Clipping Tips For Your Miniature Horse

Showing miniature horses can be an extremely fun activity for the entire family.  Whether you choose to embark on the performance path of Trail, Obstacle or Jumping, or try your hand in the Halter arena, the sport of showing minis can be a fun, challenging, and rewarding endeavor.

One of the interesting differences between showing miniature horses and showing full size horses is the clipping involved.  While large horses are often shown with just their heads and legs clipped for competition, miniature horses are shown with their entire bodies clipped from head to toe.  This can not only present an extra amount of pre-show grooming involved with miniature horses, it can also prove to be a disaster if a few simple steps aren't followed.

One of the most important grooming practices before clipping your mini is to make sure it is completely clean before you begin.  Use a high-quality, equine-specific shampoo, and scrub deeply into the skin with a circular motion and rubber curry comb.  Rinse thoroughly to make sure there is no shampoo residue, and make sure your mini's coat dries completely before attempting to clip.

Keeping your clipper blades well oiled throughout the clipping process, as well as regularly sharpening or replacing blades as needed, will go a long way in making sure the hair is clipped evenly with no clipper marks.  Clip in the opposite direction that the hair coat grows, using short, even strokes.

Generally speaking, you should clip your miniature horse with either a size 10 or a size 30 clipper blade on its body, using a shorter blade on its face and legs.  If you're new to body clipping, experiment during the off-season or several weeks before your horse's show to find what works best for your horse's coat, skin condition, and hair color.

Clipping can be a tedious process, but will definitely be worth the effort you put into it.  Give your mini frequent breaks during the clipping process to walk, stretch its legs, and relax.  Be patient with your mini, as clipping can be a scary or ticklish experience.  Take your time, and become familiar with what techniques make your mini's coat look its best.

Showing horses is a lot of work, especially if you are doing all or most of it yourself.  Presenting your mini with a freshly clipped and clean coat will give you the edge you need to be your best!  

~ Deb

Murphy's Horse Laws

Hoof picks always run away from home.

Horses you hate cannot be sold, and will outlive you.

No one ever notices how you ride, until you fall off.

The least useful horse in the barn will eat the most, require shoes every 4 weeks, and need the vet at least once a month.

A horse's bad behavior will be in direct proportion to the number of people who are watching at the time.

There is no such thing as a sterile barn cat.

If you walk within 50 feet of your barn door with clean clothes, you will get dirty.

The number of horses you own will increase to the number of available stalls in your barn.

Your barn will fall down without baling twine and duct tape.

Your favorite equipment will always get chewed on, and the equipment you hate will remain perfect forever.

Clipper blades will become dull when your horse is half clipped.

If you fall off, you will land (hard) on the site of your most recent injury

You Know You're A Horse Person When...

1. Your horse's hair is in better condition than your own.

2. Your 'nice clothes' are the ones with horse hair all over them.

3. Your house is a mess, but the barn is neat as a pin.

4. You're excited when a friend tells you there's a huge sale at the local bridle shop, then you are disappointed when you realize they meant 'bridal shop'.

5. You  have the vet's number but not your kid's pediatrician on speed dial.

6. You refer to your car as 'my portable tack room'.

7. Your spouse can track dirt into the house all they want, but God help them if they muddy up the tack room.

8. You have to go to your friend's wedding in your riding clothes because you took too long at the barn.

9. You cluck to your car as you go up a hill.

10. Your horse gets new shoes more often than you do.

11. You choose your significant other partly on the basis of their attachment to your horses.

12. Your parents, who have no grandchildren, get cards on holidays and birthday addressed to 'Grandma and Grandpa', signed by the horses and the dog.

13. Your secretary does a 'hay check' on your clothes each morning, and your first stop in the office is in the restroom to remove all shavings from your shoes.

14. You buy about 15 lbs. of carrots a week, but wouldn't eat a carrot if it was the last food on earth.

15. You say 'whoa' to the dog.

16. You hate posing for pictures unless you're on your horse.

17. Most of your social life is with other horse folk, because 'they understand'.

18. All of your stock has 4 legs.

19. You know more about equine nutrition than human nutrition, and it shows.

20. You live with portable electric fence tape around your lawn, just so your horses can mow it for you.

21. You don't try to figure out your equine expenses at the end of the year, because you really don't want to know, and it doesn't matter anyway.

22. After it snows, the first pathway cleared is from the barn to the manure pile - then the front porch and sidewalk.

23. You aren't at all interested in watching the evening news, but you have to, in order to catch the weather, so you know if you need to leave the barn doors open for the horses or not.

24. You giggle when the horse you're driving farts in your face.

25. You go on a diet, not to be more attractive, but to help make yourself be a better/stronger rider.

26. Your first sign of spring isn't seeing a robin, but seeing a fly.