GROOMING AND CLEANING

GROOMING AND CLEANING

Grooming and cleaning are important management practices which help to make and keep the body fit and clean. Proper grooming and cleaning are necessary to make the animal more attractive in appearance and to assist in maintaining best health and condition. Horses that are stabled should be groomed thoroughly once a day. Those that are worked or exercised should be groomed both before leaving for work and immediately on their return to the stable. The recommended grooming procedure for heated, wet or sweating animals is as follows:

GROOMING EQUIPMENT

i)                    Rubber or metal curry comb

Curry comb is used to groom animals that have long thick hair coat, to remove caked dung and to loosen the matted dirt in the hair. Curry comb should be applied gently in small circles rather than with pressure and in long strokes. It should not be used below the knee or hock, about the head or over bony prominences. Curry comb should not be used in grooming animals that have been recently clipped.

ii)                  Body brush

It is the principal tool used for grooming. It can be used for brushing entire body.

iii)                Dandy brush

Dandy brush is made from stiff fibres instead of a curry comb for removing brushing mane and tail.

usually about 5 cm in length. It may be used light mud from the skin and also be used for

iv)                Mane and tail comb

This implement is used in combing out matted mane and tail.

v)                  Grooming cloth or piece of sponge

Any piece of cloth in the form of a towel, burlap cloth etc., may be used for this purpose.

vi)                Sweat scraper

This is used for the purpose of removal of excessive perspiration from heated, wet and sweating animals.

vii)              Hoof pick

This is used for cleaning hooves of an animal from the lower side.

DETAILED GROOMING PROCEDURE

Clean out feet by using the hoof pick. Work it from heel towards the toe. While cleaning the toe, inspect for loose shoe and any other foot disease. Groom the body with curry comb in the right hand and brush in the left hand. Begin on the left side of horse at the neck and then proceed to withers and shoulders, fore-leg up to knee, back of the animal, side, belly, croup and hind-leg down to the hock. Clean the dirt and hair from brush with the curry comb. Some horsemen prefer to curry comb first followed with the use of brush rather than to use both articles at the same time. Curry comb gently and brush vigorously. Stand well away from the animal at an arms length by keeping arm’s stiff. Throw the weight of your body against the brush. Brush the hair in natural direction. Brush with care the parts like flanks, between fore-legs, hind-legs, at the point of elbow -joint and in the fet-locks. After completing the grooming on the left side of the body, transfer the brush to the right hand, curry comb to the left hand and groom the right side of the animal the same way as described for left side.

The body brush can first be used in brushing the head then the mane and tail can be combed and brushed with either body brush or with dandy brush. The mane is brushed downwards and tail should be washed out with warm water and soap. Lastly, use the grooming cloth or piece of sponge. Wipe out the eyes, ears, nostrils, lips, sheath and dock.

The thoroughness of grooming can be checked as follows: pass the finger tips against the direction of hair. If the skin and coat are not clean, the fingers will become soiled with dirt and grey lines will appear on the coat marking the neglected areas such as eyes, lips, sheath and dock.

Wash and disinfect grooming equipment using warm water and soap.

GROOMING OF DAIRY ANIMALS

As a general rule the dandy brush and curry comb are the main tools used for grooming of dairy animals and the whole process is much more superficial than in case of horses. Theoretically, a dairy animal’s coat should receive as much attention as a horse’s. In the first place, dairy animals do not work or wear harness and a buffalo/cow generally licks herself practically all over and removes a good deal of dirt in the process. Dairy animal grazing in a pasture lick themselves freely.

The grooming of dairy animals includes the washing of their udders with warm water containing an appropriate antiseptic solution and the final “drying” of these with boiled, damp cloth. By “drying” is meant removing the superfluous water which would otherwise drop into the milk-pail. It is advisable, however, to leave the surface of the udder damp as this prevents dry dust, etc., from falling into the milk. This last operation should be carried out immediately before milking. The actual brushing of the coat should be finished at least two hours before milking so as to allow the dust which is raised and distributed in the atmosphere time to settle before milking commences. When buffaloes/cows are outside all day it is best to leave the grooming until after milking, unless there is a separate milking shed. The process of grooming dairy animals is similar to that employed for horses. It is advisable to periodically clip the tail, flanks and quarters of milking animals.

EXERCISES

1.                  How would you differentiate between a “body brush” and a “dandy brush”?

2.                  What are the main uses of a sweat scraper and a hoof pick?

Share: