clipping trouble

[Cindy4H]

We've had a lot of troulble clipping our 2yr old gelding . We can body clip no problem but can not get near his leg, we also can't get near his ears. We've tried doing a little each day , running the clippers up and down his legs while off, then while running but not clipping to get him used to them , but as soon as we try to clip he kicks and rears. We did clip him last year this isn't his 1st time and we did get his legs last year, though I do remember he gaves us a little trouble but not like this. We have a show to go to on the 17th and I don't know how to get this done. Does anyone have any suggestions? Maybe using a twitch??

Thanks for your help.

- Cindy

 

[Jill]

These clamps that you can get at a hardware store or Walmart have helped me, and so has Dormosedan sedative (which can be injected or given orally). You need to do the clamp / twitch / sedative either before they get upset and have the adrenaline going, or let them calm down and then do the clamp / twitch / sedative.

 

[Genie]

Same as Jill, the clampo is usually sufficient.

Put the clamp on and give it 30 seconds or so to start to work on him, then start slowly.

I usually do a bit of each leg on the ones who are pretty jumpy, until I have the job done.

 

[The Simple Life Farm]

Sounds like it is time to twitch him, makes a huge difference. Usually they will get better the more you clip. Patience is the biggest key. Good luck.

 

[~Lisa~]

Make sure your blades are not hot when he is clamped. Sometimes we get to tricky areas and just want to get them done and do not check as often as we should. Hot blades can really hurt sensitive areas like ears and then lead to the horses being worse the next time you clip

 

[Littleum]

First, establish there are no physical issues: rain rot, sores, scratches, dull blades, hot blades, cuts, scrapes, ect. Especially since we're coming out of winter muck, he might have some scabs or something and clipping HURTS!

Assuming you've ruled out physical: Twitch him, get a helper who is willing and able to safely restrain an uncooperative horse, make sure your blades are sharp and not hot and stock up on patience.

Putting up a fight about legs/ears is not unusual. It takes practice learning how to clip a flailing horse. Getting angry will probably just make the situation worse, but at the same time, don't let them think flailing about actually accomplishes anything. There's an art to it all.

And if he's really just being a danger to himself or you - doing stupid things like throwing himself down, flipping, slamming into things, ect- just call the vet and have a nice cocktail delivered. Some just can't or won't tolerate it for whatever reason. For these I just think it's kinder to put them into twilight. Every year or so you hear about a horse who flipped over being clipped and killed itself, so know when to say the behavior has crossed from "naughty" to "danger to self and others"

 

[pepperhill]

I've got one that did this to me too, one year. She had been clipped the year before with only a little attitude. Then the next year she went ballistic! We tied her down very tight to our round pole gate. The ring on the bottom of the halter was tightly up against the pole in front of her so she couldn't rear. She still put up a fight, but with the help of a friend, we got it done. My friend lifted up one leg while I clipped another one. She had to behave herself or topple off balance. Once she remembered what we were doing (about the last half inch of hair on the last leg!

) she finally settled down. She still doesn't like it, but she has never given us that much trouble again.

A friend of mine has good luck blindfolding. I've never tried it, but she thinks it works really well.

 

[MiLo Minis]

Sometimes we inadvertantly train them to not stand while clipping by removing the clipper from the area that is giving him trouble when he kicks or rears or fusses at all. I know this can be difficult but you need to keep those clippers on him when he moves so that he doesn't get the idea that he will be rewarded by misbehaving and having the clippers removed. As long as you are sure they have not gotten overly hot and that is what he is objecting to then do what you can to keep the clippers on him even when he goes up. Before he gets to this point you need to work quietly and patiently moving the clippers down to the area that he gets tense. Watch and feel him very carefully, before you think he is going to rear or kick stop the clippers on that point, keep them running but don't go any further until he relaxes again or, if necessary, move them back up slightly till he is okay but don't turn them off and remove them from his body. Move very slowly downwards in this manner till you can reach his coronet. It can take several hours or days of quiet work to get him to that point but will be worth it in the long run.

You say that last year he was difficult but even more so this year. Are you sure that you are not accidentally scraping his legs by tipping the blade into him rather than keeping it flat on his skin? Horses are very sensitive and that would be enough to make him resent being clipped. Usually a horse gets better with it each time, not worse.

 

[Reignmaker Miniatures]

Wasn't there a thread on this a while ago? I remember seeing the clips (that substitute for a twitch) and someone used a rope with a ring that went around the poll and under the top lip (I think). I have resorted to tying up a back leg (I am always alone when I do my clipping) on an unruly yearling while he was tied to a good solid post.

 

[Cindy4H]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I'm going to try the twitch on him this weekend and if that doesn't work I have the Vet lined up to sedate him on Wed so we can get this done. Hopefully he'll get better w/ this over time.

- Cindy

 

[Katiean]

These clamps that you can get at a hardware store or Walmart have helped me, and so has Dormosedan sedative (which can be injected or given orally). You need to do the clamp / twitch / sedative either before they get upset and have the adrenaline going, or let them calm down and then do the clamp / twitch / sedative.

I use the metal one like the one pictured above.

 

[jleonard]

I have had great luck with clicker training to work through clipper issues.

I started my yearling clipping with the clicker, so she had a good experience from the get go, but I could sit on the ground while clipping her legs if I chose to, and she could care less. She also lets me clip her ears, inside and all, with no fight.

I have tried twitching in the past, but that is just a temporary solution where as you can teach them properly with the clicker. I have also gotten better results and ended up with happier horses in the end.

I started out teaching them the basics of clicker training, having them touch (or target) objects. I moved on to having them target the clippers while off, then turned them on and target, then ask them to allow me to hold the clippers on the nose, leg, etc while on, and eventually progress to actually clipping. It really doesn't take long once they realize that there are good things equated with clipping!

I like to introduce them slowly over a few days. However, I did clip my neighbor's pony one day, we had a show the next and no more time to work on it. I rushed him through the steps a bit, but he was very willing to cooperate once he realized that the clippers were a good thing. The only other time they had tried to clip him, two people had to twitch and hold him down while a third jumped in to clip. Though he was terrified when I first brought out the clippers, he was standing quietly and happily by the end.

Anyway, that's just another option to consider that has worked well for me. Good luck!

 

[ponyarab]

I have had great luck with clicker training to work through clipper issues.
I started my yearling clipping with the clicker, so she had a good experience from the get go, but I could sit on the ground while clipping her legs if I chose to, and she could care less. She also lets me clip her ears, inside and all, with no fight.

I have tried twitching in the past, but that is just a temporary solution where as you can teach them properly with the clicker. I have also gotten better results and ended up with happier horses in the end.

I started out teaching them the basics of clicker training, having them touch (or target) objects. I moved on to having them target the clippers while off, then turned them on and target, then ask them to allow me to hold the clippers on the nose, leg, etc while on, and eventually progress to actually clipping. It really doesn't take long once they realize that there are good things equated with clipping!

I like to introduce them slowly over a few days. However, I did clip my neighbor's pony one day, we had a show the next and no more time to work on it. I rushed him through the steps a bit, but he was very willing to cooperate once he realized that the clippers were a good thing. The only other time they had tried to clip him, two people had to twitch and hold him down while a third jumped in to clip. Though he was terrified when I first brought out the clippers, he was standing quietly and happily by the end.

Anyway, that's just another option to consider that has worked well for me. Good luck!

Great job Jessica as I too do the same thing with clipping. A friend of mine sent her big horse to my place to train for clipping the ears as she was terrified of the clippers and would not let you close with them but after clicker training her you can now clip her ears and she is happy and willing to let her owner do this. I agree with you also that the other things are a temporary fix and some of the things I see being done well no wonder some of the horses I get in are basket cases.

 

[Cindy4H]

I love the clicker training idea, I hadn't thought about that. I have done some clicker work w/ him and he picks it up very quickly. I'll give it a try, I'd rather not have to twitch him every time I clip. Thanks for the advice.

- Cindy