Anybody bath just for the sake of it?

I haven't bathed my boy in the year since I've had him but next weekend he has a photo shoot so will get the works!!
 
We've had one for three years who has never had a shampoo bath. He's had his mane and tail done, but usually only once every summer and regularly gets hosed down after a sweaty ride, but he's never had a formal "bath"....

Funny how we call it a "bath" for horses, when actually it's more like a shower....
 
I bathed one of mine yesterday as a treat, he loves a good scrub and I snuck on some deosect afterwards. I bathe a few times a year mostly just so when It comes to them working they won't be a couple of morons getting hosed down. They are 2 year olds now but one still isn't too keen.
 
mandwhy said:
I like bathing them I find it quite nice bonding :-)
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Ha, mine doesn't, he shufties round like a shufty thing if you get the hose out, and if he catches sight of that blue shampoo it's instant pooing, shampoo means something must be happening :rolleyes3:

I hosed him off after lunch today as I'd walked him out and he sweats just in the field in this heat (I normally clip in the summer if competing as he's hairy) and he had a lovely roll in the dust, bet he's feels wonderful this evening :)
 
My mare normally only gets one bath a year, it's not something I particularly enjoy doing, I usually end up wetter than she does.
 
Not really, in this weather I completely hose down after riding & occasionally wash tail/legs if dirty. I leave the 'proper' bathing until before shows.
 
My show horse of many years ago only ever had her tail washed if we were going to a show. I owned her from a yearling and sold her 5 yrs later - she never got bathed at all in that time. I body brushed her everyday for 45 mins at least.

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Prince33Sp4rkle said:
mine get hosed down after every ride in this weather and probably shampoo'd once or twice a week and always before shows.

manes and tails get done at least once a week and legs daily if white.

i cant believe any horse not bathed for years is clean.....which is fine if they live out but must be fairly minging and greasy to handle.
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My black boy doesn't ever get bathed - he isn't greasy to touch or dusty and shine comes up just by brushing him

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Eta - I've run out of bandwidth on Photobucket!!
 
I have a grey with an affinity for all things dirty. I need shares in whitening shampoo. I seem to be spending an inordinate amount of time scrubbing him. The only positive of winter is that most of him is covered in rugs! :rolleyes3:

My bay hasn't been washed with shampoo all over for ages and he competes regularly, a good quality body brush and some elbow grease he gleams. Socks, mane and tail get done regularly and he's rinsed after every ride.
 
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Yup, when Bud was out of action so was getting a constant pampering. And as a kid ponies were constantly bathed and plaited just because! Wont do them any harm :-)
 
Mine is living out too and I resist the urge to bath him unless we're going to a show. I don't like to mess with the natural oils in his coat and I find a good groom from a rubber curry comb and hot clothing works just as well!

He has been a bit sweaty in the heat so he gets hosed down but that's it :)
 
Yep he usually has about 4-5 baths a year between April to September. If the weather is really hot I will sometimes bath instead of riding. He will probably have one Sunday as he is absolutely covered in dust that just won't come off as its so dry.

He's also been getting hosed down after riding as now he has cushings he's been getting more sweaty plus its been so hot.

I don't bath in the winter as no running hot water or drier
 
Yes and no, in the winter I do not bother unless my horse is unclipped and has sweated, in which case I would rather do a sponge bath as fresh water dries much faster than salt water. In the summer I bathe when sweaty, I bathe religiously in the run up to a show as he is coloured and needs to be white, but generally when not showing don't bother other than a sponge bath, however, it's been so hot this year that I've bathed a lot more than I would despite not showing, I bathe pretty much after each ride, this is because up until this year Ben hated the hose, now he welcomes it, he sees it as sweet relief when he is hot, many times I will ride, bathe and turnout while he is wet, resulting in a mud pony within seconds.... But when I need him to sparkle I now know I can tie him up with a haynet and hose him top to toe without protest as I did last week.
 
Grey arab who is the skankiest horse that i have ever owned. Stabled at night and does a bit of break dancing, by the state of him in the morning, is bathed as needed sometimes once or twice a week. Always use good quality horse shampoo on areas needed, so not always whole body. Always washed down with lavender wash after exercise if needed, then rugged according to weather and time of year. Mini shetland, skewbald, actually stays pretty clean in the summer, and is left natural over winter.
 
Yes if it's warm enough, normally only if they go sonewhere but sometimes I like to make them look lovely just for me. They're not 24/7 outdoor horses anyway.
 
I would say that too much washing would make them greasier and even more minging I wash mine in cold water and baby bath as I don't want to remove too much natural oil but I am allergic to lanolin and one of my ponies seems to be too
 
Prince33Sp4rkle said:
mine get hosed down after every ride in this weather and probably shampoo'd once or twice a week and always before shows.

manes and tails get done at least once a week and legs daily if white.

i cant believe any horse not bathed for years is clean.....which is fine if they live out but must be fairly minging and greasy to handle.
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If the horse is thoroughly groomed - body brush for 45mins each day they don't smell or feel greasy. See my pic on previous page.

My mare lives out uncovered and so in the lead up to a show she'll be bathed then hosed after work, but no more shampoo, and she'll wear a rain sheet.
 
Tnavas said:
If the horse is thoroughly groomed - body brush for 45mins each day they don't smell or feel greasy. See my pic on previous page.


No one seems to groom enough these days. It is so important for a healthy skin and coat and if done properly full bathing is unnecessary. It also works wonders for the relationship between horse and human.
No one seems to have the time or inclination anymore. I know a top Arabian show yard that doesn't touch the horses coat for weeks until the day before a show. Then the horse is scrubbed to within an inch of its life, then sprayed with all sorts to replace the shine that has been removed.
Thorough daily grooming would produce a beautiful coat with natural shine, but they don't have time it seems.
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obviously in the minority here! during summer i bath once/twice a week and wash off with water and slosh/small amount of shampoo after riding - in the winter if she sweats despite being clipped, will sponge girth area off with hot water and then hot cloth once a week. plus a groom every day, white legs get a good scrub every week, except in winter i just wash them before they need clipping.
 
I rarely bath them, but when it's hot I will stick the hose on them which they seem to like, would only really bath the coloured one if shes minging and is going to a show tho even at that more likely to wash what's required out of a bucket, instead of the full works.
 
mine do get body brushed daily but theres no way i, or the girl that helps me, has time to spend 45mins doing it. nice luxury if you can do it but for people that work etc, i dont think many would manage it.

having never not bathed mine(they get hot clothed in winter) i have no idea what they would be like if left alone but i handle a lot of horses on yards i teach at and some of the horses i see are absolutely coated in filth and as soon as they start working and sweating, stink.

i completely agree that what you put in (feed wise) results in the shine you see on the outside to a certain extent but am slightly disbelieving of all these miracle horses that never get bathed or groomed but are apparently clean,despite living in the UK where we have plenty of good old mud 99% of the year.......................im not expecting every horse to pass the white glove test but if i give something a quick scratch or forehead rub and my hand comes away coated in thick grease and grit, that aint clean! similarly, if i can smell the stable stains before i see the horse, that is not clean either.......

its entirely up to people and if the horse is living out un-rugged it needs the grease as protection, so not knocking that but feel the definition of clean may need revising and that some people may have their rose tinted specs on......

their is clean as in fully functioning healthy skin albeit under a thick layer of grease,mud etc and then there is clean in terms of fresh smelling, grease free coat.
 
Prince33Sp4rkle said:
mine get hosed down after every ride in this weather and probably shampoo'd once or twice a week and always before shows.

manes and tails get done at least once a week and legs daily if white.

i cant believe any horse not bathed for years is clean.....which is fine if they live out but must be fairly minging and greasy to handle.
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I'm in this camp.

In the winter the will get bathed night before hunting, and then again after hunting, if we hunt twice a week that is four times a week. In the summer I do it as and when - I couldn't do with greasy dirty horses - they would make a mess of the tack and the saddle pads.
 
We don't bath 'Just for the sake of it', but we go to shows most weekends & as we have a grey he needs a bath to remove the poo stains. Additionally we work him hard & he is hosed off after work if the weather is warm & he's been sweating. Most mornings when he comes out of his stable he is sponged to remove poo stains, not for looks, more to help to keep the flies off him.
 
Prince33Sp4rkle said:
mine do get body brushed daily but theres no way i, or the girl that helps me, has time to spend 45mins doing it. nice luxury if you can do it but for people that work etc, i dont think many would manage it.

having never not bathed mine(they get hot clothed in winter) i have no idea what they would be like if left alone but i handle a lot of horses on yards i teach at and some of the horses i see are absolutely coated in filth and as soon as they start working and sweating, stink.

i completely agree that what you put in (feed wise) results in the shine you see on the outside to a certain extent but am slightly disbelieving of all these miracle horses that never get bathed or groomed but are apparently clean,despite living in the UK where we have plenty of good old mud 99% of the year.......................im not expecting every horse to pass the white glove test but if i give something a quick scratch or forehead rub and my hand comes away coated in thick grease and grit, that aint clean! similarly, if i can smell the stable stains before i see the horse, that is not clean either.......

its entirely up to people and if the horse is living out un-rugged it needs the grease as protection, so not knocking that but feel the definition of clean may need revising and that some people may have their rose tinted specs on......

their is clean as in fully functioning healthy skin albeit under a thick layer of grease,mud etc and then there is clean in terms of fresh smelling, grease free coat.
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To be honest, I really don't care if my horse is slightly greasy. She's healthy, has a beautiful shiny sleek coat, and has all her natural oils. I can wash my hands after handling her. ;-)
 
I bathe mine the first sunny day after the winter to get rid out the build up of gunk/grease and then the dark bay would be done if she was very muddy prior to a show as brushing it out just causes a film of dust to fall on her coat and she still looks manky. The bright bay looks clean after a brushing so she gets less frequent bathing. Just as and when and weather depending!
 
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