by Kristi Rensby

Now you get to choose your blades! All the clippers I looked at came with one blade. The ones I bought came with a #10 (pretty standard I think), which is great for body clipping. A #7 has also been recommended for clipping horses with color (as opposed to greys and cremellos). A #7 is also used for clipping dogs, so if youcan't find one at your tack store, try your local pet groomers.

You will need more than one blade! The spare blade I bought is a #30, which is a finer blade and better for clipping muzzles, bridle paths, fetlocks and so on - show clip stuff. A #40 blade is also available for fine work, and the three main ones in most people's kits will be the #10, #30, #40 and possibly a #15.

Some breeds prefer to shave part of the head as well to enhance the horse's features. Usually a #40 is used for that, with a #30 being used to "blend" the clipper marks into the longer hair.

It is also recommended to buy more than one of each blade, for two different reasons. One is that they heat up during use (especially body clipping, less so for show clips) and if you are in a hurry that can create delays. The other is that blades dull (especially if not well cared for, see next week's Equipment column) and you may need to send one in for sharpening which leaves your clippers useless if you don't have a back up set.

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by Kristi Rensby

One of these weeks I will get to info on clipping itself, but first I'd like to mention a few other methods of winter hair removal besides feed supplements.

Consider blanketing your horse. A blanket with a wool liner will help pull loose hairs out on its own (though don't try and wash the blanket afterwards unless you have used the shedder blade and curry on it!).

A blanket also has the effect of keeping your horse warmer which can encourage hair loss. Be careful not to over blanket though, your horse's internal thermostat is set for cooler weather after being unblanketed all winter, and you can overheat him in a hurry, standing under a thick blanket in the midday sun.

If you stable your horse, consider "putting him on lights". This means having him in the barn with the lights extending daylight on one end of the day or the other. He can be outside during the daylight hours to save electricity (and barn cleaning time!).

For example, your horse goes out at 7 am when the sun is coming up. In the evening, you put him in at 6 pm before the light starts to fade, and the lights stay on in the barn until 11 pm, when you either go out and shut them off or have them on a timer.

There are different opinions on the length of time required to have a horse under lights, but a standard answer seems to be 16 hours a day. There are also opinions on the type of lighting used - some people think normal lights work just fine, others say you must use special lights. If in doubt, please check with your local vet.

A side note on using lights is that it will also help mares to start cycling earlier, which is a good thing if you are planning on breeding in the early spring.

Between the three columns over the past couple of weeks, that about sums up the ways of removing winter hair without clipping - and this was supposed to be about clipping itself! Next week I guess...

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