'old fashion' things you still do ...

I have black tack which is relatively new fangled to me! No colours apart from the cream sheepskin/black numnah.

Use a metal curry comb, and have a heap of dust when grooming.

Girth is tightened gradually and loosened the last ten minutes of a ride.

I love making boiled feeds, but sadly no need with a very good doer. :(

Keep tack to a minimum, might not be old fashioned, but I can't be doing with all the extra cleaning!

Mixing glycerine saddle soap with milk to eek it out, although I don't tend to use glycerine any more.
 
Toffee44 said:
I still use a metal curry comb and body brush, never see anyone do that?

Thatch

Surcingles prefer bottom layer rug to have none and put a elastic surcingle on top

And I think if I were to go hunting I would make a warm bran for the evening and use stable bandages.
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I was doing that today on a scurfy scruffy pony the body brush thing
I thatch
pull manes
pare feet
dont feed cereals so dont do the cooked bit but used to
bandage when traveling with gamgee or now a days with pads as gamgee is hard to get and expensive
use tail bandages not guards or sometimes both
 
In the hunting field, Ribbons down are only for hunt staff and the Master, so I assume that is wear it comes from!

Our horses are mainly hunters, so do have a holiday, (mine is being an eventer this year though) Havana tack, numnah (all tho I only use when hunting as have lots of squares from my showjumping days!) manes get pulled, they get fed for the work they are doing, they are in hard work in the season, they get hacked and most important mine gets 4-6 weeks of walk work on roads if starting to get fit again after a holiday! And depending on the hunt meet she gets plaited with thread. And my reins etc always get looped through the throat lash can't stand it when they aren't! And girth taken off and numnah/pad taken off and then upside down on saddle to air.
 
I still ride in my pull on leather boots...no zips, laces or yard/riding boot combos...just pull on boots.
Hair in a hairnet.
Tie up my leadropes
Ask my horse to move back from the stable door before I enter, there are girls at the yard that think its a trick ive taught my horse...whilst they are being mugged and barged out the way or squished against the stable wall.
When schooling doing serpentines, half halts and knowing how big a 20m circle is!
Allowing a horse to walk on a long rein when cooling down.
Bringing a horse in to rest from the field before riding.
 
Great to see such a wide range of 'old fashioned' things still being done!

One not mentioned - I was taught to firmly pat the saddle area, once the saddle was removed, to help increase circulation (?)

We also have an ancient electric horse 'groomer' which is fantastic for getting rid of dust in the coat. I get absolutely covered! Worse than clipping lol
 
TandD said:
ahah! its more the fact every horse i see has some sort of *bling*: browband, headcollar, saddle cloth, saddle! hat, jumpers, brushes, rugs.......ughhhh i am the only boring person in this world? black with nothing else seems VERY old now!

*bling* was made to be worn round the neck and wrist and on the ears (human ears)....that is where it should stay!
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I have boring havanna, and NO bling anywhere ;) The Gelding doesn't want bling, nor does me ;)
 
AFlapjack said:
One not mentioned - I was taught to firmly pat the saddle area, once the saddle was removed, to help increase circulation (?)
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You mean people don't??
T'was a golden rule where I trained, it's just completely automatic now. Also smoothing along the back before putting the saddle on to check for lumps and hot-spots.
 
I was taught to do a lot of the things people mention, and this has been a bit of a trip down memory lane, but I never knew about hot cloths. Wet or dry? To finish off as a stable rubber? I'd love to know
 
I still use the bar of glycerine soap and 'spit'!! My daughter looks at me with horror when I do this! So relieved to know its not just me.
I also do my girth up gradually, loosen off for last ten minutes, pat the back when removing the saddle. Also I remember ringing in my ears " never put a horse out with a saddle and bridle mark". So I ALWAYS wash off or brush well. I'd feel terrible if you could see tack marks!!
 
JillA said:
I was taught to do a lot of the things people mention, and this has been a bit of a trip down memory lane, but I never knew about hot cloths. Wet or dry? To finish off as a stable rubber? I'd love to know
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Hot cloths were always wet but wrung out until almost dry - it's the moist heat that lifts the dirt/stain. Brilliant way of getting a horse clean if its too cold/not convenient to bathe. Fill bucket with hot water (as hot as you can stand) with a dash of vinegar. Soak the cloth and then wring out to almost dry. Rub gently over the required bits of the horse's coat until the cloth is dirty and/or has gone cold. Easiest to use 2 cloths - one soaking in the bucket whilst the other is on the horse. Best cloth material is linen (we never seem to have any linen teatowels in our kitchen, funny that!:D)

Finishing off with a stable rubber: - fold up linen cloth or similar into a pad and lightly smooth over the coat after grooming. Slightly damp takes off more dust and loose hair.
 
I love metal curry combs, have managed to go through three at work in the last 1-2 months because I get carried away banging them on the wall to get the dust off and they snap :o

What do you mean by making a square of dust?
 
Right... this is really sad but when putting on leg bandages I still put the start of it up at an angle so that it can be tucked in on the next round.... sounds really complicated but the only way I can describe it (it's a bit like when you go to a hotel and the maid folds over the loo roll):o
 
millreef said:
Right... this is really sad but when putting on leg bandages I still put the start of it up at an angle so that it can be tucked in on the next round.... sounds really complicated but the only way I can describe it (it's a bit like when you go to a hotel and the maid folds over the loo roll):o
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I do that - and with tail bandages. And I put my stirrups up, then the main part of the leathers doubled under and the end through that and through the keeper. People look at me as though I have just come up with a new invention ;)
 
JillA said:
And I put my stirrups up, then the main part of the leathers doubled under and the end through that and through the keeper. People look at me as though I have just come up with a new invention ;)
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ooh yes - and then do you put the ends of the unbuckled girth through the irons to keep it all neat and together (with the now detached numnah upside down over the top of course!!!)


I've just thought of something else that drives me crazy if it's not done - folding rugs in half and laying them across the withers gently, then folding them out along the back - then there are no clips flying about to bang the legs and the horses's coat isn't ruffled by rugs being jiggled about.
 
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I hereby declare myself to be totally old fashioned as all of these things are 'normal'.
Is it just me or have metal curry combs gone down in quality? I still have one from the late 60s that is still going strong. The handles keep falling off the newer ones.... I am stick of trying to stick them back on. :o
 
tankgirl1 said:
When hacking out always make sure you take bailing twine and a hoof pick - served me well when I fell off and broke a rein :D
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And two pence in your jodphur pocket to ring home in an emergency !:D

ETA Do pretty much everthing mentioned here . And always Havana tack , black was always for driving horses . I WILL come back in fashion one day .
 
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I always put my rugs halfway up the neck do the front up then slide it back before doing up the straps. I also put the saddle right up the neck and slide it back to position, then I pull the numnah up into the gullet, then girth up loosely at first. You don't see any of that much any more. If the saddle/rug is in the wrong place, it just gets dragged into position, even if that means going against the coat.

I always use leather headcollars (cheap ones for turning out in, quality ones for general use) - I hate nylon ones with a passion, and would never turn out in a nylon headcollar. I understand they make car tow ropes from the same stuff, and they rarely break - go figure! I used to love those cotton webbing halters with built in lead rope, but you never see them any more.

I muck out nearly every day, and always leave the bed up so the floor can dry out, even if she's in during the day.

I've got a folding hoof pick in my pocket which goes everywhere with me, even to the field and back.

Plaiting bands - don't even go there!

I've never mastered the art of wisp-making though - I know the principles but they always fall apart once I start weaving!
 
Open doors for a females including car doors.
Stand up when a female leaves the table.
Wait for everyone to be served before eating.
But I guess you were looking for horse related old fashion things :)

Walk a short distance before and after hacking with ned.
Use stockholm tar.
 
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