It doesn't matter how many times I have traversed shedding season, I am always amazed by the amount of hair that falls away from my horse. A lot of times, I just use a small hard brush to groom hair from the Brillo pad that is his winter coat, systematically removing the hair from the brush and transferring it to the garbage can as I work from his neck to his hindquarters. But at some point, there is so much hair that my brush becomes stuffed with hair in just a few strokes.
Enter the shedding blade.
I don't know what it is, but the shedding blade is a ridiculously satisfying grooming tool. Harley enjoys the nice scratching massage that he gets from the small teeth of the blade and the hair flies from his coat like a scene from Edward Scissorhands.
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| Nothing like a smooth horse! |
These pictures were taken a few weeks ago. Harley has lost a lot more hair since then, revealing some of the short, satiny hair of summer. I can see lots of reddish hairs mixed in on his neck and shoulders. Do you know what that means?
The dapples are on their way!
Harley is living the easy life these days: extended grooming sessions, hand-grazing, and carrot-time at the picnic table. I try to get in an exercise session a couple times a week, but, honestly, he seems to be handling the down-time just fine. In the six years that I have owned him, he has not had a long vacation and during this time of year I would probably be riding him as close to four times a week as my schedule would allow. I hope at least one of us is enjoying it, because I am still gazing at his back longingly and wishing I were up there. Wouldn't it be nice if you could just remove your pregnant belly for a few hours and put it back on later? My bladder would sure appreciate that. ;)
love the shedding blade. I figure that every year I get enough hair that I could knit myself a pony!
ReplyDeleteNow that the hair is coming off I'm itching to bathe them!
I love the first bath of the year! Also, very satisfying. :)
DeleteI'd like to remove my non-pregnant belly for that matter.. ;D
ReplyDeleteThe shedding blade is super satisfying! Of course most of the hair is gone now and it's going to be wet, chilly and super windy this weekend... again.
Harley looks great. I bet spending time with you is good enough for him. Do you think he has any sense of the pregnancy?
I don't think he does. He is a sweet and steady boy, but he doesn't seem aware of my different shape. Maybe I have a different smell to him, but he doesn't associate it with anything.
DeleteWhen I was still riding, his way of going suggested that he was aware that I was heavier, though! He was polite about it.
I resorted to the shedding blade last week.there were just too many horses with too much hair.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure Harley is just as happy to spend time with you whether you're riding or not. I'll bet you know where every bathroom in the area is by now! Hang in there it won't be much longer until you're back to your old self. Instead of carrying all that extra weight in front you'll be backpacking a little bundle behind. ( not sure what those carriers are called)
I am a frequent visitor of many bathrooms in the area. At work, I call it my office. ;)
DeleteThanks for the encouragement!
It won't be long now and you'll be riding again! Hang in there! :)
ReplyDeleteMyself I love a good groom with a grooming blade come shedding season. It makes their coat so smooth and shiny!
bonita of A Riding Habit
Nicely done! Someone suggested using a Furminator during shedding season too. I haven't tried that because Simon doesn't get really hairy, but I imagine it would work well.
ReplyDeleteI tried the furminator and although it did work well ,the blade is much smaller and covers less area. I went back to the blade because you can get much more at once.
ReplyDeleteI have never heard of a furminator. That is too funny.
ReplyDeleteI have a rubber thingy which is great for getting the hair out and giving a massage at the same time. I removed about 5lbs of hair from Flurry one day last week!! Well maybe I'm exagerrating a small bit ;)
ReplyDeleteOh, think I probably have the same tool. Harley loves that one on his face to get the itchies out.
DeleteLove my shedding blade, especially for the draft cross. It's very satisfying :). I once read a piece on grooming equipment that announced shedding blades were for looks and shouldn't actually be used on a horse, as their skin is too sensitive. I knew right away that the writer had to be from a warm dry climate where horses don't have thick long hair, with dry clumps of mud hanging off of it.
ReplyDelete