Good Pony Grooming
It’s a standard disposition when you’re in a rush to take short cuts and wish for the best. This is true in whatever you do, even stuff like grooming a horse. However , haste does make waste, especially when grooming a pony.
There are 1 or 2 grooming suggestions that definitely should not be neglected.
One of the number one purposes of grooming a pony is to check him out often for wounds. Irrespective of how much of a rush you are in, you need to do a thorough job of this particular part of grooming: run your hand slowly and carefully all over your horse’s body, in particular his legs, and gauge if there are any injuries or swellings that will have appeared while he was in the field the previous day or in his stall over the night. Your assessment by touch should complement your visual assessment. A stitch in time saves nine, so make sure you take whatever time is necessary to be sure your horse is positively injury-free. Stock your grooming kit with first aid accessories like antiseptic, cotton wool and an antibiotic protective cream.
When you are grooming your pony as you mean to ride him, you are able to afford to do a less than excellent job apart from the injury checking part. He’s going to dump most signs of his grooming in a few minutes of riding, anyhow. You must take care to remove any deposits of dirt in the bridle and saddle areas, particularly the areas the girth sits in, and the area the headpiece occupies, back of the ears. You can remove most of this type of grime with a dandy brush in good shape and a curry brush of rubber or plastic, but do take some extra care on the areas surrounding the head: it’s smart to employ a softer brush in the delicate patches to the rear of the ears.
There’s a lot of debate about tying up. I wonder just how many folks actually do tie up while grooming their horses? I am absolutely sure not that many people do. It sounds ideal to tie up a horse when he is being groomed, whether in the box or some place else. It may look like a pointless precaution, but it doesn’t take very long and it really can stop grief from kicks or trampling. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that your pony is too angelic to kick or tread on anyone’s foot; you never know with these animals. Horses are receptive to the moods of the human beings around them, and if your pony senses you’re in a hurry, he will become a little unpredictable. It is safer therefore to tie up. You have also got to think in term of the horse’s own safety. Is he liable to bolt? Would he tread on you or the grooming kit and cause damage to either? Is he receptive to getting brushed in certain areas? If he is, you are safer and your pony is safer when he is tied up.
You must judge just where the corners are that you can cut when you are grooming your horse and you are in a hurry. You shouldn’t be taking risks with his safety or yours. Nevertheless you do have other work to attend to. Keep some emergency grooming accessories in your grooming kit. These accessories can help to save you a lot of time. That’s another reason why you shouldn’t scrimp on your grooming kit. When you get the finest, you are guaranteeing the well being of your horse and his handlers.
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