Best clip for cold weather driving?

[Blackwater Farm]

Hi all! I was wondering what would be the best clip to use for winter driving? My geldings hair has a tendancy to get caught in some of the buckles and it takes him forever to dry if he sweats. Would a basic trace clip work? Would I have to blanket him? He goes outside during the day but goes inside at night. If anyone has pics or some links to pics that would be great too! I live in southeast NC so it doesnt get too cold here! Thanks!

 

[MiLo Minis]

A trace high clip is exactly what is in order and that is where the term originated from - you clip up to the traces (leaving the legs) which removes the hair in places that the horse mainly sweats allowing for quicker cooling. You need to use your best judgement on whether or not he needs blanketing afterwards. He will have hair on top to keep him warm on the better days but may need blanketing on some colder/stormier days. He will still need to be blanketed and cooled out immediately after working of course.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Whether or not he requires blanketing afterwards depends on how much you clip off, how long a blade you use and what your weather is like.

I often start with only clipping a "T" shape between the front legs and up behind each elbow, just enough to give a "ventilation shaft"

and clear the hair away from the girth buckles. In January this is often all he needs for the kind of light work I'm doing at that time of year.

If it's still cold out I'll do any of these clips with an 8 or better yet a 7F blade so even the clipped areas still have enough hair to protect the horse but the worst of the fuzz is gone. I will use those blades in March to do a complete trace clip of whatever height seems effective and suitable and then in April when it really warms up I'll switch to a 10. It's hard with the minis to decide when to blanket because unlike a full-sized horse being clipped and stabled, the minis have so much hair where they aren't clipped that I imagine a blanket is very uncomfortable. I usually let them tell me but try to have a waterproof blanket on hand that isn't overly warm but comes down quite far to cover the belly and upper legs.

Even when I do a full trace clip it's my preference to leave the rump completely hairy except for inside the hind legs until true warm weather hits as I don't do enough work to justify leaving the large muscles back there exposed. I do a Nike swoop thing from the groin up over the belly, up the outside of the shoulder, lower half of the neck and then up to behind the ears and the head and that works well for us. Once that sort of clip is done I do typically need to blanket though as with our damp weather the horse simply doesn't have enough protection when standing out in the paddock.

Leia