COLD weather and grooming/bathing your horse...

iluvhorses28

New Member
Jul 29, 2005
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California
We are all scattered all over the globe, that many of us,if not already have had the early on set of winter....colder weather, windier conditions....

This is my VERY first winter with my new horses, and was curious that obviously bathing will be difficult less you have heated water or those heater portable tanks. But I don't...so I am thinking sponge baths for dirty areas will have to do less it becomes really rainy and muddy.... then I am assuming I will need to wait until it is a bit warmer to actually bathe.... My older mare really gets shivery even on just a windy day...that I don't want to risk bathing her in such cold conditions plus cold water...

Would like to hear the different ways you all deal with this and what seems to work best for you... I'm taking notes!:p
 
Bathing horses? What's that;)

The only time my lot get a bath is when they go to a show.

You shouldn't be bathing otherwise - it removes the waterproofing oils from their coat.
 
I don't routinely bath, as I don't show Megan at the moment she hasn't been bathed at all in the 8 months I've owned her :eek: I noticed some people have bathed their horses weekly throughout the summer and wondered why, especially as they weren't showing them.

Having said that, I did get the hose and washing up liquid out when she lay down in her stable with her white socks in her Lickit recently though - sticky brown girlie :p :rolleyes:
 
Agreed! I would avoid bathing your horse unless absolutely necessary. My old cob had terrible itchy legs which I'm sure were down to the fact that his legs were bathed daily before I got him, he had really dry skin and was prone to mud fever/dermatitis even when there was no mud. If you do wash your horse, I'd use warm water, towel dry as much of the wet off as poss & put something like a thermotex (wicking rug) on immediately afterwards. You can get thermotex leg wraps which look like a good idea for drying legs after a wash (I would have tried them with my old boy but his legs were too fat & they didn't go round!).
 
echo pink's lady - we only bath for shows, or one pony who has awfully drippy seasons and gets revolting and attracts flies!

wait for mud to dry and brush it off when it has. horses don't need to be clean apart from the ares under their tack or round an injury.
 
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