How to Groom a Horse

If you want to get involved with horses or you are a thinking of buying your first horse, learning how to groom your horse is essential. Grooming your horse daily is an important part of their care. It promotes their health and helps you bond with your horse.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A well stocked grooming kit. See my article on How to Build a Grooming Kit For Your Horse

1. Build a grooming kit. In order to properly groom your horse you need a fully stocked grooming kit that includes brushes, combs, hoof pick, clean towels and first aid supplies. For information on building a grooming kit see my 'How to Build a Grooming Kit For Your Horse' article.

2. Keep your horse brushes and grooming supplies clean. Make sure to regularly clean your grooming supplies. You can easily wash your brushes in soap and water and leave them outside to dry. You should always have some clean towels handy.

3. Curry your horse. The first step in horse grooming is giving your horse a good curry. This is one step your horse may paticurlary enjoy. Only use a rubber curry comb on your horse, never use a metal one. Move the curry comb in a circular motion around your horse's body. You can use it on your horse's legs, but make sure to do this part gently.

4. Use a hard bristled (Dandy brush) to groom your horse. After you have use the curry, take out a Dandy brush. This brush is great for removing mud and hair displaced by the curry. It is a hard brush so be careful when using it on your horse's more sensitive areas. If your horse is not particularly muddy or shedding then you can move straight to a medium bristle brush.

5. Groom your horse with medium bristle brush. This is the brush that is in between the very hard and very soft brush. This will be the brush you use the most. This brush helps smooth your horse's coat and make it shiny. This is one grooming tool that you must have.

6. Use a soft brush. A super soft brush is an excellent finishing brush. It can help remove fine dust on top of your horse's coat and is good to groom your horse's face with.

7. Comb your horse's mane and tail. The next step in grooming your horse is the mane and tail. You will not want to overdue this, especially the tail as it can make it thinner. If it is not necessary for your horse to have a long mane, kept it short. You can do with a pulling comb after you have learned how to pull an horse's mane properly. When combing a long mane or tail, do it the same way you would comb a person's long hair. This means hold a section in your hand and start at the bottom moving up. This will ensure you don't cause pain and lessen and damage.

8. Clean your horse's feet. One of the most important parts to grooming your horse is cleaning their feet. To clean a horse's feet you need two grooming tools, a normal hoof pick (because the pick is thinner) and a hoof pick with a brush. Clean your horse's feet out before and after you do anything with them such as, riding or even taking then out for a walk by hand. If you don't clean your horse's feet out it can lead to lameness and other hoof problems. Don't overdue hoof dressing. This should only be used for the show ring as too much can harm your horse's feet. If you want to use products on your horse's feet speak to your blacksmith for the best product for your horse. Each horse will have different needs.

9. Finish grooming your horse with a final polish. A final polish can be done with a clean towel. If you are showing a lot then clean towels are essential for giving your horse's body, mouth and your boots a quick wipe before entering the show ring.

Resources

• How to Braid a Horse's Mane

[LuckyAngel]

on 2/24/2009 Good direction, very detailed. 5*