Clipping a cob with attitude....

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hcgascoigne

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I have a 15hh coloured cob who has a lot of feather and a lot of attitude. He is brilliant in almost every way except clipping his legs. He will let me clip his whole body, face even his ears with no fuss but if I try and do his legs he turns into monster horse (lashing out, rearing etc)! I have tried everything: food bribery, a twitch, sedalin, holding a leg up etc.... I don't really want to go down the IV sedation route because it's very expensive and his hair grows back so quickly that I would be paying several hundred pounds a year (which I can't afford!!) just to keep his legs clipped. I clip them because when they are long he is prone to scabs and mites but is presently scab and mite free. Also he has a hogged mane and looks so much smarter when he is fully clipped. At my last yard (back home in Manchester, I'm in Norfolk now) he was clipped by two members of the local hunt and he rarely caused them any trouble they had a 'quiet word' with him at the beginning and he would stand and let them do it. He is six and has been clipped since he was four. He is just very very bolshy it comes to clipping his legs!

So...my questions are:

1. What options do I have in trying to get his legs clipped other than IV sedation (I am willing to take on long term suggestions such as clicker training etc)

2. If I want to show him in the forthcoming season (local level not county) will I be okay showing him with a hogged mane but full feather or will I be punished for this?
 
Ok,I am sure someone into showing more than me would be best, but I am pretty sure you need to be either traditional ie full mane etc and feathered legs or clipped out and hogged. Otherwise the look is incomplete.
If it was me i would do more desensitisation with him for long term gain. It may well be that he had to put up with a lot of discomfort if he is prone to mites and gets scabs and is then clipped. By what you say he doesnt mind being clipped until it hurts(who can blame him?) Find out about clicker training: the down side of "a quiet word" is that it reinforces the unpleasantness and as a young horse he may mature and decide to fight that as well. So much better to be patient (not soft) but remove as many of the negatives as your cob sees it and work on reducing fear and associations of discomfort. It may well be something that takes some time, but with patience and the right method you should be ok. Having a reliably happy horse is also very much safer for the person doing the clipping.
 
You would need to either show as a show cob - legs and mane off, or as a traditional with feathers, mane and tail left natural.

Rather than sedate him for clipping have you thought of getting a Monty Roberts/Kelly Marks associate out to help you? They have very good results with difficult to be clipped horses.
 
Just out of interest, have you tried cutting the majority off with scissors first then using "mini" clippers which are a lot quieter.
I have a cob who was an absolute prat to clip his legs, same predicament as yourself, his hair grows back terribly quick too and prone to scabby heels.
I did the above to start off with then gradually increased up to the heavy duty ones, hes still a bit twitchy now down the back legs but nothing a big bucket of feed and a haynet doesnt sort out!
 
Thanks everyone.

I thought he would have to be one or the other with the showing it's not a problem really. If I can't sort out the clipping issue then I'll do a few classes as a practice this year and re-evaluate for next season.

I'll have a further look into clicker training and the Michael Peace DVD.
Jodie3 do you have anymore info on Monty Roberts/Kelly Marks associates? I confess I've never heard of them.
 
Ho hum! Poor you - have a smilar minded heavy weight cob of 15hh. He had had really bad mites before we got him and has very folded skin on his legs and does not appreciate intervention of the electric clipper kind...however, after IV sedating hime twice to clip them, he will now tolerate the lovely and no messing lady who clips him to clip down the back of his legs to just above his knees. i then get the scissors and comb out and get snipping - arduous but less dangerous for all concerned. He is not shown and has a bushy mane that he does not like being hogged and I come it every day and i plait it when he goes out. He is so good at everything else! for showing i would imagine everything has to come off legs and mane if shown as a cob? Good luck!
 
my cob is like that! not quite so bad though, he just about lets me do his legs when twitched.
he has got a lot better each time I do his legs, not sure on advice though...
I think it's just desensitization, and being sympathetic but firm...

My cob is actually worse when sedated than twitched.
 
Your boy sounds lie my old man!! He has major issues with being clipped at his legs. It has taken about 5years, he is sedated just with ACPs to do his body, his legs are his main issues but what we do with his legs ishave him sedated him with ACPs giving lots of time for it to take effect he fights it! (look for him relaxing his nether regions!!) and then we also twitch him at same time, we also clip him when no one is around so it is quiet and in the barn where he cant see anything else. It is now not so bad but it has taken 5 years, although sometimes it is still hard but we just take time. Good luck.
 
Having owned a cob who had a major attitude problem when it came to brushing his legs nevermind clipping them my only piece of advise is take your time and don’t give up :) It worked with Billy although sometimes I would get 3 legs done and he would be right back to square one on the 4th leg… I often found myself having to go back to it the following day and him looking like a total plonker for a night lol
 
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