When to Wash Your Pony
One of the questions that is asked of me most frequently in the context of horses is: how often do I wash my horses? My own opinion is that horses could do with a ton less washes. I see a tendency in horse owners to overdo it. They almost appear to wash their horses because they're bored, with nothing else to do.
Think about a wild pony in his natural setting. How frequently do you really think he gets washed?
In their natural environment, horses most often get washed when it rains. Clearly, then, the frequency of their getting washed would depend on the frequency of the rain. Wild horses also get washed when they're forced to swim across a volume of water. Neither a rain wash nor a brook or lake wash is taken by a wild horse out of choice , and they seem to get along pretty well whatever their frequency of washes is. I don't see any way wild horses suffer for absence of washes. The same concept carries over for tamed horses, too. Folk use cold water to hose down horses that are hot and sweaty after a tough work out. They don't understand that they might be causing harm to the horse's health thanks to the unexpected change in temperature. Think about yourself when you're actually hot and bothered, and the sweat is pouring down your torso and limbs. What type of water would you ideally like for a bath? You would rather commence with warmish water and move to cold water in progressive steps. That's the healthy way to do it, and that advantageous way applies for horses, too. Quite often, when my pony is sweating hard and radiating heat after a tiresome work out, I content myself with hosing his legs down. When he cools off, I may sometimes hose water all over him, if he showed clearly that he liked it when I did that with his legs.
It's also completely nonessential to use soap or shampoo on a pony each time he's washed. Soap and shampoo can rob hair and skin of their natural oils.
The best practice is to stroll your horse slowly around after a strenuous ride. Wait for him to dry off, then groom him a bit. Frequently, I simply unsaddle my horse after a ride and let him loose to roll around in the pasture. I am going off to scrub his stall instead. My pony will have cooled off considerably by the point I return to halter him. He gets a good brushing from me then; I make certain I remove all sweat marks on him.
I suspect the only exception is occasionally when you are showing with your horse. If your season is busy, you wish to keep your horse looking his best at every point, and that is when you can give him a lot of baths. When you have done with washing him, be totally certain to scrape off all excess water and take him out to dry where it isn't cold. If there's a chill in the air, cover him with a blanket.
Use plenty of elbow grease and go at it hard with a brush and a curry comb to give your horse the best possible grooming. This sort of grooming also allows you to bond closely with your horse, because he'll be relishing the grooming and will definitely be in an exceedingly receptive mood. Let him have a little bit of extra petting and attention.
Brushing is not typically a lengthy procedure. Confirm your horse is brushed before you saddle him. Stuff like hay or stickers will need to be brushed off, particularly if he has been rolling around. If they are not taken off, you risk getting thrown off when you get on. Be sure to give your pony some brushing after a ride, as well , so that sweat marks are removed. Test to work out if your horse is feeling any tenderness by running your fingers down his spine.
Think about a wild pony in his natural setting. How frequently do you really think he gets washed?
In their natural environment, horses most often get washed when it rains. Clearly, then, the frequency of their getting washed would depend on the frequency of the rain. Wild horses also get washed when they're forced to swim across a volume of water. Neither a rain wash nor a brook or lake wash is taken by a wild horse out of choice , and they seem to get along pretty well whatever their frequency of washes is. I don't see any way wild horses suffer for absence of washes. The same concept carries over for tamed horses, too. Folk use cold water to hose down horses that are hot and sweaty after a tough work out. They don't understand that they might be causing harm to the horse's health thanks to the unexpected change in temperature. Think about yourself when you're actually hot and bothered, and the sweat is pouring down your torso and limbs. What type of water would you ideally like for a bath? You would rather commence with warmish water and move to cold water in progressive steps. That's the healthy way to do it, and that advantageous way applies for horses, too. Quite often, when my pony is sweating hard and radiating heat after a tiresome work out, I content myself with hosing his legs down. When he cools off, I may sometimes hose water all over him, if he showed clearly that he liked it when I did that with his legs.
It's also completely nonessential to use soap or shampoo on a pony each time he's washed. Soap and shampoo can rob hair and skin of their natural oils.
The best practice is to stroll your horse slowly around after a strenuous ride. Wait for him to dry off, then groom him a bit. Frequently, I simply unsaddle my horse after a ride and let him loose to roll around in the pasture. I am going off to scrub his stall instead. My pony will have cooled off considerably by the point I return to halter him. He gets a good brushing from me then; I make certain I remove all sweat marks on him.
I suspect the only exception is occasionally when you are showing with your horse. If your season is busy, you wish to keep your horse looking his best at every point, and that is when you can give him a lot of baths. When you have done with washing him, be totally certain to scrape off all excess water and take him out to dry where it isn't cold. If there's a chill in the air, cover him with a blanket.
Use plenty of elbow grease and go at it hard with a brush and a curry comb to give your horse the best possible grooming. This sort of grooming also allows you to bond closely with your horse, because he'll be relishing the grooming and will definitely be in an exceedingly receptive mood. Let him have a little bit of extra petting and attention.
Brushing is not typically a lengthy procedure. Confirm your horse is brushed before you saddle him. Stuff like hay or stickers will need to be brushed off, particularly if he has been rolling around. If they are not taken off, you risk getting thrown off when you get on. Be sure to give your pony some brushing after a ride, as well , so that sweat marks are removed. Test to work out if your horse is feeling any tenderness by running your fingers down his spine.
About the Author:
Horses are
Heather Toms passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her
100s of articles with other horse lovers, like all things about country supply
Heather Toms passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her
100s of articles with other horse lovers, like all things about country supply
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