Protecting Your Horse During The Winter Months

Clipping Your Horse for the Winter
posted December 7th

Now that winter’s here - well, not officially until December 21 - but some parts of the country sure have been dealing with wintry weather! Many horse owners may be considering whether they should clip their horses. Whether a full body clip or a partial trace clip, once you shave hair off your horse, you need to provide a method for him to stay warm.

Clipping a horse in the winter is typically done for practical or convenience reasons. It makes owners’ lives easier. Why would anyone want to shave his or her horse in the winter, you ask. Well, here are a few reasons for doing it.

Your horse grows a thick, dense coat and you plan to keep him in work all winter long. If he sweats, all that hair will take time to dry. Shaving it off alleviates this problem.
You’re moving your horse to a warmer climate for the winter. He won’t need his thick winter coat.
You’re trying to minimize the amount of shedding hair that you’ll have to deal with come springtime.

As I mentioned earlier, clipping ranges from a full body clip, which means you shave the horse’s entire body, to a trace clip, which targets areas where horses commonly sweat such as the sides of the neck, the chest, the girth area, the flanks, and sometimes even the gaskins.
If you decide to clip your horse, here are few things you can do to make the process go smoothly and comfortably.

Use clippers designed for heavy-duty clipping. The ones you use for trimming whiskers and ears won’t cut it (pun intended).
Make sure clipper blades are sharp.
If your horse has never been clipped before, set time aside to introduce him to the clippers. Some horses do not enjoy this process!
Clip your horse during the warmest time of the day, if possible, and be sure to have a blanket handy to cover his newly shaved areas.

And most important, be sure that you have ample blankets, exercise sheets, etc. to put on your horse afterwards, if he’s continuing to live in a cold, winter climate. If you clip him, you must provide a means for him to keep himself warm since he no longer has his coat.