Horse Grooming
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Horse grooming is hygienic care given to a horse, or
a process by which the horse's physical appearance is enhanced for horse
shows or other types of competition.
Reasons for grooming:
Horsemen agree that grooming is an important part of horse care, and
proper grooming is essential for horses that are used in competition.
Most recommend grooming a horse daily, although this is not always
possible. However, regular grooming helps to ensure the horse is healthy
and comfortable.
The main reasons for daily grooming include:
•Improved health of the skin and coat
•Decreases the chance of various
health problems such as thrush, scratches, and other skin problems
•Cleans the horse, so chafing does
not occur under areas of tack
•Gives the groom a chance to check
the horse's health, such as looking for cuts, heat, swelling, lameness,
a change in temperament (such as depression) which could indicate the
horse is sick, and look to see if the horse has loose or missing
horseshoes
•Helps to form a relationship
between horse and handler, which can carry over to other handling duties
and riding.
•Horse showmanship is a horse show
class that considers quality of grooming for as much as 40% of the total
score.
Tools used for grooming
There are several tools
that are commonly used when grooming a horse. Proper use and technique
helps to ensure the horse remains comfortable during the grooming
process, and allows for greater ease in cleaning the animal.
Various types of curry combs: A tool made of rubber or plastic with
short "teeth" on one side, that slides onto the hand of the groom. It is
usually the first tool used in daily grooming. The horse is rubbed or
"curried" to help loosen dirt, hair, and other detritus, plus stimulate
the skin to produce natural oils. The curry comb is usually used in a
circular motion to work loose embedded material. Curries are generally
too harsh to be used on the legs or head, though varieties made of
softer rubber are available.
Metal currycomb: a currycomb made
of metal, with a handle. They are designed for use on show cattle. The
metal curry comb is not designed for horses; the metal teeth can damage
the skin and hair. There is no reason for a horse owner to buy one,
though many barns have them sitting around and use them for cleaning out
dirt and hair from softer-bristled brushes. For removing mud and winter
hair, as well as for cleaning brushes, a shedding blade (see below) is
preferable to a metal curry, and a shedding blade can also do double
duty for cleaning out other brushes.
Hard-bristled brush: A
stiff-bristled brush is used to remove the dirt, hair and other material
stirred up by the curry. Brushes are used in the direction of the
horse's hair coat growth, usually in short strokes from front to back,
except at the flanks, where the hair grows in a different pattern. The
best quality dandy brushes are made of stiff natural bristles such as
rice stems, though they wear out quickly. Plastic-bristled dandy brushes
are more common. Dandy brushes can usually be used on the legs, but many
horses object to a stiff brush being used on the head. Some dandy
brushes do double duty as a Water Brush, dampened in water and used to
wet down the mane and tail.
Body brush or Soft brush: A
soft-bristled brush removes finer particles and dust, adds a shine to
the coat and is soothing to the horse. A body brush can be used on the
head, being careful to avoid the horse's eyes. Some natural body brushes
are made of boar bristles, like human hairbrushes, others are made of
soft synthetic fibers. The body brush is always the last brush used on
the horse.
Grooming rag or towel, also called a Stable Rubber: A
linen or terrycloth towel or similar type of cloth can be used to give a
final polish to a horse's coat and is also used after riding to help
remove sweat.
Mane brush or comb: Horses with short, pulled
manes have their manes combed with a wide-toothed plastic or metal comb.
The mane comb is also used for pulling the mane. Tails and long manes
are brushed with either a dandy brush or a suitable human hairbrush.
Extremely long show-quality manes and tails are often picked out by hand
to avoid breaking the hairs.
Hoof pick: A hooked tool, usually
of metal, used to clean the hooves of a horse. Some designs include a
small, very stiff brush for removing additional mud or dirt. All four
feet of the horse need to be cleaned out before and after riding. {See
Picking the feet below.)
A shedding bladeShedding blade: In
special weather conditions, a metal shedding blade with short, dull
teeth is used to remove loose winter hair. A shedding blade is also
useful for removing caked-on mud. However, grooming tools with metal
teeth can split and dull the horse's hair coat and may irritate the
skin, so must be used with appropriate care. Likewise, metal grooming
tools used on sheep and show cattle may also be too harsh to use on a
horse.
Fly spray: In the summer, fly spray is often applied to
the horse after grooming. Care must be taken to avoid the eyes and mucus
membranes.
Bot knife: used to remove botfly eggs from the horse,
which are usually laid on the legs or shoulder. Bot eggs are yellow and
roughly the size of a grain of sand, they are clearly visible on dark
hair, harder to spot on white hair. A small pumice stone is also
commonly used for the same purpose.
Scissors or Clippers:
Sometimes, though not always, horses are clipped with scissors or,
preferably, electric clippers, to remove or shorten unwanted hair. (See
"Clipping" below.)
Sponges: Small sponges can be used to clean
the eyes, nose, lips and beneath the dock, larger sponges can be used to
wet down and clean the body and legs.
References
Harris,
Susan E. (1991) Grooming To Win: How to Groom, Trim, Braid and Prepare
Your Horse for Show. Howell Book House; 2nd edition. ISBN 0876058926,
ISBN 978-0876058923
Hill, Cherry (1997) Horse Handling & Grooming.
North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing ISBN 0-88266-956-7
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