A step by step guide on how to groom a horse
How do you groom a horse properly to ensure the exercise provides all the benefits?
Grooming your horse regularly provides several important benefits for the horse.
It helps maintain a clean coat and skin, thus promoting better skin health.
It enhances your horse’s coat by stimulating the natural oils in the coat. It’s a great way to bond with your horse, and provides relaxation and comfort.
Remember – horses naturally mutually groom in herd situations as a bonding experience and for mutual comfort.
With that in mind, let’s break down the grooming process into some simple steps. And get grooming!
Secure Your Horse to Groom
This simply means to tie it up.
It is a safety precaution, and prevents the horse moving off when you’re trying to groom it.
However, it’s not always necessary.
If the horse is in its stable, or yard, eating, many people use this time to groom without necessarily securing the horse.
However, you do need to know the horse well, and know that it won’t move whilst there is food in front of it! If you can’t guarantee this or if it’s a bit flighty, definitely secure it.
Get Out Your Grooming Tools
The essentials in even the most basic horse grooming kit include…
A curry comb
Stiff bristled brush
A soft bristled brush, also called a body brush
Hoof pick
Hoof brush (you can buy hoof brushes that incorporate a hoof pick)
A mane and tail comb or brush (stiff plastic bristled human hair brushes work well with horse manes and tails)
Sweat scraper
Towel or sponge
Your brushes should be kept clean and in good condition.
Further to this…
If your horse is kept at an agistment property, make sure no one else can access your grooming equipment (and NEVER use anyone else’s either!).
This is important because there are several skin disorders that can be spread by sharing infected grooming equipment (and horse rugs).
These include…
Ringworm (Dermatophytosis)
Rain Rot or Rain Scald (Dermatophilosis)
Mange (Chorioptic or Sarcoptic)
In fact, it’s a good idea to have a separate set of basic grooming brushes for each of your horses.
Start Your Grooming Session With A Good Curry Comb
Groom the body first by starting at the neck and working your way towards the rear.
Use the curry comb to loosen and remove any dirt, dust, and loose hair from deep in your horse’s coat.
Use circular motions where possible, applying gentle pressure to remove any caked-on dirt, and loose hairs.
This brush is also good for removing dead winter coat hairs!
Note – as curry combs (despite the name they aren’t really a comb per se) have hard bristles, it is important not to apply too much pressure, especially if you have a thin-skinned horse (like a Thoroughbred) or it has a very fine coat.
You may also find it’s too hard on bony parts of the body, like over the withers. If that’s the case, avoid these areas and use one of the softer brushes in those spots instead.
Follow It Up With The Dandy Brush (The Stiff Brush)
Once you’ve removed most of the heavier dirt, and loose hairs, follow up with the dandy brush. This will help remove any lingering dirt and sand that may be lodged deeper in the coat.
Again, work from the neck down, using short flicking strokes in the direction of the coat hair, to help dislodge sand. You should be able to use this brush on the more sensitive areas of the body where you couldn’t use the curry comb.
Finish Off The Body With The Soft Bristled Brush
Finally, use the soft brush to remove any remaining loose hair. This brush is also good for helping to develop a shiny coat on your horse. Use long, sweeping strokes in the direction of the horse’s hair growth.
Run Over The Body With A Soft Cloth
You may find that even after 3 brushes, there is a patina of fine dust on the coat still. This is where your towel comes in handy. Run it over the coat to remove those last little bits of dust.
Then Groom The Legs
Once the body is done to your satisfaction, move on to the legs.
Again, use your curry comb and stiff brush to remove any dirt and dust from the legs. Be careful using the curry comb on the bony areas of the lower legs – some horses may not like it.
Pick up each hoof and clean it out with the hoof pick and hoof brush. Check for stones that may be lodged in the grooves alongside the frogs and, if the horse is shod, check for stones underneath the shoes.
Brush Out your Horse’s Mane and Tail
Then it’s onto the mane and tail. If these are brushed regularly, they should be tangle free and will only need a quick run through with something like a stiff bristled human hairbrush.
Mane and tail combs are good but can actually get snarled up in the hairs, which is why it’s best to use a brush first and then the comb.
Start at the bottom of the tail, and work your way up, separating small sections of hair and giving each a good brush through.
You can brush the mane from the top down, unless it’s tangled. If so, work from the bottom up, detangling as you go.
Mane hairs are also much finer than tail hairs so go gently or your horse may not have much mane left at the end!
For serious tangles and knots, products like baby oil work well to help detangle the hairs, and are an economical option.
Brush your Horse’s Face
People often either forget to groom the head, or decide it’s too hard (some horses make it very difficult to brush their heads!).
However, in order to groom a horse properly, you need to persevere!
Heads are best done with a super soft brush and/or your grooming towel. Use the brush to do the cheeks, under the jaw, and up behind the ears.
Then switch to a towel or sponge for the eyes, face, muzzle, and ears. Dampening it slightly will help remove dirt and dust better.
Don’t forget to brush out the forelock as well.
And you’re done…
Key Takeaways About Why You Should Groom A Horse Properly
Regular grooming is an important part of caring for your horse, or pony.
It helps keep their coat and skin healthy and lets you spot potential skin problems (important if your horse is agisted.)
It’s also a great way to create a bond with your horse, and can be very therapeutic too.
