CLIPPING 



Clipping. — It is customary to clip the coats of most 

 light horses, such as hunters and carriage horses, during the 

 winter months. The reason for this is that it is much easier 

 to dry and groom an animal that has had his long coat 

 removed than it is to attend to an undipped one ; whilst 

 it may be added that horses look better with their coats off, 

 and get over the ground at a fast rate without sweating 

 nearly so much. Of course, it is not invariably necessary to 

 clip a horse if appearances only are studied, as a prolonged 

 course of daily grooming, very warm stables, and an extra 

 allowance of clothing will accomplish much in the way of 

 keeping the coat fine and short. It is not, however, every 

 groom that can spare the additional time to his horses of a 

 morning, whilst the hot stabling and heavy clothing increase 

 the chances of their taking cold when out-of-doors, so it is 

 the best and safest course to apply the scissors. Horses 

 which have been clipped should not be allowed to stand about 

 more than is absolutely necessary when at work, and if it 

 is impossible to avoid their doing so, a rug, or at least a loin 

 cloth, should be placed over them to minimise the prospect 

 of chills being contracted. 



As a rule it is not necessary to clip a horse before his 

 winter coat is fully grown, but circumstances alter cases, and 

 not only do the coats of some horses come on faster than 

 others, but the warmth or coolness of the season naturally 

 affects the growth ; still, the end of October is about the 

 usual time for operations to commence. 



A good deal of experience is required to clip a horse 

 properly, and if the work is badly done the appearance of 

 the animal is simply ruined. It is absolutely necessary, 

 therefore, to be sure of the ability of the clipper before 

 allowing him to get to work, and therefore if an owner has 

 any doubts as regards the competency of his own man, the 

 wisest course for him to adopt is to engage a professional 

 clipper, as the few shillings charged will be well laid out. 

 Of late years the difficulty of clipping a horse has been 

 largely reduced by the manufacture of specially designed 



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