For those with bad hands....

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x.fat-pony.x

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Sep 9, 2006
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I certainly recommend the Bentley Mane and Tail Brush! Bought one from Robbies, and the difference is immense with grip and comfort :D
I usually have to wear gloves when brushing tails as it puts too much pressure on my hands, and I always used to swear by hairbrushes, or until the handles were breaking :eek:

So yeah, a vote for the Bentley kit again! I have nearly every brush from them, the hoof picks are another great asset :)
 
I love my Bentley kit :D I could not do without my Bentley hoof pick, as even with my thumb splints on, I just can't get a good grip on the traditional style.

Lots of manufacturers seem to have cottoned on to the idea of rubbery easy-grip grooming kit, and I have a couple of bits that are not Bentley and that are also really nice to use. My favourite brush is the Boomerang brush, although if I'm having a particularly bad day, I have to hold it only one way round, as the other direction puts too much pressure on my thumb and the heel of my hand.
 
Yes, the Bentley hoofpick is my favourite, also it's not cold on a winter morning. I like brushes with straps around the hand, though they do tend to cater for giant man hands and need to be taken in to fit my dainty little paws.
 
Right I'm off to get a bentley kit then

I have been looking at these and thought they might help. Especially as we go in to the winter and my good arm is packing up due to over use yet my ponies seem to find the most mud possible to lie in. Saw the Bentley kit on offer the other day but at £30 I thought it was a luxery as I have grooming kits. Well glad I now have an great excuse for a nice new set Pink I think!
 
I have Bentley and Roma grooming stuff which I find alot easier to use and hold :D At my RS we have those weird hoof picks that have like a metal triangle handle which hurt my wrist but now with my Bentley one it's soo much easier for me and the horse as it doesn't take as long lol
 
can i slightly hi-jack this thread - i have carpal tunnel - both hands & surgery not option -usual stuff - kids, horses, work - need ideas onhow to pull tails & manes as have little sensation or delicate movement in right hand - any good gadgets out there - struggle to exert enough pressure with a solo comb
 
juniberry said:
I have been looking at these and thought they might help. Especially as we go in to the winter and my good arm is packing up due to over use yet my ponies seem to find the most mud possible to lie in. Saw the Bentley kit on offer the other day but at £30 I thought it was a luxery as I have grooming kits. Well glad I now have an great excuse for a nice new set Pink I think!
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How much? :eek: Mine was £15 with a box. Flicker, dandy, rough brush, sweatscraper, face brush and hoofpick.
 
rubysmum said:
can i slightly hi-jack this thread - i have carpal tunnel - both hands & surgery not option -usual stuff - kids, horses, work - need ideas onhow to pull tails & manes as have little sensation or delicate movement in right hand - any good gadgets out there - struggle to exert enough pressure with a solo comb
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I had a really hard time with my solo comb until my OH took it apart, oiled some bits and fiddled with the blades. It's much easier to use now, but still not perfect. Pulling is just impossible, so I'd love to hear any suggestions as well :D I recently had another go with the solo comb but it ended up having to do it a bit at a time, so he had to look daft with half a tidy mane and half wild and unkempt until I had the energy to finish it :o Then I discovered I had gone a touch too short, and he now looks like he has a toilet brush on his neck. Poor boy! :o
As yet, my only solution is that I'm going to pay someone to do his mane next time round!

9tails said:
How much? :eek: Mine was £15 with a box. Flicker, dandy, rough brush, sweatscraper, face brush and hoofpick.
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I think mine was only about £12 with a box, but I did have to buy a few bits seperately, like an extra hoof pick and the mane and tail brush.
 
let you nin on my secret

I have worked in big commercial dressage yards producing horses up to Grand Prix. This was pre-accident we also did Showing ponies up to county standard and did very well so we must of been doing something right. So sit tight I will tell you how we did it and I now do it but with bust left hand and tendionitist in right wrist and elbow due to over use.
Get some sharp scissors I prefer round ended but hair dressers do to.
If you plait do the plait long enough to just fold in half tuck the end in and cut the rest off then fold and band or tape as I do for dressage. It looks great and as I don't compete with out plaiting no one ever knows and who would notice for hacking and fun stuff
Next I have a mare no longer competeing so when her mane gets long I take the scissors hold them vertically at the end of the mane hair and cut upwards watch a hairdresser they do this to thin hair on people. Pick how short you want the mane then keep hacking but do not move the scissors from the vertical.
If mane really thick put it on the wrong side and then cut the hairs very short under neath it wont last as long as pulling but who cares if it dosen't hurt you.
Finally for the tail reach round behind the dock and cut away the hairs from here. One of my horses has long tail hair from the top of the dock so a bandage makes it look fine for shows my mare who always had her tail pulled looks bog brushy so I tidy it up by cutting from behind. Again it does not last as long as pulling but probally looks better as I can be more even and quicker.
As I said I learn't all this at a yard before my hands got bust and my teacher and friend had won Horse of the Year Show with her pony and later a hack so if it was good enough for the professional it is good enough for us.
BHS is great but when needs must the final look is the goal not how you got there and the horse does not suffer I would never pull any horses tail again now.

What ever you try do a little at a time until you get used to it and know the look you want to achive.
Good luck and let me know if you give it a go
 
my hands are starting to play up as its getting a little colder and the other day when i was grooming my brush went flying as i couldnt grip it enough, untill i turned it around, i have the oster set and they are shaped like the slip not ones. they are great

regarding manes and tails, oster grooming rake is great for pulling tails but dont get carried away :) i also have a pulling knife that you just put ont eh underside and bring towards you and the mane is done.

does anyone take any supplements for their hands? i have RSI in both hands and wear splits when they are bad (bad weather or slept funny) i also have arthritis in my neck and bad hip so anything that will help them all (sorry to hijak) the things i do for my horses :rolleyes:
 
hey vikkig, i also have RSI in my hands and it affects my elbows, shoulders and neck. I occasionnally take glucosamine or ibuprofen if the pain is bad but i find that rubbing brufen gel, or tiger balm, or deep heat (the list gets smellier!) works better for me, despite OH's moanings at the lovely smell!! I also use supports with magnets in which seem to help too.

I struggle sometimes to groom my RS horse once a week and have to take little breaks so don't know how i'd cope with my own, guess i just would. Considering i get loads of pain just working at my desk, i think i'd rather have the pain from grooming than writing and typing!
 
Abserd said:
hey vikkig, i also have RSI in my hands and it affects my elbows, shoulders and neck. I occasionnally take glucosamine or ibuprofen if the pain is bad but i find that rubbing brufen gel, or tiger balm, or deep heat (the list gets smellier!) works better for me, despite OH's moanings at the lovely smell!! I also use supports with magnets in which seem to help too.

I struggle sometimes to groom my RS horse once a week and have to take little breaks so don't know how i'd cope with my own, guess i just would. Considering i get loads of pain just working at my desk, i think i'd rather have the pain from grooming than writing and typing!
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i take naproxen for them but have seen a load of different supplements on the market and just dont know what to go for? i have tried lloyds cream which is good but doesnt smell.

i have no idea what i am going to do in the winter with 4 to groom but on the plus side they are living out so rugs on = not much mud and no stables to muck out woohoo
 
thanks i am going to try this at least she will look smarter and like you say who cares the bentley brushes are great i love all your tips write a book tips for disabled riders thank you anyway
 
I have the mane and tail brush for Joy's thick mane and tail. I wouldn't go back now and have converted others so they have one too.

I suspect I will get the whole kit when I get my new pony.
 
My poor old mare has been getting very shaggy looking and she is being looked after tomorrow by some of the students at the yard. So to keep up the image I know what I am doing she had a very quick hair cut so it looks like I have spent plenty of time pulling her mane. Result not bad just wish I had done a before and after photo as it would of been great to upload. The fact I don't have a clue how to up load photos may of also been a barrier as well as not actually taking photos. So you will have to trust me the results look good :)
 
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