Clipping - Are you and your horse confident?

Clipping is an interesting part of my job. I have never professed to being a great clipper, in fact I have never clipped a horse right out and yet I find myself going out to clients who cannot get the clippers on their horses without a fight, a twitch or a vet.... so, by default I end up being the first to clip the horse! And let me tell you, it is a buzz! When a once frightened horse can stand relaxed on a loose lead rope, it is what makes my job so rewarding.

To be able to clip a horse whilst he/she remains calm means the horse is confident. Confidence is the key word here as a means that the horse is calm and safe. Safety is paramount for the horse and human, no-one wants to their horse scared or injured and nor does anyone want the human scared or injured!

It is not surprising that for most horses this is not a pleasant time, especially around the underbelly, jugular and face, and it is amazing how most of them endure without a fuss. This is usually because the owner/handler or the professional clipper they have hired has taken the time, introduced the clippers politely and started off with smaller clippers, clipped over several small sessions perhaps leaving the face alone until the horse has become more tolerant and confident.

However, some horses have not had that good fortune and they have had a horrible time, being held down/man-handled, shouted at, hit, rushed, twitched, sedated.

It is a down-hill spiral usually brought about in the first place by people simply not taking the time or not having enough experience.

Clipping a horse is not just about buying the clippers and having a go (I mean,how hard can it be?!). Over zealous first timers have burnt their horses, have scared their horses by doing too much in one go, they have not prepared them for a lead moving around on the ground, they do not recognise that a horse has got so scared that he has frozen, he is not calm, so when the blow' comes, they are so surprised...." one minute he was totally calm, the next minute, for no reason at all, he exploded". If I had a pound for each time I had heard that line I would be in a higher tax bracket!

These are just some of the reasons horses end up losing confidence around the clippers.

So what can be done to gain, or re-gain confidence.

Clipping a horse is about the preparation work beforehand:

Can your horse stand still for over 45 minutes. If not, then do not expect him too for the clippers!

Can your horse be handled all over his body. If not you will have little to no chance with a hand that has suddenly become both noisy and vibrating!

Can your horse cope with the hose. If not, there is a good chance that the lead from the clippers will have a similar affect only intensified by sound and sensation.

Over the winter of 2009 I am going to share my knowledge on clipping with Confidence in Horse & Rider magazine.

If you are interested in having me to your yard either privately or as a group lecture/demonstration then please get in touch. I travel through Sussex Surrey Kent & Hampshire.

Testimonial
I contacted Sue after I had my Irish Sports Horse for three and a half years, he could not be clipped without sedation.  In late May I gave him a full clip but we had to twitch him and then sedate him intravenously to get the job done.  He completely panicked at noise, sight, smell of clippers.  In all other ways he was a completely relaxed and reliable horse, bothered by very little.
I contacted Sue and she worked with me over a 4-6 week period, visiting a total of four times working with Sunny and training me over a 2 hour session. The transformation has been amaziing!  Sue did the intial work and then taught me how to de-sensitise him.  He is transformed.  Now he can be clipped all over his body with no need for twitching, sedation, or any other artificial help; I just use Sue's techniques and he has lost his fear of the clippers.  I am now using her techniques to get him to tolerate the clippers on his head, and this is also working well, with progress daily.  All I can say, is that for clippering, her technique works, and I would highly recommend her if you have a horse who cannot be clipped. 

Cheers,
Jackie, Epsom

Jackie from Epsom, clipping Sunny