Grooming a horse

Grooming a horse - if you have never done it before can be a bit of a mystery - which brush to use when?

Before grooming the grooming kit should be collected and placed in the area where the horse will be groomed. The horse should be caught and brought to the grooming area and secured by a lead rope attached (with a quick release knot) to a piece of string which is attached to a metal ring or firm object. 

After being safely secured their feet must be picked out with a hoof pick every day and before and after riding. The hook pick is about 10cm long and is used for cleaning out the hoof.

A brief brush over with a dandy brush will be sufficient, especially when the horse is kept rugged up. Grooming should start at the top of the neck and move down to the back of the horse, using a rug to keep the horse warm on the half you are not grooming if required. The dandy brush is a wooden backed brush with strong bristles of plastic or nylon. The brush is used to remove dried mud and sweat from the body of the horse.

The dandy brush is used with a brisk light movement, following the direction of the hair growth, finishing with a slight flick which helps ensure the mud isn’t buried in the coat again. It will not remove too much grease from the coat which a grass kept horse requires for warmth and water-proofing.

The dandy brush should not be used on the face, and should be used carefully on other sensitive parts of the horse like the belly and legs.

When grooming a grass kept horse who is particularly muddy or moulting in spring - a rubber curry comb can be used in a circular motion to loosen the dirt and remove excess hair. A rubber curry comb should not be used on a horses legs or face. After riding the saddle and girth areas should be checked for injury and the saddle area sponged down.

A sweat scraper can then be used to remove excess water and then a body brush once dry. The sweat scraper should be used in the direction the hair grows. The body brush should be used with sweeping strokes in the same direction that the hair grows.

In summer the legs should be checked for bot eggs and removed with a bot knife.

The mane should be brushed with a body brush. Firstly by turning the mane over to the far side and brushing the roots. Next one section at a time should be brought back and brushed from the roots down (starting from the wither). The forelock should be brushed in the same way. The tail should be brushed with the body brush carefully so as not to break the hairs. By standing at the side of the horse by the tail, after brushing the top of the tail, once section of the tail at a time should be de-tangled and brushed.

The eyes and dock area should be washed with a damp sponge (one kept especially for each area). The eye should be washed from the back towards the tear duct so that no dirt or dust is returned to the eye. When cleaning the dock, the tail should be lifted gently from the side of the horse, and the whole underside of the tail and dock area should be sponged. The nose and the lips should be carefully sponged as well - ensuring the sponge is rinsed clean each wipe.

Horses with brittle feet may benefit from having some kind of hoof oil applied daily (with a brush). Hooves should be washed and dried if they are muddy before applying the hoof oil. Natural Hoof Oil is a great option. 

The Tools explained

1. The body brush

The body brush is oval shaped and has short soft bristles which are sometimes made of horse hair. The back is either wooden or leather. A loose band fits across the back where the hand goes to secure it when using. The bristles of machine made brushes are plugged into a wooden base.

Hand made brushes have each tuft of bristles secured usually by wire to the base before a wooden top is screwed and glued into place. The body brush is used for removing dirt and grease from the coat and for brushing the head and mane. The body brush can be washed by dipping the bristles into soapy water, and then rinsing in clean water - and dried with the bristles facing down. The body brush should be used with a curry comb - the curry comb cleaning the hair from the brush after every 3-4 strokes. Loose hairs must be removed from the body brush before and after it has been used.

2. Water brush.

The water brush is narrower in shape (more like a scrubbing brush shape) and has longer bristles than a body brush. The bristles are fairly stiff but still softer than a dandy brush. It is used for scrubbing hooves and for laying (dampening down) the mane and tail.

3. Sweat scraper

The sweat scraper is a band of metal either shaped like a half moon and attached to a wooden handle, or flat with a handle at each end so that the groom can bend it. Usually one metal edge is covered with rubber (or made of plastic) and this is the edge which is used to scrape excess water from the horse’s body. It should never be used on the horse’s legs or bony parts of the body. The rubber should be cleaned after each use, and not left in the sun.

4. Metal curry comb

The metal curry comb is a flat square of metal with protruding blunt teeth on one side. This is attached to a wooden handle. The teeth are used to scrape the body brush clean. It must never be used on a horse. The edge should be tapped on the floor to remove the hair and dirt.

5. Rubber curry comb

A rubber curry comb is a softer oval version of the metal curry comb and is sometimes also made of plastic (which is not as good). It can be used gently in a circular motion on grass kept horses to remove caked mud and sweat, and to help remove loose hair in the spring. It must never be used on the head, mane or tail. These can be washed in soapy water to keep clean.

6. Mane and Tail comb

This is a strong toothed comb made of metal or plastic. The mane and tail combs should not be used to comb the tail or mane. The narrow combs should only be used when plaiting the tail or mane. These can be washed in soapy water to keep clean. Regular checks should be made to ensure that rust does not ruin the combs.

7. Dandy brush

The dandy brush is wooden backed and has strong bristles made of nylon or plastic. The bristles of machine made brushes are plugged into a wooden base. Hand made brushes have each tuft of bristles secured usually by wire to the base before a wooden top is screwed and glued into place. The dandy brush is used for removing dried mud and dirt from the body. The dandy brush can be washed by dipping the bristles into soapy water, and then rinsing in clean water - and dried with the bristles facing down. It will not remove large amounts of grease. It is used with a light brisk movement in the same direction as the horse’s hair lies, and finished with a slight flick. Loose hairs must be removed from the dandy brush before and after it has been used.

Have fun grooming your horse!