De-Winterizing My Pony

I don't clip my horses over the winter. Nor do I blanket them. That means they get pretty wooly over the winter. There are many great things about living in California, but the one thing I really like is that winter in the Central Valley is quite mild. We have so many warm and sunny days that I can hose my horses off at least once a month without worrying about hypothermia. That keeps the funk from getting really gross. But still ... they get gross.

Speedy pre-clean up.

Over the past few weeks, I've been helping Speedy shed his polar bear coat. Every day I scraped off piles of hair, determined to get him at least somewhat slicked out for Sunday's show. About ten days ago, I decided to tackle his feathers. Those things were longer and thicker than most girls' pony tails. 

They almost touch the ground.

For a horse that's not draft at all, I have no idea why he grows so much foot hair. I had to use scissors to cut away the first layer. It took an hour to slowly clip away the rest. They're not beautifully smooth, but no one will see the clipper lines. Last weekend, I tackled his tail and head. I don't mind a bushy tail through the winter; it actually serves to keep their butts warmer. For show season though, I like it trimmed up.

Super bushy!

Some time ago, I bought one of those mane thinning combs - mine came from Germany. I love that thing. It makes thinning manes and tails so easy. I did his tail in less than five minutes.

So much better.

After a quick shampoo of Speedy's belly and legs in the morning morning, he looked pretty smart for Sunday's show. I haven't had time to sort through all the media, but a friend shared a couple of photos.

Photo by David Perkins

More to come!