How to get dust off a dark bay?

MatHalTed

Well-Known Member
Joined
11 August 2023
Messages
128
Visit site
So a few weeks ago I purchased a lovely 4 rising 5 year old, she's a very dark bay, which when freshly bathed looks stunning. However, when dry she just always looks dusty, no matter how much I groom or how often I bathe her. All of my other horses have been a red or mahogany shade of bay, and one dappled grey, and dust seemed to show up a lot less on these coats. Any tips would be greatly appreciated, I've been spending hours grooming her and honestly she looks dirtier once I've finished than she did at the start.
Little picture of her after a bath attached for horse tax.
IMG_8187-min.jpeg
 
Hot cloth. Don’t add any oil it traps the dust.

Depends on how hardcore you want to be, thorough rubber curry comb and body brush will remove grease and promote shine.

I don’t bother anymore because thankfully I don’t groom at high level but we kept horses rugged all the time. One to keep them clean but also keeping them warm keeps the coat flat and looking shinier. One person I groomed for in the south of France kept some kind of rug on hers even in the summer. It was pants for the horses but they did shine.
 
If she's rugged a good groom with a body brush- cleaning the brush on a metal curry comb every few strokes. It may take a few (dozen) goes to brush all of the dust out.
Strapping can also help.
 
Wipe her over with a cloth using warm water and a dash of dettol. If she is rugged use a cotton (100% cotton not polyester) sheet next to her body and other rugs on top.
 
Rubber curry and body brush and then finish off with a flick brush. Hot clothing when you need that extra shine is also good.
 
Dilute detol on damp cloth rubbed wrong way into coat works brilliantly and doesn’t need repeating too often. It reduces scurf in coat though so probably more appropriate in summer.
 
I feed linseed lozenges which I buy in individual bags for £1.25 a time from the local feed merchant. They are great for glossy coats. A bag lasts me a few days.
if i need weight gain I by the 20kg bags of linseed lozenges - much cheaper.

To get a real shin/dust free coat I use a combination of hot clothing and strapping. I use old tea towels to start with and then micro-fibre clothes to lift the remaining surface dust. I show from the field at county level with decent results - I mean I'll never beat the professionals with all the gear but we hold our own pretty well.
 
So a few weeks ago I purchased a lovely 4 rising 5 year old, she's a very dark bay, which when freshly bathed looks stunning. However, when dry she just always looks dusty, no matter how much I groom or how often I bathe her. All of my other horses have been a red or mahogany shade of bay, and one dappled grey, and dust seemed to show up a lot less on these coats. Any tips would be greatly appreciated, I've been spending hours grooming her and honestly she looks dirtier once I've finished than she did at the start.
Little picture of her after a bath attached for horse tax.
View attachment 156320
Wow she is gorgeous. As some one else has suggested hot cloth but put a bit of lavender wash in the water first, it really does help make them shine.
 
Top