When Cleo first came into my life three years ago, I asked a professional groom for her secret. How should I try to keep my gray horse from getting dirty? Her answer: don’t. And three years later, having tried every product, researched every technique and received a PhD in Poop Stains, the truth is that she was right!
I let Cleo get as dirty as she likes in the off season and between shows, with the exception of her tail—I try and bathe that at least weekly to keep the oldest hairs from yellowing at the bottom. A week before an event, I start bathing her tail every day, and leaving whitening shampoo in it for a few minutes, then using a conditioner by Pantene Pro-V for people with gray hair. A few days before the show she gets full-on purple baths every day, leaving the shampoo on for 10 minutes or so—just enough time for her to be royally annoyed.
By the time we get to the show her baseline is very white and shiny, and if I keep her stall clean and cover her in a fly sheet at night, I rarely need to give her a full-on bath before the class.
Yesterday was Day 1 of the Bathing Bonanza, and Cleo was her usual whiny self, but didn’t make our lives too difficult. My wonderful working student, Kelly, took some (very comical) photos. Enjoy!
Before torturing her with cleanliness, Cleo was very good. Weather’s been holding out and we’ve played outside in the field the last few days, schooling the canter tour of the Young Rider Grand Prix Test (an evil, vile test, by the way), making one-tempis up and down hills and on turns. Sunday was piaffe-passage day, and today is a (much needed) day off for both of us.
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My other horses are providing good entertainment as well. Ella, my now 8-year-old Westfalen mare, is in that annoying place where some days she’s doing the Prix St. Georges for a 74 percent, and some days we can’t really trot around the arena with both the hind legs and the front legs in the same jurisdiction. It’s like a new horse every day!
And I recently started Midgey, a rising 7-year-old Dutch Harness gelding, at piaffe, and he is quite a prodigy at it, so his rides have been very short—warm up, a little canter work, make some half-steps, sit him down once or twice for proper piaffe, and then go hack around as soon as he’s good about it. Takes about half an hour. Great!
Wednesdays and Fridays I teach for a few hours in Middleburg at a client’s stunning private facility. She is also leasing my Billy, who is simultaneously living the high life, with his beautiful private paddock and his big, open stall, and teaching her tons. He looks great and is still very sound, and I love that others are benefitting from his knowledge. And at 17, after 6 years of putting up with me, he’s earned a little luxury!
