing is that you know all the ingredients and can add the things your horse likes the most. But please make sure you let them dry properly before feeding – all the moist needs to be done to avoid any digestive issues.

5. Call your best horse friend

… and talk about all the fun things that have happened this year! One of my favourite horse stories are that I tried cutting my lease horses mane and he looked like a donkey afterwards! Thank god that manes grow back, just like spring is just around the corner.

To summarise, time spent at the stable, with horse friends or creating things for your horse always helps! And winter has its magic too, heating up after being outside, cuddling up on the sofa and just all the delicious things to eat and drink. Hopefully you can enjoy this winter a little bit and my little tricks help you too.

Lots of Love

Jasmin