How many of you clean your geldings crown jewels?

CobSunshine

CobSunshine

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Many people on the yard tell me i should to prevent smegma build up and "the bean"

how many people actually do?

Before we tamed horses no one did it so is it essential for long term health?
 
CobSunshine said:
Many people on the yard tell me i should to prevent smegma build up and "the bean"

how many people actually do?

Before we tamed horses no one did it so is it essential for long term health?
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I thought geldings didn't have crown jewels:confused:;)

I have a gelding and a stallion, I don't clean either of them.
 
I have a gelding and leave well alone. I doubt very much horses in the wild have theirs cleaned and they seem to manage fine! As does my lad infact. I expect I'd have my head booted off if I tried it too!
 
Before we tamed horses we didn't have geldings.
Riding a mare at the moment so I don't need to worry about it, but I have cleaned a gelding for his owner when it looked a bit dry and flaky.
I guess if it gets to the flaky stage it would be uncomfortable for the horse.

Craig
 
Whilst it's true we didn't have geldings most boys in the wild wouldn't be covering mares most of the time and therefore I'm not sure I see much difference.

I don't clean my castrated dogs penis either FWIW!
 
yes I do as a build up of smegma can smell unpleasant and also attract flies.

I use water only though no products and do it just when I can see the "tar"on his legs or tummy.

He does not mind at all, I also peel off the dead skin when he has it out which is quite often in the summer.
 
I've never touched a geldings bits in 30 years and never had a problem. It's a new fad, which I reckon was dreamed up by marketers so they can sell people a willy-cleaner product.
 
I just give my boys a squirt with a hose every now and then if im washing him of or giving him a bath. Would get booted to the moon and back if I tried to clean his bits. Tried it once but never again. If it looks really flaky in the summer he lets me pull the worst of it off, but I dont interfere much.
 
Was advised not to touch 'down below' unless there's a problem - ie smelly or causing discomfort in some way. I keep an eye on things and it all looks ok to me! :rolleyes:
 
I had to the other week the smell was awful!!

Now he will be checked again in 2 weeks just to make sure there is no problems then left alone!!
 
I read a thread recently about "THE BEAN", so peered below, and there it was. I gloved up and reached down, but he squealed with such shock, that I thought better of it and left him looking a bit embarassed.
 
No not as in physically cleaning it... I just squirt baby oil on it periodically when it's hanging and it cleans it self. Never any flaky bits and always looks clean and never smelly...
 
i like my head attached to my shoulders!!! My old YO did it once for me when my boy had been heavily sedated to be endoscoped, he was still trying to kick her then. so no i don't and as i have never had a problem i wouldn't in the future either (as a matter of course, if the vet suggested it of course i would)
 
I do when it gets a bit smelly or is covered in shavings. He actually really enjoys it :o

In the wild there were no geldings and covering mares would have cleaned it natures way!

Dogs can reach and clean their own bits, horses can't!
 
Hi
I had one gelding spotlessly clean and never cleaned him,and wouldnt have even crossed my mind to. My old boy probably couple times a year as he gets really, really crusty, I put on gloves and use some warm water with udder cream or similar oilatum etc and just give it a good wipe. It stinks(beans yes know what you mean) and I dont know where it goes (it disappears and he doesnt seem to mind at all, it goes straight back in and its a fist disappearing job, I sort of wipe up the sides inside)! But I agree we never use to do all this, but he lives out 24/7 un ruggged etc very au naturelle. I probably only did it as my farrier told me to clean it(& it is quite crusty all over big flakes etc)! But I have seen other owners slap on some ie udder cream when its dangling out.

If he was clean I would definitely leave well alone. I am sure you could end up causing a problem if it was done on a regular basis.
 
soulfull said:
In the wild there were no geldings and covering mares would have cleaned it natures way!

Dogs can reach and clean their own bits, horses can't!
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Actually, covering is NOT an efficient way of keeping a stallion clean - it certainly keeps the shaft of the penis clean but it does NOTHING for a build-up of smegma within the sheath. It probably prevents 'the bean' forming - although just a couple of weeks ago I gave my young (not yet covering) stallion a good clean and removed a HUGE bean.

The 'in the wild' argument is totally invalid! Wild horses don't live in stables, they don't work on surfaces - and no-one cares if they die!!

My vet sees at LEAST half a dozen cases a year of what LOOKS like early colic (kicking belly, biting flanks) and finds maggots in the sheath which are actually eating into the horses 'boy bits'!!
 
I think that once you start it soils the natural cleaning process and you need to keep doing the unpleasant job, so I leave well alone! The only horses with problems I have seen are those that have been fiddled with.
 
JanetGeorge said:
Actually, covering is NOT an efficient way of keeping a stallion clean - it certainly keeps the shaft of the penis clean but it does NOTHING for a build-up of smegma within the sheath. It probably prevents 'the bean' forming - although just a couple of weeks ago I gave my young (not yet covering) stallion a good clean and removed a HUGE bean.

The 'in the wild' argument is totally invalid! Wild horses don't live in stables, they don't work on surfaces - and no-one cares if they die!!

My vet sees at LEAST half a dozen cases a year of what LOOKS like early colic (kicking belly, biting flanks) and finds maggots in the sheath which are actually eating into the horses 'boy bits'!!
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Thanks for that Janet!

I was mis informed :p
 
Wagtail said:
I think that once you start it soils the natural cleaning process and you need to keep doing the unpleasant job, so I leave well alone! The only horses with problems I have seen are those that have been fiddled with.
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I'm afraid you're totally wrong! My youngsters virtually never get cleaned as yearling colts - when they are doped for castration and it all hangs out I usually get VERY embarrassed by the guck and make a mental note to check even yearlings (I never get round to it - so I continue to be embarrassed!)

The 'natural cleaning process' includes covering (most boys don't get the chance); heavy sweating, and crossing rivers. Squirting a hose into the sheath when a horse is very hot certainly helps remove lumps of smegma than have been loosened by sweat!

Squirting water into and around the sheath is also a very good way of getting boys ready for handling in that area - and once they accept it, it's far easier to check the state of the sheath - just keep the water on the sheath while inserting your hand or a brand new car cleaning sponge doused in warm water only (they're great for sheath cleaning - but they must be VERY clean!)
 
JanetGeorge said:
My vet sees at LEAST half a dozen cases a year of what LOOKS like early colic (kicking belly, biting flanks) and finds maggots in the sheath which are actually eating into the horses 'boy bits'!!
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Isn't that strange. My vet said to leave well alone unless there was an obvious problem so can only assume that they don't see at least half a dozen cases of maggots in the sheath. I wouldn't have thought there was much up there for maggots to eat really given that they only eat rotting flesh. Unless you're suggesting these horses have fly strike?
 
jesstickle said:
Isn't that strange. My vet said to leave well alone unless there was an obvious problem so can only assume that they don't see at least half a dozen cases of maggots in the sheath. I wouldn't have thought there was much up there for maggots to eat really given that they only eat rotting flesh. Unless you're suggesting these horses have fly strike?
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Fly strike is exactly what they have!! Flies happily lay eggs in any dirty part of an animal they can find on a living animal that provides 'cover' and a food source for the maggots! Sheep are the BEST target - because they have lots of wool which is often faeces stained (moist and smelly!) But a gelding's 'bits' are JUST as moist and smelly - and a gelding with a dirty sheath is often slow to retract after urination! Fly lands and lays some eggs - they do very nicely up there.

(And what on earth makes you think maggots only eat rotting flesh??)
 
I regularly check but rarely clean the boys bits. I alway check for a bean (and remove a very small one once every couple of months) and pick off any crusty bits. About twice a year they get a full clean, although not with any harsh chemicals.
 
I did it last year as the flies were bothering him there more than any other horse. He was abit shocked at first but no kicking or biting. There was no unpleasant smell either.
 
Every few months when I am giving my gelding a particularly good groom he pokes it out for me and lets me clean it. He isn't keep on my poking my fingers up his sheath tho so I only clean it when he wants me to!!!
 
JanetGeorge said:
Fly strike is exactly what they have!! Flies happily lay eggs in any dirty part of an animal they can find on a living animal that provides 'cover' and a food source for the maggots! Sheep are the BEST target - because they have lots of wool which is often faeces stained (moist and smelly!) But a gelding's 'bits' are JUST as moist and smelly - and a gelding with a dirty sheath is often slow to retract after urination! Fly lands and lays some eggs - they do very nicely up there.

(And what on earth makes you think maggots only eat rotting flesh??)
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Yikes, that must be really horrible for the horses that get it!! Poor old boys. As my vet is still adamant that I leave well alone unless there is a problem I won't be cleaning just yet but I might be keeping a closer eye on it now!

I guess because the maggots they use in hospital (which are from blowfly) preferentially eat decaying flesh. The ones that pick on horses must not though. Eughh.
 
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