Horse grooming

Horse grooming is hygienic care given to a horse, or a process by which the horse's physical appearance is enhanced for horse shows or other types of competition.

Grooming is an important part of horse care. Grooming a horse daily allows the handler to check on horse's general health and well-being. At a minimum, horses are generally groomed before being worked, and are usually groomed and cleaned up after a workout as well.

The main reasons for daily grooming include:

Horse showmanship is a horse show class that considers quality of grooming for as much as 40% of the total score.

There are several tools that are commonly used when grooming a horse. Proper use and technique helps to ensure the horse remains comfortable during the grooming process, and allows for greater ease in cleaning the animal.

Hoof care is especially important when caring for the horse. Although many horses are quite healthy without daily brushing, lack of hoofcare can result in various problems, which if unattended, can result in short or long-term soundness issues for the horse. Hooves need to be trimmed after four to ten weeks otherwise, they will grow too long and cause discomfort.

The most basic form of hoofcare is cleaning, or "picking out the feet". A hoof pick is used to remove mud, manure, and rocks from the sole of the hoof. Removal of mud and manure helps to prevent thrush, a common hoof ailment which in very severe cases may cause lameness, and the removal of rocks helps to prevent stone bruises. In the winter, hoof picking also provides the chance to remove packs of snow from the horse's hooves, which can cause uncomfortable "snowballs". Additionally, when the hoof is cleaned, it can be visually inspected for problems such as puncture wounds due to a nail (which has the potential to be very serious if left untreated).

All crevices of the hoof are cleaned, particularly the sulci between the frog and the bars, as those areas are most likely to trap rocks or other debris, and also are the most common area to develop thrush. It is best to work the hoof pick from heel to toe, so to avoid accidentally jabbing the horse's leg, the frog of the hoof, or the person using the pick. When picking the feet, the groom stands at the horse's side, facing the tail of the horse, then slides his or her hand down the horse's leg. If the horse was not trained to pick up its foot when a person runs their hand to the fetlock and lifts lightly, most horses will pick up their feet if the tendons behind their cannon bone are squeezed. Some horses, particularly draft breeds, may be trained to pick up their feet to pressure on their fetlock.

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