Categories: Horse GroomingHorse Ownership

All Dolled Up

Whether you’re 9 or 49, you probably still enjoy playing My Pretty Pony with your horse. You can have fun grooming your horse by using some of the creative grooming products available.

For example, if your horse’s mane needs help in lying on the correct side, band or braid it using brightly colored elastic bands. If you’re particularly patriotic, alternate in red, white and blue bands. If you want to express your inner flower child, use purple, lilac and pink. Since the funky little bands come pre-packaged in colorful assortments, there’s a color palette to fit your every mood. Then, if you’re the rowdy or trendy type, give your horse the equine version of a tattoo. Use a pre-cut stencil or create one of your own and then comb the design into your horse’s coat with a mane comb and some styling gel. Putting stars, hearts or clovers on your horse’s hindquarters is a cute stamp of affection. Finally, if you—or your horse—enjoys putting on the glitz, opt for a temporary sheen by applying a shimmering coat spray. It’s not a gauche metallic shellacking, but rather a very faint dusting of sparkles—just enough to let your horse’s natural beauty shine through.

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15 years ago

Cindy Hale

Cindy Hale’s life with horses has been filled with variety. As a child she rode western and learned to barrel race. Then she worked as a groom for a show barn, and was taught to harness and drive Welsh ponies. But once she’d taken her first lessons aboard American Saddlebreds she was hooked on English riding. Hunters and hunt seat equitation came next, and she spent decades competing in those divisions on the West Coast. Always seeking to improve her horsemanship, she rode in clinics conducted by world-class riders like George Morris, Kathy Kusner and Anne Kursinski. During that time, her family began raising Thoroughbred and warmblood sport horses, and Cindy experienced the thrills and challenges of training and showing the homebred greenies. Now retired from active competition, she’s a popular judge at local and county-rated open and hunter/jumper shows. She rides recreationally both English and western. Her Paint gelding, Wally, lives at home with her and her non-horsey husband, Ron.