how to groom a horse
Proper grooming of a horse minimizes potential problems and maintains a tidy appearance. While working at a horse barn in Orlando, Florida, I quickly learned the advantages of a complete grooming session. Horses are high maintenance animals that require much time and devotion. Three major areas must be tended to on a daily basis. The first is foot care. Cleaning out the hooves can prevent diseases, monitors the state of the horse's shoes, and removes any foreign objects that may become lodged in the hoof. The second significant part of grooming is skin care. The third major area of grooming a horse is maintaining the mane and tail. A horse lacking care is likely to become sickly, lame, and unattractive. The most important step in the grooming process is to pick out the hooves. A hoof pick is normally made of plastic, and has a small metal pick on the end. Feet should be "picked out" at least twice a day as an absolute minimum. This helps to prevent many foot ailments like thrush, a fungal infection. Attentiveness allows equestrians to monitor the quality of the horse's shoes. By removing any objects imbedded in the hoof and watching the condition of the shoes it eliminates any disc
Some prefer the long and natural length while others prefer to keep the mane cut short. To clean the front foot, stand at the horse's shoulder facing his rump. Follow the advice given for the front feet, and be sure to gently lower the leg down to the ground when finished. As with other activities around the horse, mind his body language at all times. Work across the body, down to the belly and finally to the legs. Always do a little at a time and then leave for a few days to see how the mane settles. The length of the mane is a preference to each owner. Initiating with the longest hair, take hold of several of the long hairs and backcomb the hair until a few strands are left. When brushing the hind legs, stand at the hips facing away from the horse's head. Brushing and cleaning out the feet are important daily tasks. Stand back and look to see where the hair is the longest, and start there. Lay the mane over to the wrong side and comb it through to eliminate any knots. The body brush is used in the same manner as the dandy brush to remove any excess dust off the coat and can be used to brush the face, mane, and tail. The frog is a v-shaped cushion in the center of the hoof that is designed to absorb shock.
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