[Madamoiselle]

What a time to think about it lol.

First of all, what type of clip would you use on a horse that is turned out 12 hours of the day, ridden heavily, and is going to compete in jumpers(hopefully) or at a bare minimum small hunter shows.

What blanket combo would you use to try and keep him as warm as possible during the night when he's just standing in his stall(staff is willing to put on more layers) and keep him mobile when he's running around in the pasture?


I was thinking this combo;

Base layer; http://www.sstack.com/shopping/produ...ProductID=2768

Liner; http://www.sstack.com/shopping/produ...ProductID=7527

Turnonut; http://www.sstack.com/shopping/produ...ProductID=7920

And then a waterproof hood for turnout.


That is when he'll be moving around playing, etc., etc., but keep in mind most of his hair will be gone, should I be adding anything at night to keep him warmer.

[Native Winds]

This is what some of the jumpers I know when I was working in KY.

Full body clip or Body clip with saddle (like a Hunter clip but just the saddle area). Standing bandages at night all fours. Sheet nylon or lined, Baker type blanket, and a quilted nylon shelled blanket, with a hood that covers neck and head. Turn out: lined Watherbeta rug, lined New Zeland rug with neck covering. You might beable to have a fleece liner and then a turn out rug. Adjust as needed. The nylon sheet is usualy used to help keep other layer of heavy blankets clean. Its easier to wash a sheet in the winter than to wash a blanket and or turn out rugs.

[Madamoiselle]

Hm, if I were to take off the legs then I'd definitely need stable bandages-I could probably get out there and put them on myself every day and then have them take them off. Most likely though I'll keep the leg hair on.

How much turnout did those horses get? With the amount Loki gets I think I'll probably just keep the leg hair on. That's a good idea about the nylon sheet though!

[LateralFlexion]

I always just go by how each horse tends to sweat or deal with the cold. My mare QH barely grows any hair or sweats in the winter so she never needs clipping. My minis on the other hand require a full trace clip because they resemble a wooly mammoth and get very sweaty even after only a 20 minute drive.

Start with a low trace clip and see how that works. You can always take more hair off later if your horse gets too sweaty. You can't however put more hair back! For the sake of the horse's comfort for those other 22-23 hours of the day you are not riding, you should leave as much hair on as possible.

Here is a good section on clipping styles.

http://www.newrider.com/Library/Hors..._how_much.html

[Native Winds]

Originally Posted by Madamoiselle

Hm, if I were to take off the legs then I'd definitely need stable bandages-I could probably get out there and put them on myself every day and then have them take them off. Most likely though I'll keep the leg hair on.

How much turnout did those horses get? With the amount Loki gets I think I'll probably just keep the leg hair on. That's a good idea about the nylon sheet though!

It varied from horse to horse. Most where turned out by themselves in paddocks with every type of leg protection boots available. Some got out loonger than others. The animals that where being shown in Fla and on the A circuit and Grand Prix where completely body clipped. Each showing animal got from 4 to 6 hours out and some got just a couple of hours. The non showing group got out all day long or half day. Some with a buddy and most of them by themselves. They could see one another but could not come in physical contact due to not wanting any injuries to occur. (which I understand completely) If I had a 50,000 dollar horse and was paying $700 in board (back in the early 90s) and other fees for blanketing, training, lessons, etc. I guess I would want the works also.

THe New Zealand rugs were the most popular at that time and were used greatly at the farm. They often had a baker type blanket and a New Zealand rug on for turn out. Also with todays new technology blankets have become more efficient with out all of the bulk. The old saying used to go: "for every 1 inch of hair removed is 2 inches of blankets that had to be put on." Now days that has pretty well become moot.