Coat

Coat Health

A shiny coat is a sign of a healthy horse – every horse owner wants to see their horses happy and healthy, so a bright and shiny coat is extremely desirable. Here are our top tips on achieving a shiny coat –and recommended products to make your horse glow with health!

THE BASICS

Achieving a shiny coat starts with the basics.

Your brushes and combs need to be clean to be able to clean your horse effectively. Keep your brushes together and ensure you clean them regularly. Keep your brushes in good condition. Replace your brushes when needed. If your brush has missing or flattened bristles it will be much less effective in giving a good end result. Always buy the best quality grooming tools you can afford - and get stuck in with the elbow grease! Regular grooming is one key element to a shiny coat. Grooming thoroughly at least a few times a week will assist in keeping the coat clean and healthy. Regular grooming will also help to remove dead hair from the coat, and as an added bonus, the very action of grooming will stimulate the horse’s circulation.

The most effective way to groom your horse is to use a soft and flexible rubber curry comb all over the horse’s body (although not on the lower legs or face). This helps to increase the horse’s blood circulation and brings dirt to the surface. You should then use good quality brushes in a ‘flicking’ motion to rid the coat from dirt, loose hairs, scurf and dried sweat.

OILS

The addition of oils (fatty acids) to a horse’s feed can help to improve the shine of his coat. Oils can be added in the forms of raw oils - such as vegetable oil, canola oil, coconut oil or rice bran oil. Half a cup to a cup of oil in his feed should be enough to increase the essential fatty acids in your horse’s diet. Some oils are enriched with Omega 3’s and 6’s - which also can help to increase the shine on your horse’s coat.