To clip or not to clip my horse?

person Posted By: Marjoman list In: Tips On: comment Comment: 0 favorite Hit: 3340

At this time of the year we always think about the same thing: To shear or not to shear my horse? There isn’t 100% right answer, but in this post we’ll talk a little bit about it to try to clarify your ideas.

When to shear my horse?

 

Horses are usually sheared in fall, from October to December, when they start to have their winter hair but the temperatures are still not too cold.

It’s very important to think about our own horse, because if he doesn't need it, we don't have to clip him. There are two key questions we need to ask ourselves: does it sweat a lot? what is our usual pace of work.

- If he sweats and works just a little you shouldn’t shear your horse, if you do it you will eliminate a natural barrier against the cold without justification.

- If he usually works and sweats a lot we can clip him. The hair makes it difficult to dry the sweat, and this can cause some diseases.

 

We always have to think about the climate in which we live, if it is cold and we decide to shear him we have to use a rug so that he does not get sick.

 

How to clip my horse?

Now that we have decided to shear our horse the next big question comes, how to do it. We give you some tips below:

 

Brush your horse

Before beginning to remove the hair it must be free of dirt that could clog the clipper.  An excessive amount of sweat or wĂ¡ter is unthinkable, the hair must be completely dry to ensure a precise cut.

 

Shearing against the grain

In this way the shearing will be uniform and precise.

 

Sensitive parts are important

The parts of the head or belly are areas where there’s a lot of sensitivity, when your horse isn’t used to the noise of the machine it is recommended to start with them, because it’s when the clipper is still cold and won’t give them so much sensation.

 

Don't use force

If you feel you have to use force while you’re shearing your horse something is wrong, possibly one of the blades is faulty so don't continue, if you keep clipping you could injure your horse.

 

Use a bridle

Our horse has to be well attached to ensure an optimal and fast result, both of you will appreciate. You can also offer him some food to keep him distracted.

 

Keep his body temperature

Our horse will feel cooler in the sheared areas, we can cover him with a rug so that he doesn’t have that temperature contrast.

 

Clean the clipper

Once we have sheared and brushed our horse we have to clean our clippers to keep them in good condition. There are different care kits that are very useful to extend the life of this clippers, they are made with oil and lubricant cleaners.

 

Benefits of shearing a horse

Controls sweating

If during the coldest months of the year we continue to have a good pace of training our horse will sweat as usual, the problem is that his hair is much thicker and dense, so it will be much more difficult for the sweat to dry, this can lead to diseases.

 

Avoid infections

If our horse has a wound it is recommended to be shaved, this way we ensure that the medication penetrates well, and we can clean it much better, so we avoid infections.

 

Enhances the beauty

The natural beauty of our horse stands out much more if it is shorn, but it isn’t an essential act.

Types of shearing

There are no limits when it comes to shearing your horse, in fact, there are many people who let their imagination fly and make art on their own horses. Here we’ll discuss the most common types of shearing in the equine world:

Whole shearing

It consists of shearing all the horse's hair to facilitate the cleaning of the horse.

Neck and chest shearing

As its name suggests, it consists of shearing the neck and chest of our horse. It is also known as pony shearing.

Irish shearing

It consists of drawing a triangle that goes from the horse's crest to its belly, being the lower part of the horse sheared. It’s usually made on horses that don’t work a lot during the day.

Hunting shearing

This is the most commonly used cut on horses that lead an active life. In this case, the whole horse is sheared except for the limbs and part of the back. This part is shaped like the saddle. The purpose of keeping the hair is to protect the horse from scratches, mud and chafing.

Hitch shearing

This is the type of shearing that is done to the horses of this discipline. It consists of shearing the hair from the belly and the back, up to where the harness would go in a hitch.

Rug shearing

It consists of clipping our whole horse but leaving the limbs and the shape of a rug with hair.

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                                     

 

 

 

Tags: Clipping tips

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