How long till you show a body clipped horse?

[Cruise Control]

A friend of mine is going to clip her daughter's chestnut with lots of chrome pony this weekend for the Penna. 4-H state finals next weekend and she wanted to know from coth members if they think that the coat will look good enough by then, as in grown in enough to not look too bald. She is an experienced clipper, but has not done a flashy chestnut before.

[Tiffani B]

Give the pony a bath first, spray with show sheen or some kind of slick spray, and use a brand new blade. That will eliminate any tracks or uneven clip marks.

The pony is going to be a weird color but if you take steps to make sure the clip job is GOOD, he'll look fine. This time of year there will be a LOT of clipped horses so he won't stand out as being "bald."

[Lucassb]

I have clipped horses the night before they show with no problems. Yes, the color is going to change a bit, but as long as you are experienced enough not to leave clipper marks, it will be fine.

It is important to make sure the horse is *really* clean before you start. Bathe and dry under a cooler if necessary. Clipping is also the one time I will use show sheen on the coat; it really helps the blades slide through the hair evenly.

After clipping, I give my horses a hot oil treatment. They get bathed again to remove any bits of hair or traces of clipper oil, then I will slather them in conditioner (including the mane and tail) and let that sit for a few minutes before rinsing. Then I do a final rinse with a bucket of warm water that has had a few squirts of baby oil added, applied with a sponge. It really seems to help the coat.

[alteringwego]

Be sure you're using the right size blade so you don't scalp him and get him very clean/slick beforehand. I've clipped a horse at a show before and had him show the next day; looked great. Ideally a week though to let the coat really get shine in.

[joiedevie99]

If you aren't experienced with not leaving tracks, do it 1 week before.

[Bobthehorse]

I have shown mine the day after a clip. He is a chestnut. I just spritzed some show sheen on and off I went.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=402492&id=292400180

[QM2]

What everyone has suggested is spot on.

Remember to overblanket him. Keeping him toasty is going to keep him from getting fresh from the clipping. Warm up with a 1/4 sheet or 2 even. Don't let him get cold or you'll have a fresh pony on your hands which is never a good thing.

Good luck.

p.s. What's the difference between a good clip job and a bad one?

Two weeks. :-)

[Alterrain]

As long as she uses the correct blades (nothing closer than #15) he should not be "bald", just freshly clipped. IMO, I think nothing is prettier than a horse that was clipped day of, or day before showing.

[Seven-up]

#10 blade and it'll be fine.

Chestnuts give me the most heart palpitations when clipping. That first swipe always makes me sweat when you go from beautiful copper chestnut to peach pony. No matter how many chestnuts I clip. I will always have that "what have I done??" moment.:lol:

[fourmares]

Call me strange, but I love the way chestnuts look when they are clipped... The pony will look fine... if nothing else he'll look better than he would unclipped and sweaty.

[Seven-up]

I like the way it looks too, but it's such a drastic change it freaks me out every time.

[ExJumper]

My old chestnut turned the color of dirt when I clipped him. I'm not sure I'm looking forward to the color my new chestnut is going to turn...

[Sing Mia Song]

What's the difference between a good clip job and a bad one?

Two weeks. :-)

:lol:

Exactly right! My clip jobs suck, so I always hide the horse for a week or two until the lines go away. :uhoh:

Oh, and this will be the first year I'll be clipping my chestnut. I'm already bracing myself for the peanut-butter color.

[Cruise Control]

Thank you for the replies. The pony came out looking good. He looks like a dun now, but shiny, and not "peachy", like I thought he would.:lol:
I love that color.

[superpony123]

He'll look just fine. Mine only takes about a week to "grow in" and not look bald. I've shown my pony the day after getting clipped too, and it certainly never has affected his placing.

go by the tack shop and see if they have any Silverado Shine Highliter. It's in a pink can with a green cactus and black cap. It's the BEST shine stuff ive EVER used. Seriously. Screw show sheen, afro sheen, nothing compares. It even smells good :)

Spray it on his body, rub it in with a towel. put a bit extra in the areas you really want to show off (like if he's got a really nice neck, put some down the center of his neck to really show off the definition)

[hellerkm]

I have shown mine the day after a clip. He is a chestnut. I just spritzed some show sheen on and off I went.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=402492&id=292400180


OK WOW whoever clipped that horse needs to make and sell the video instructions!! they would make a fortune!!

[HARROLDhasmyheart]

When I was still leasing Harrold and took him to Pebble, he arrived on a Monday, was clipped on that Tuesday, and showed Thursday-Sunday. Granted we were in the jumpers so it probably wasn't as big of a deal as it may have been in hunter-land, but he looked great. My trainer swore up and down that he went faster right after being clipped, thus the motivation to do it upon arriving at Pebble :)

Hairy monster unclipped: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30379996&l=3824ca3f6f&id=1044030002
And Hairy-monster clipped: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30380988&l=e8488f848d&id=1044030002

[TheOrangeOne]

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30301443&l=cfca54f3a6&id=1572480181

This was either 3 or 4 days after I clipped my horse.

[Bobthehorse]

OK WOW whoever clipped that horse needs to make and sell the video instructions!! they would make a fortune!!

Twas I! But in September, summer coat clips always look better than winter ones. He is older and gets a very thick coat in the summer, I had clipped him already in August but he needed done again before this one as their winter coats were starting in pretty good, its been a chilly fall here.

[grandprixjump]

3 days before leaving for Indoors, and she won the hack. Just take more care in clipping when time is short...

[Mach Two]

What the other posters have said....
I used to clip a lot of dressage horses, event horses , and hunters, and they could all be shown immediately, because I used the right tools, kept sharp blades, and only clipped clean horses.

One more thing: if the horse's coat is in good condition, and the horse is getting the nutrition it needs for a good coat, a good clip job just makes them look better. If the hair coat is not so good, long and dull, the clip will make it short and dull.

Don't worry...if your clipper is a seasoned pro, he or she knows how to make the finished results look great.

[ponies123]

To re-condition after clipping (and to retain shine/color) I have done the mayo trick, although it sounds pretty much like the hot oil treatment and I suppose oil would be less of a mess. The mayo has worked well for us. Bathe, clean dry, clip, re-wash, then apply a mixture of mayo and hot water with a sponge and let sit before rinsing. I have even seen people let it sit for a couple of hours (under a sheet in the stall), but I detest mayo and the smell makes me gag so when we have done it we just let it sit for a short period of time. Seems to work great.

[Showbizz]

I'll be the odd man out -

I'm a very good clipper, but I can't stand the color of ANY horse except greys freshly clipped. I like to clip 6 weeks out. I don't care how much oil you throw on them - they still look odd to me.

[Across Sicily]

In fall you will be fine with that amount of time. Spring, I'd leave 3-4 weeks, since chestnuts can clip out some really weird colors that time of year.

What others said about making sure the horse is SQUEAKY clean is spot on - shampoo twice, use liberal amounts of show sheen. This will make the clipping go much more quickly, too - it's a win/win! :)

[luvs2ridewbs]

Not to hijack, but how do you do the hot oil treatment? I mean, I know how to do it for my own hair but it usually comes in those tiny little bottles. It sounds like it would take forever on a horse. Granted I've never had strip horses so really no need for it.

[Tiffani B]

Not to hijack, but how do you do the hot oil treatment? I mean, I know how to do it for my own hair but it usually comes in those tiny little bottles. It sounds like it would take forever on a horse. Granted I've never had strip horses so really no need for it.

Ultra makes a great hot oil treatment. Mix with hot hot water, sponge the horse, wrap in cooler or plastic sheet for at least 30 minutes, rinse off.

[Alterrain]

I'll be the odd man out -

I'm a very good clipper, but I can't stand the color of ANY horse except greys freshly clipped. I like to clip 6 weeks out. I don't care how much oil you throw on them - they still look odd to me.


6 WEEKS! wow! In 6 weeks they'll need clipped again :)

[SkipChange]

6 WEEKS! wow! In 6 weeks they'll need clipped again :)

I agree! It's been 3 weeks since I clipped the pony and she's already got some fuzz going. She looked show worthy the second she was dry from her bath. :D

[bascher]

I just do a VERY simple hot oil bath...hot water and Johnson's baby oil lol. Wring the towel out completely and rub until your arms fall off!

[MintHillFarm]

Everyone has posted lots of good advise...

Make sure that the clippers don't get overly hot too. Dipping them in clipper oil as you use them (I used to use kerosene with oil mixed in) will help. Spray on Kool Lube as well...Hot clippers will leave welts.

Hot toweling with baby oil in water on a rung out towel afterwards works well too.

When I used to clip years ago, sometimes 75-100 horses in a season, they often showed the next day. Biggest concern here in NY was with them being very fresh afterwards!

I also had very good equiptment, set of spare blades and also a set of small clippers. I always washed new blades prior to use with soap and warm water...