Showing/grooming experts- help please?!

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littlen

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If you could help me plan for my first ever show this weekend I would be very grateful :)

- my mare is grey. I am hacking to the show and I'm worried she will be scruffy by the time we get there. Shall I bandage her legs to keep her clean?
Also do those stain remover sprays work, which ones are good?

- being grey she is not very shiny. Does anyone have any ideas how to give her a shine on the day? Those shine sprays look good but are expensive!!

- I am wearing brown tweed with cream jods. What colour gloves and tie would go ( would a lemon tie look awful?)

- do I wear a numnah or not. I have black tack so should it be black or white?

- are rubber reins a big no no, do they have to be leather. Can she wear a flash?

- finally, my hat is black. Would it matter much at local level or should I try and find a navy one?


Thank you all for your help in advance, sorry for the list if questions but I am a showing novice!
 
littlen said:
If you could help me plan for my first ever show this weekend I would be very grateful :)

- my mare is grey. I am hacking to the show and I'm worried she will be scruffy by the time we get there. Shall I bandage her legs to keep her clean?
Also do those stain remover sprays work, which ones are good?

- being grey she is not very shiny. Does anyone have any ideas how to give her a shine on the day? Those shine sprays look good but are expensive!!

- I am wearing brown tweed with cream jods. What colour gloves and tie would go ( would a lemon tie look awful?)

- do I wear a numnah or not. I have black tack so should it be black or white?

- are rubber reins a big no no, do they have to be leather. Can she wear a flash?

- finally, my hat is black. Would it matter much at local level or should I try and find a navy one?


Thank you all for your help in advance, sorry for the list if questions but I am a showing novice!
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unless its wet mud tracks you will be fine

sprays - cowboy magic is the best but expensive

show sheen is very good but again very expensive

brown gloves, yellow tie will be fine

no numnah for showing normally

reins and flash are class dependent i think

hat is fine for local level
 
She is an Arab ( shown naturally or so I've heard?)
I will be doing novice ridden, a small dressage test, tack and turnout and some fun classes possibly if we have time on the day!
It's only local level but I would like to be as correct as possible incase we ever get further one day :)
 
You will be fine hacking to the show, just take along some brushes and an old towel to rub off any sweat, plus your hoof oil. For showing, no numnah, leather reins and a normal cavesson noseband rather than a flash is normal, but it is better to use a flash than have her going round with her mouth open. If you have to use a numnah then it should be inconspicuous.

I think that a lemon tie wouldn't work, but it rather depends on the exact colour of your jacket. The overall effect that you are aiming for is well-dressed rather than "look at that".

Don't worry about using products to give her a shine on the day - being clean and well-groomed is more important. Wash off all the stable stains, make sure her tail isn't yellow and then brush and brush and brush. You will be amazed how much of a shine you can get from an hour's brushing.
 
Hi, it is a fact that greys don't shine so don't spend lots of money on expensive products. Instead as above make sure very clean and particularly the tail. A good tip on a white tail is to wash it, then whilst wet sprinkle talcolm powder into it and shake the tail. It is a cheap way of a good look.

By all means use a numnah but just a discreet one.

As above leather reins best but if you haven't got any don't stress it. Black hat fine - I showed for years wearing a black hat and won many classes - it is the horse that is being judged not your hat.

Main thing - enjoy!
 
Quick addition - just noticed you are doing the tack and turnout so take the numnah off for that class, take a piece of elastic or tape for your number rather than use the string the show provides and if you have a black or navy jacket find a flower for your button hole to match your tie. If you are after a different tie charity shops are excellent for hunting ties down.
 
As a fellow grey horse x mud monster owner I feel your pain! I would give her a super groom every day leading up to it (greys def can shine, just not as glitzy as darker colours and they need more elbow grease to get there), then give her a bath on the day before (I find boots value shampoo to be suprisingly good at getting the muck out), before bandaging for bed to try to guard against stable stains. I'm generally not a fan of expensive shampoos and shine sprays as I don't think they are often as good as they should be for the £ and I do hate the slicked silicony effect from alot of the sprays - a good healthy groomed shine I think is far more attractive to the eye and shows off her good natural condition rather than how much spray you have decided to buy! For any stable stains on the day, a damp sponge often gets them out, but if not then a touch of shampoo rubbed in and then rinsed off sorts them. A light spritz of detangler on manes and tails seems to help to keep the muck off and also helps your careful grooming last longer. A slick of hoof oil and you should be set! Watch out for eye bogies etc, a gentle wipe over her face and nose with a damp flannel makes an enormous diff to the overall effect, esp at the moment with it being a bit dryer and dusty.
Loads of luck and enjoy your day!
 
I remember asking a rider at Great Yorkshire what product she used on her horse to get the most amazing shine, she said she had bathed it using Panténe Ice Shine. It really did look amazing and very natural rather than the synthetic shine as mentioned above. Chalk is also good if you have a white grey, apply to damp legs and then bandage over the top overnight, remove bandages in morning and Voila, bright white legs. Cowboy magic is brilliant but yes, expensive. We use it on all our greys and Sami cost me a fortune getting the stuff in, also the Supreme products blue rinse for tails.

The main thing is for you both to enjoy it. You won't be the only one to have ridden in so just make sure you have the kit you need to spruce up when you get there, don't forget a damp cloth to wipe over just before you go in the ring. Don't forget to make sure the soles of your boots are clean before tack and turnout plus the stirrups/treads as they are checked.
 
and if you are trying to get a white tail clean - start washing on a daily basis 3 or 4 days running upto the show - it makes a huge difference. Post pictures after all your efforts! I liked the tip (from here) of putting baby oil through the tail - makes it shiny, very easy to comb through and smells lovely - although a friend has warned me about doing it under very dusty conditions..

my grey shines - not as much as the dark bays but still shines!
 
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