Grooming a horse

You should groom a horse before and after you ride it, so it's important to know how to do it properly. To groom a horse you'll need:

• a Rubber curry comb (DO NOT get this mixed up with a metal curry comb. Metal curry combs are used for cleaning out the body brush, not for using on the horse)
• A Dandy Brush
• A Body Brush
• A hoof pick
• A metal Mane comb

First thing to use is your curry comb. The curry comb stage is like a massage for your horse and it warms up all its muscles. You brush your horse in circular motions on its belly. DO NOT use it on any bony areas on your horse, including its legs, withers, and face.

Next up is your dandy brush. A dandy brush has hard bristles and is used to get all the dirt, mud and dust off your horse. You use this on your horse in flicking motions to make sure you get all the dust off. Dandy brushes can also be used to brush out a horse's tail. You can use this anywhere on your horse except the face.

The body brush is used to make your horse shine! Use it in soft strokes to make your horses hair gleam. You can use it anywhere, even on the face because it has soft bristles.

A hoof pick is used to clean out a horse's hoof and make sure there are no sticks or rocks in it. It is hard to explain it well in writing, so I attached a video that will give you a much better explanation. Everyone should subscribe to aokamins11 if you have youtube- she makes very good videos!

Lastly use your metal mane comb to get the knots out of your horse's mane and if necessary pull or plait it.

And that is how you groom a horse! But if you are inexperienced, please check with your instructor before grooming your horse to make sure you're doing it right. Next time it'll be horse anatomy :)

Rachel.