Rosie and the Clippers...

[Minidreamz0581]

As little Miss Muffet
Sat on her tuffet
Her winter fur tried to stay
But momma said no
That it had to go
She would clip it all away

But something went wrong
The clippers weren’t strong
It turns out they weren’t very tough
The process went on
For very very long
And Miss Muffet had enough

So momma will try today
And she’ll likely pay
A small fortune for clippers so strong
That they’ll persevere
From the front to the rear
And clip Muffet’s fur till it’s gone!


I thought that with all the stress and sadness of the current pandemic scare, everyone might get a laugh out of Rosie and my clipper issues! The day after our first clipping incident I was actually able to get the clippers working better and finish the job. She looks quite choppy, so I plan on giving her a bath in a week or so and re-clipping her to smooth things out.

For those who have more clipping experience than me, what is your best clipping mishap story? What are the best tips and tricks you’ve found?

Lastly; no, her name is not Miss Muffet...that was just for the poem Her name is Princess Rosalind.

 

[Ryan Johnson]

This is Gr8, thank you for putting this up. I hope everyone is staying safe during this terrible time.

Who better than our little minis , to put a smile on our dials

 

[Marsha Cassada]

There once was a horse named Miss Muffet
Who looked like a very plush tuffet.
The clippers were weak
Miss Muffet not meek
So Miss Muffet remained a tuffet!

 

[Minidreamz0581]

Oh Marsha that’s hilarious! I love it!

Of course, right after I clipped Rosie we got an unexpected cold front 30 degrees Fahrenheit with snow. Thankfully I have little miss bundled up in her pretty purple blanket. She must feel so much better without all the fur though because she’s been a little spitfire ever since! I was concerned about her body condition under all that fluff so I’m very happy to be able to see how she looks instead of just feeling. It’s supposed to warm back up in a few days so she’ll be grateful for the lack of fluff! I’m glad everyone is enjoying our crazy clipper story



The first pic is Muffet looking like a tuffet, then some pics of post tuffet Muffet!

 

[Marsha Cassada]

The cold is what happened when I clipped Dapper Dan. I haven't done Midnight yet; we are supposed to be 30 degrees on Monday. Hopefully after that she will get sheared.

 

[Pitter Patter]

I have one stallion mini for a couple of years now that I inherited basically. I just purchased 3 mares (I went looking for a friend for the stallion as he will be gelded soon and couldn't say no!). I never realized people clip their minis at all. My stallion sheds his winter coat. Should I be clipping/shaving all my minis? Or is it based on locale? I am in a chilly zone of Northern Lower Michigan and it's still regularly in the 30's, dipping lower at night.

 

[Minidreamz0581]

Hi Pitter Patter! I’m very new to this clipping stuff myself. I have one older mare (turning 17 in a few days but you would swear she’s in her 30’s...premature aging due to a host of medical problems) who doesn’t grow a sleek summer coat anymore. For some reason she gets a particularly fluffy summer coat and since she’s a dark color she really bakes in the summer, so last year I body clipped her for the first time. With Rosie, it’s been very warm very early where in central PA this year and the poor little thing has been baking. She grows a very very very thick winter coat that was shedding slowly (minis are known for finally shedding out just in time for growing in their new winter fur!) so I went ahead and clipped the little girl except for her legs so that she could cool down. Of course we’ve had a cold snap so I’ve had to blanket her, but it’s going to get warm again soon and I’m glad she has less fluff.

My gelding Coady though, he’s been shedding steadily since January and looking great, so I doubt I’ll clip him as he normally grows in a nice summer coat by mid May. If I had the kind of set up that I could work him more I might consider clipping him so that he doesn’t get too hot when I work him. If your little ones aren’t in work and grow nice summer coats on their own within a reasonable time frame (late May early June) you shouldn’t have to clip them. It all depends on workload, weather, how their particular shedding cycle is and of course personal preference

 

[Pitter Patter]

Thanks! I thought I might be neglectful! I only have clipped one horse and that was because I "inherited" a very sickly old gelding with Cushing's. He had a whole host of other problems too and was just miserable. Not even sure he'd been groomed in the past several years because I was using clippers I found he had old dried skin patches that had been growing over nasty, rank hair and had skin infections. He absolutely loved getting cleaned up and was so patient with this novice! Do most people trim mane for bridle/halter path? My mini's have so much mane it's crazy!Don't even know I can braid the front it's so thick. Any ideas?

 

[Bluebell2]

I clip a bridle path for the horses that I drive, just because it makes it easier for me to get the bridle fit. About the middle of every winter when that hair is sticking straight up and out I wish I didn't do that. Haa. I have 2 oldies pushing 30 yrs and I need to body clip the 1 but the other gets by nicely with just a head clip. The rest of my herd sheds out nicely.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

I tried #7 blade on Midnight yesterday. Her coat is not very thick so I'm not sure what to think about #7. I used #10 on her legs and face as the #7 didn't seem right. I have to comment that she seemed to enjoy the whole process. I even clipped around her ears and under the chin. she's kind of bony at the jaw and the clippers probably vibrate/resonate there, so she wasn't as comfortable with that area. I think this is the second time she's been clipped in her life.
She was not shedding; even the "grooming ninja" wasn't taking any off.

 

[ravenwoodfarm]

How did you do around the ears and forelock? Looking for the protocol for doing this.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

How did you do around the ears and forelock? Looking for the protocol for doing this.

If the forelock is really thick you can trim underneath. Also inward from the ears. (Be careful or a false move could be serious! I've known people who had the horse move his head and they ended up glueing the forelock on for a show!) I've experimented with clipping up from the forehead and less between the ears, and less on the forehead and farther forward between the ears. Depends on how wild the forelock is. You can remove the blade from the clipper and comb through the forelock to thin it. Better to clip starting at the edge of the forelock and work toward the ear; if he moves suddenly you are less likely to take too much forelock than if you clip inward toward the forelock from the ear.
I also like the pinch the ears together and zip the clipper up to tidy the edges of the ears. Just whatever you think looks nice and what your horse will tolerate. I don't usually trim inside the ears unless there they are particularly thick and hairy.
One of my horses has a serious forelock and I work on it. The other has a normal forelock and requires minimal tidying.
I use a #10 blade, as I'm not showing but it gives them a tidy look.
I think for shows, some people keep the forelock the size of a quarter. That is way too extreme for me.
Maybe others will chime in with their techniques.

 

[MindySchroder]

@Minidreamz0581 Your poem is awesome! LOL! I have totally been there. I had a set of clippers absolutely die on me after clipping only half the pony. Not a great day!

I did a trace clip on my two yesterday. I don't feel it's going to be warm enough for a full body clip but they have been sweating just standing in the track. And I wanted to get them out and go for a long walk this week, but the heat can give Zorro the run and that day he had them, so we just did a short walk. I figured getting some hair off would help with that!

This is called an Irish Trace Clip. I think it looks pretty cute!


Here's to getting back out there!!

 

[MerMaeve]

Great poem! Gotta love quarantine, spending a lot of time in a poem about your mini and clippers.