null

Bathing Your Horse

Posted by Saddle Up on Jul 5th 2017

Whether it’s for a show, a cool down, or just to get your horse really clean, bathing a horse is fairly simple and a lot of fun!

Before you start, make sure your horse is all right with the hose and water being sprayed on him. Sometimes the hose itself, or the water coming out of it can be frightening to a horse and he will need to be desensitized. Once he’s comfortable with the hose and with water being sprayed on him, you’re ready to give him a full bath!

During the summer months, it’s nice to cool down your horse with a quick hose off. This also helps prevent sweat marks. Start on one side of your horse and begin hosing him down on his front legs and move gradually up and down towards his tail. Remember to always point the hose towards his tail, to avoid getting any water in his face.

If you are giving him a bath you can apply soap after you’ve gotten him wet. Make sure to use a horse safe shampoo and don’t use excessive amounts. Apply the shampoo to your hand and work it into all the wet areas of the horse. Once you’ve done this on both sides you can rinse out the shampoo. It’s important to rinse out ALL the shampoo! Sometimes it’s best to shampoo one side and rinse it off before you move to the other side of the horse.

You can also wash and shampoo the horse’s mane and tail. This is a great time to apply some conditioner to your horse’s mane and tail to help it untangle easily. Be careful when brushing your horse’s mane and tail after a bath so as not to pull chunks of hair out.

After you’ve thoroughly rinsed your horse you can use a sweat scraper to scrape all the excess water off. You can help your horse dry off by using a towel. To help prevent your horse from rolling after a bath, curry and brush him to help get any itches out and make sure he’s dry before turning him out.

(free photo from Canva - https://www.canva.com/ )


“You can lead a horse to water, but if you can get him to roll over and float on his back, then you got something!” –Joe E. Lewis


~ Saddle Up