4,777 answers about horses & farm animals
Horses and farm animals run on routine — feeding schedules, hoof and health care, safe fencing and calm handling, in all weather. This page gathers the horse and farm animal library of KinsLe Answers in one place, organized by topic from daily care to travel and senior animals. Every answer is original, written by KinsLe, and tied to a real KinsLe feature.
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395 answers in Grooming & Daily Care — page 12 of 17
A Standardbred needs moderate grooming shaped by work rather than by hair. The coat is short and hard-wearing and the mane is usually kept simple, so there is little cosmetic work — but a horse in harness training sweats heavily and works its legs hard, and grooming is where that workload gets checked. Daily brushing,…
A Rocky Mountain Horse needs moderate grooming with a cosmetic twist. The breed's signature look is a rich chocolate coat set off by a flaxen — pale blonde — mane and tail, and pale hair shows dirt, staining, and trail grime far more than dark hair does. The coat itself is medium and easy to brush, so the extra effort…
A Paso Fino needs moderate to high grooming, driven by the mane and tail. The breed is shown and prized with a long, flowing, uncut mane and a full tail, and hair kept at that length tangles, breaks, and mats without frequent attention. The body coat is short and easy by comparison, so plan on finger-detangling…
A New Forest Pony needs light grooming. It is a hardy native breed with roots among the semi-feral herds of the New Forest, and its coat is built to manage weather without help. A pony living out needs mud removed only where tack sits, daily hoof picking, and hands-on checks for ticks, cuts, and skin trouble rather…
A Missouri Fox Trotter needs moderate, practical grooming. The coat is medium and unexotic, the mane and tail are mid-length and manageable, and a working trail horse mainly needs mud, sweat, and trail debris dealt with promptly. Brush after rides, pick hooves before and after every outing, and pick burrs and tangles…
A Lusitano needs moderate to generous grooming, and the mane and tail set the workload. The breed traditionally carries a long, thick, often wavy mane and a full tail, both of which tangle and break if they are not worked through regularly. The body coat is fine and easy, so the daily session is quick; the hair care…
A Lipizzan needs moderate grooming, with one defining extra: the famous grey coat shows every stain. Most Lipizzans are born dark and lighten with age to the familiar grey-white, and on that pale coat, stable stains, manure marks, and grass stains stand out and settle in. Beyond a normal daily brush and hoof pick,…
A Highland Pony needs very little grooming, and over-grooming does more harm than good. The thick double coat is weatherproofed by natural oils that brushing strips out, so a pony living out usually needs only mud knocked off where tack sits, daily hoof picking, and a check for cuts, ticks, and skin trouble. In spring…
A Hanoverian needs light to moderate grooming. The coat is short, fine, and close, so a quick daily brush when the horse is working, plus daily hoof picking, keeps most Hanoverians looking sharp with little fuss. The mane is generally kept short and neat for the show ring, and the skin under tack deserves attention…
A Gypsy Cob needs more grooming than almost any other breed. The long, thick mane and tail and the heavy feathering around the hooves all tangle, trap mud, and hide skin trouble if they are left alone. Plan on a proper detangling session several times a week and a thorough feather wash and full dry on a regular cycle,…
A Dutch Warmblood needs a moderate, steady grooming routine rather than a heavy one. The coat is short and fine, so a daily brush-down of around ten minutes when the horse is in work keeps it clean and lets you check legs and girth areas by hand. The mane is usually kept pulled short for tidy sport turnout, and the…
The least of almost any pony you could own: a Dartmoor evolved on open moorland and grows an exceptionally thick, waterproof winter coat that does its own weather protection; brushing too enthusiastically, or bathing in winter, strips the grease that makes that coat shed rain. The real routine is light: hands-on…
Very little by riding-horse standards: the Connemara is a hardy native pony built for Atlantic weather, with a thick double coat in winter, a neat mane that should not be over-thinned, and tough feet; a good brush-over a few times a week, daily hoof picking, and extra currying while the winter coat sheds in spring…
Moderate — less than its extravagant hair suggests: the Canadian grows one of the thickest, waviest manes and tails of any breed and a dense winter coat that earned it the 'little iron horse' reputation, but that hair is hardy rather than delicate: a few good grooming sessions a week in most seasons, daily in the…
More than its famously docile temperament might suggest, because a Belgian is a great deal of horse: expect a short daily session — picking out four very large feet, brushing off the body and checking the feathered fetlocks — plus a longer weekly groom for the thick mane and tail. The feathering around those big…
Before any rug is stored, get it properly clean and bone dry: brush off dried mud and hair, wash it to its care label's instructions — reproofing a turnout afterwards if its waterproofing needs renewing — and hang it until no dampness remains in the filling or straps, because a rug stored even slightly damp comes back…
Kindly means conservatively: a heavy horse's feather — the long hair flowing from the back of the cannon and fetlock — is there to shed water away from the heels, so tidy the worst of the matted length with blunt-ended scissors rather than clipping it all away, and always part what remains to check the skin…
A cockerel's spur is living at its base and dead horn at the tip, so the safe job is small: take off the sharp point and curling excess a little at a time with a file or clippers, stopping well short of the thicker, warmer core. Spurs that curve back into the leg, catch on wire, or cut hens' backs during mating are…
Start with a clean, tangle-free mane lying on the correct side, slightly dampened, and divide it into even sections along the crest — the number and size of your plaits should follow the horse's neck, with more, smaller plaits adding the look of length. Plait each section down tightly and evenly, roll or fold it into…
You keep hens' feet clean by fixing the mud rather than washing birds: spread a deep layer of woodchip or coarse gravel over the wettest ground, move feeders and drinkers onto slabs, and give the flock a covered dry area where they can dust-bathe and dry their feet. Then check feet on a rota — mud packs between hens'…
With a grey, clean is a daily habit rather than a show-morning rescue: lift stable stains the day they happen with a damp cloth and stain remover worked into the patch, keep the tail washed little and often so stains never set, and rug with a clean rug so yesterday's dirt is not ground back in. Bathe the body in…
As the clipped coat grows back it insulates more week by week, so comfort is about stepping rugs down gradually rather than all at once, and watching for the itchiness that regrowth brings. Keep grooming with a stiff brush to lift the scurf and grease that build up in a stubbly coat, check daily under rugs for rubs at…
Part each goat's coat down to the skin along the neck, shoulders, spine and belly in the best light you can get, and look for two things: tiny pale or reddish specks that move, and small oval eggs glued to individual hairs close to the skin. Work through the whole herd rather than only the goat you saw scratching,…
In general terms, a sheath check means waiting until the gelding is relaxed, then gently washing the sheath inside and out with warm water and your gloved hand, loosening the dark, waxy build-up called smegma, and feeling in the small pouch at the tip for a hard lump known as a bean, which is the part most often…
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