Body clipping a quarter horse with a wierd/poor coat.....?

[kryptoniteqhs]

Ok, so every year my barrel horse gets a wierd coat, its ugly, dull, and kind of curly (no he does not have cushings). He then starts shedding in patches in april and doesnt fully shed out and look normal and sleek and shiney until mid june. Im thinking of body clipping him real soon (it seems like the right time, its warming up, but he still has longish hair for the most part). Im hoping that maybe if we take all this crap hair off that maybe when his new hair comes back, it wont be so yukky next time, plus we can get rid of all of it sooner and he wont get as hot bc he will be ridden a lot and hard (btw i just started him on a hoof and coat, so maybe well be fine next winter anyway). Im worried that the hair will come back and he'll be stuck with a thick/coarse coat all summer that wont come off with out body clipping. I had bought a halter filly one time that had been body clipped and her hair would not come off all summer! what do you think?

 

[WIChookchick]

Well he could have a thyroid issue, and you might want to see how he reacts to clippers.

I had a quarab that I did a modified trace clipping of. Basically clipping under the throatlatch, just on either side of the neck about 4 inches on either side, completely clipping in between the front legs.
Under the girth area, up to or near the male part, clipping up the sides a bit.
A true trace clipping would do sides on the rear end and Under that.
You can google it and it will show you.
BUT see how he does in with clippers first and have a blanket handy as he is likely to get cold.

Can you wash him?Perhaps that would help with the coat.

Carol

 

[kryptoniteqhs]

i did give him an hour long bath today (complete with 2 in 1 shampoo and then conditioner on top of that plus LOTS of scrubbing) and he looked much better, but still curly and just not right.....his coat makes him look malnourished, but hes definitely not....he gets to graze all day....he gets performance horse grain, joint supplements, msm, and corn oil (and now his hoof and coat), plus his hay lol....he always ends up shedding out and has a beautiful shiney summer coat, but its just getting to that point that sucks.

 

[kryptoniteqhs]

i did give him an hour long bath today (complete with 2 in 1 shampoo and then conditioner on top of that plus LOTS of scrubbing) and he looked much better, but still curly and just not right.....his coat makes him look malnourished, but hes definitely not....he gets to graze all day....he gets performance horse grain, joint supplements, msm, and corn oil (and now his hoof and coat), plus his hay lol....he always ends up shedding out and has a beautiful shiney summer coat, but its just getting to that point that sucks.

 

[kryptoniteqhs]

i did give him an hour long bath today (complete with 2 in 1 shampoo and then conditioner on top of that plus LOTS of scrubbing) and he looked much better, but still curly and just not right.....his coat makes him look malnourished, but hes definitely not....he gets to graze all day....he gets performance horse grain, joint supplements, msm, and corn oil (and now his hoof and coat), plus his hay lol....he always ends up shedding out and has a beautiful shiney summer coat, but its just getting to that point that sucks.

 

[kryptoniteqhs]

i did give him an hour long bath today (complete with 2 in 1 shampoo and then conditioner on top of that plus LOTS of scrubbing) and he looked much better, but still curly and just not right.....his coat makes him look malnourished, but hes definitely not....he gets to graze all day....he gets performance horse grain, joint supplements, msm, and corn oil (and now his hoof and coat), plus his hay lol....he always ends up shedding out and has a beautiful shiney summer coat, but its just getting to that point that sucks.

 

[Sierra pachie bars]

Check and see how h reacts to bring clipped. I did my paint horses many years ago. We rubbed mayo on the coat. And he had a nasty reaction. Call vet. His comment ." add bacon and lettuce"

We never body clipped him again. Have you tried a shedding brick. They look like those you use on bbq's. I use on on my quarter horse Tommy he is shedding like crazy! I think he might br part Teddy bear. So much hair.

 

[welsummerchicks]

Body clipping isn't going to make any difference in how the coat comes in and it won't make the quality of his coat any better.

A coat clipped this time of year, usually horse people will say that it will not be as shiny and good looking in summer. I've clipped at this time of year and I never saw any difference but some people do feel there is.

It will keep him from being hot if it is a case of that coat just not shedding at the right time.

But I would be trying to find out why the coat is so bad. Blood test for low thyroid, fecal count for parasites, etc.

If I understood right the coat ALSO is not shedded out when it should. And that makes me think thyroid issues.

Important to find out as thyroid issues can make them much more prone to laminitis/founder.

 

[jettgirl24]

I agree with blood tests... My horse started looking a little dull at the end of last summer and his coat seemed slightly long for that time of year. He didn't show any major signs of anything but we did blood tests just in case - with his age we were thinking that he could potentially be devloping Cushings. Turns out it was just an iron deficiency - early stages so not a big deal at all yet. We put him on Red Cell for a month and every since he has looked and acted amazing... His coat is gorgeous now that he's growing out from being clipped and his attitude is much better. Turns out he was kind of feeling under the weather but the signs were really subtle. Blood tests cost an arm and a leg which sucks but it'd super worth it to catch something before it becomes a larger issue.

 

[kryptoniteqhs]

I guess I could do blood work again. I did it 2 years ago for pretty much the same reason. Ive now owned him over 3 years and his main and forelock has not grown an inch. But the bloodwork then came back fine. Ya and the other reason is bc he will be worked a lot from here on out and he still has his hair....hes shedding a little, but at this rate I don't think he'd be done even in a month or 2. Plus it would be much easier to keep him clean, just a quick rinse instead of an hour scrub down, but like I said I don't want him to get his hair back right after and then it never go away with out body clipping again.