Grooming 1

Grooming is an essential part of horse care. Regular grooming helps to stimulate the horse's circulation - very important for horses that are fully stabled and to remove dirt and dust from the coat. Even when a horse looks clean, it should always be brushed before tacking up, just one grass seed under the saddle or girth can cause a nasty sore. It is also a good way to check for any cuts, scrapes or lumps and bumps that the horse has got. A horse that is not regularly groomed can be at risk from skin conditions and foot infections.

It is important to take into account your local conditions such as climate, seasons, the type of horse, the work it is doing, how much time it spends stabled when working out an effective grooming routine. The guide here is based around a Welsh Cob used for pleasure riding in the south of England.

Grooming can be broken down into several different categories.

(Thanks go to Sarah who wrote this article and for starring in the pictures with her horse Tango.)

Brushing

Brushing is carried out to remove muck such as mud, grime, hay, straw, etc. from the coat. It also helps to stimulate the skin, which helps with keeping a shiny coat.

They are several tools that can be used to brush the horse and these will be discussed below. The golden rule of brushing is to ALWAYS follow the direction that the hair lies in, NEVER brush against the coat. Horses can have tickly areas, and some just don't like to be brushed in certain places. You should always keep an eye on the horse as you brush it to see if the horse is getting annoyed (swishing its tail, ears back, snatching up its legs, etc.) If at all in doubt about which brush you should be using to brush the horse, use the softest one.

You need to put a bit of work into brushing the horse, don't just tickle it with the brush, but on the other hand, don't lean into the horse with all your weight!

It is important to brush the horse all over, but it is particularly important to remove any dirt from the saddle and girth area and around the head where the bridle goes. Even one small spot of mud of hay can cause a saddle sore that will keep the horse off work and in pain for weeks till it heals.

There are several tools that can be used to brush the horse, depending on the dirtiness and sensitivity of the horse and area that you are brushing and these will be discussed below.

Rubber curry comb

Plastic Combs

This is a fantastic brush for really getting the dirt out of your horse's coat. It really does shift even the best ground in mud, and is good at getting the scurf out of coats too. It can be used all over the body, but take care when using it on the face and legs that you don't brush too hard.

Using Curry Comb

Dandy brush

A general-purpose brush that can be used on all the muscley areas of the horse - i.e. the body and neck. It can be a bit too harsh to use on fine skinned animal's legs and shouldn't be used on the face at all.

Using Dandy

Next - more on grooming.

Comments

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karen peters 22nd Jan 02

i have recently had a pony on loan for my daughter,she doesnt know a lot and Ive forgotten a lot could anyone give me some extra help with grooming ,i e shampoos and things to use especially how to keep the legs clean on a horse

Kathleen 23rd Jan 02

Hi! I have heard that for shampoo it is sometimes necessary to shampoo the tail(using equine shampoo). You should use dandy brush on the legs to get out sweat and dirt. Then you could also use the body brush on the legs (try to clean it every few strokes using a metal curry comb). The metal curry comb is not actually used on the horse though. Make sure to do both sides of the legs. I have also read that if you don't like the hair on the legs you can trim it. Using a comb and scissors, comb the hair in the opposite direction it grows, then trim the hair with the scissors agains the comb.
Hope that helps, bye

somone 28th Jan 02

Hi
For people who want there horse coat to realy shine with out washing there horse all the time should try using a body brush and brush the horses coat against the natural way it lies and then brush it back down with a body brush again (this is a real good way of removing dead hair, mud and making the horse coat shiney when your in a hurry). Hope that helps all you horse lovers.

Anna henderson 9th Mar 02

Hello. I read that you can use boot polish( the same colour as the leather)instead of leather cleaner, you can make the leather really glossy. you should only do this for shows, clinics etc.

Sophie 25th Mar 02

My grooming kit is looking really dirty. Are there any tips on how to clean a grooming kit?

kitsbrightmoon 27th Mar 02

For that extra shine and to remove dirt quickly without having to make a huge effort of bathing, rub baby wipes over your horses body. It Works!

faye emaa roberts 31st Mar 02

ive have just got this new spray called dung away and it is to get the stable stains and mud stains of a white horse it works quite well but i was just wondering if any one new any other stuff like that
thanx faye
xxx

Jeff 27th Jan 03

Anna: Wouldn't boot polish stain your pants (or a light coloured horse)?

Sophie: Vaccuum your grooming brushes to get all the hair out of them then soak them in a mixture of water and bleach to get 'em clean.

Faye: I use "Cowboy Magic Green Spot Remover" and it works like a charm! Couldn't have been able to show my grey arabian without it.

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