Clipping

[NoviceNic]

Can someone please explain clipping to me. I have to clip Captain's legs all year round. I am considering doing a full body clip in the next month but was wondering about the "too late to clip" posts that are going up. Why cant we clip all year round??:confused:

[Yann]

You can - the don't clip later than end of January or whatever is about potentially spoiling the summer coat for showing, particularly if you only part clip. However it doesn't seem to have spoiled anything on the horses I've seen clipped late. This unseasonally warm weather is making some of them struggle, it had crossed my mind but now the rugs are off I don't want to put them back on unless I really have to :)

[Jessey]

*nods* yep, if you intend to clip year round and take it all off there is no too late :D

[Wally]

Ahh, now we clip at the end of March to be in any hope of getting a summer coat at the same time as you guys in the south.

We used to clip on of our endurance horses all year as he was a hairy, greasy cob, he was SO happy in summer work being naked.

[Libbyo]

Why dont you clip a young horse ? Questy is so very very fluffy and hot but YO says it will damage his coat. Why?

[Wally]

Mini horse folk clip foals all the time for shows.

I would only clip a horse for medical treatment or for work. Never looks.

[Libbyo]

Its not for prettyness, hes getting so very hot long reining, little cutie. It wont harm his coat then?

[NoviceNic]

One of the reasons I havent clipped yet is because I dont want to rug him at night....:p

What minumum temp is ok not to rug a naked cob????

[Jessey]

Its not for prettyness, hes getting so very hot long reining, little cutie. It wont harm his coat then?
If you clip a horse now, partly or fully then expect him to shed out and grow in a summer coat there is a good chance you will have clipped (at least patly) into the summer coat so it may come through uneven or with clip lines still showing which if you intend to show this summer is not good news - if however you intend to clip him fully all year round then clipping at this time of year won't make any difference at all :p

What minumum temp is ok not to rug a naked cob????
Depends how tough he is ;) My anglo arab still has his part clip (from november :rolleyes: ) and is nearly in his summer coat and has been nakid day and night for the last few weeks :D My unclipped girl stil needs a light weight at night or else she is all tucked up by morning :rolleyes:

[NoviceNic]

He has been unrugged for 2 months. But he has an inch thick Winter coat which is thinning out rapidly. I just got him to a nice weight I dont want him to loose too much more.......

[Jessey]

If you intend to keep him fully clipped all summer then go for it - if not then I would aviod it now, just crack on with a shedding blade :o

[icegirl]

I trace clipped this year and last year about now, cos hes slow to lose his winter coat and getting hot. It just seemed to blend into his summer coat and we got the winter one as normal.

[Siogfinsceal]

you can. It depends on what you will be doing with the horse. Most people clip in the winter and then allow the summer coat to come through in spring. That why its too late to clip in spring as it will affect the summer coat coming through and it may look uneven or unattractive esp in a show ring.
Howvere if you wish to clip the horse all year round then its never too late as the summer coat will never grow anyway!
We do this with one of our older horses and I also used to do it with one of the show horses in the summer as his natural coat was quite coarse so he looked better clipped.