Grooming your horse is a form of communication. It tells your horse you care about him or her. My horse is field boarded. So I have to find him among the other horses. When I find him, I put on the halter and attach the lead rope. Then I find a fence in the field and tie him up. to it. I then greet him and pat him on the neck. Then I feed him baby carrots or horse treats, which I put in a fanny pack. This is positive reinforcement. I am rewarding the horse for letting me catch him and tieing him up to the fence.
Afterward, I proceed to brush him. I use the curry comb in a circular motion to remove the dirt underneath his coat, starting on the midsection of the horse.
For Stormy’s stomach, I use a soft brush. Then moving down to the legs, A soft-bristled brush is used on his chest as well.
When brushing the I mane, I use a mane and tail brush. I proceed to the tail first. Every horse is different. But I suggest, standing slightly to the side to brush through the tail. So as not to be kicked.
Moving to the hooves, I gently glide my hand down the back of his leg. Then, lift the foot up. If not, you can make a clicking noise with your tongue against your teeth. If that does not work, a gentle and humane tap on the rear with your hand can work. Do this, standing beside the horse. The tap shows that you are the boss, the head horse. Horses are herd animals.
When inspecting a hoof, after picking it up, you will notice a triangular shape near the heel. This can be compared to the cuticle of a human’s nail. You do not want to poke this area. You could cause the horse to be lame. Simply and gently scrape around this triangular shape or what is known in the Equine world as the frog. As for the sole, which is located above the frog, clean out the dirt or debris with a hoof pick.
I hope my grooming tips help. Let me know by filling out the comment section.