# APHA grooming standards



## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

My daughter will be doing horse 4-H next year with a 19 year old paint (in my siggie). I'm trying to find what the grooming standards for mane, tail, bridle path, etc are for a paint. It says several times in the 4-H handbook "according to the breed requirements" and I'm struggling to find those standards anywhere. Can someone find me a link? I want to print it out so my daughter can read it and keep in her binder, but I don't want to print out all 300+ pages of the APHA handbook!


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## sorelhorse (Feb 16, 2009)

umm... im not really sure that there are "rules" to grooming. Grooming styles change and a lot of it is opinion. I can give you a little help though
Always band, or braid for english, make sure all the white on the legs and face are clipped, make sure ears are clipped and clean, shave whiskers, have no dirt around mouth for showmanship, shave bridle path, use a fake tail(dont have too but it looks better and more professional) use clearing on the hooves. another thing u can do is use shapleys spray white to make the legs look whiter.


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## wild_spot (Jan 30, 2008)

There are definitely grooming standards depending on breed - For example Arabs are shown with long manes and natural tails, whereas a QH is shown with a pulled mane and natural or false tail, Whereas an ASH is shown with a hogged mane and natural tail, whereas a TB/WB is shown fully plaited mane and tail.

As far as I am aware a paint would be showin similar to a QH - Pulled mane and probably banded or plaited, tail un braided and you could use a falsey if you wanted. The rest, just neat and tidy and trimmed, so no super long whiskers or beard. I personally don't clip ears - I just fold them in half and trim the protruding hair with scissors.


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## sorelhorse (Feb 16, 2009)

wild_spot said:


> There are definitely grooming standards depending on breed - For example Arabs are shown with long manes and natural tails, whereas a QH is shown with a pulled mane and natural or false tail, Whereas an ASH is shown with a hogged mane and natural tail, whereas a TB/WB is shown fully plaited mane and tail.
> 
> As far as I am aware a paint would be showin similar to a QH - Pulled mane and probably banded or plaited, tail un braided and you could use a falsey if you wanted. The rest, just neat and tidy and trimmed, so no super long whiskers or beard. I personally don't clip ears - I just fold them in half and trim the protruding hair with scissors.


aqha horses may have long manes. most grooming is opinion, thats why there really isnt rules other than the basics of clipping and banding/braiding. stuff like that.


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## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

As it's 4-H, I'm not going to go false tail. He has a decent tail, and his pasture mate that used to chew on it is now in a new pasture so It should grow back a little. She will be using him for fitting and showing (halter-like class), Western Equitation (WP), and trail for the first year so it sounds like she doesn't need to braid. Neat, clean and crisp appearance makes sense, and trimming extra hair of course. As he is a lesson horse and we will only have a partial lease, I know that he'll getting groomed 4-5 days a week so all that extra hair has long ago fallen off. He won't be used as much next year, but I can't ask her instructor to give him up completely because he's part of her beginner/intermediate herd, and that's where the majority of her students ride right now. 

Thanks for the info.


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## wild_spot (Jan 30, 2008)

> most grooming is opinion, thats why there really isnt rules other than the basics of clipping and banding/braiding. stuff like that.


As I said above, there ARE grooming rules depending on breed, at least where I live, It may be different where you are, but that doesn't change how it is here.

I hog my Arab's mane, and there is no way I could take him into an Arab class like that.

We also never band here unless you are at a QH show or in a QH ring - I have never seen a banded horse in my life and I show ALOT.

Even if they aren't rules, it is respectful to find out the presentation standards for your breed and present them accordingly, just as it is respectful to wear the correct gear and clothing.


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## Rowzy (Mar 1, 2010)

Also asking around at your 4-H club or watching a show will give you a good idea. Paints aren't all that rare (atleast around here and I live in WA too) so you should be able to find somebody that can give you exactly what the judges are looking for.


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## A knack for horses (Jun 17, 2010)

I do think a lot of it comes down to style and breed. You probably won't see a warmblood ever groomed exactly like a Quarter horse, and vice versa. In any case, The minimum outcome you want in appearance is shiny, clean, and neat. A shiny coat with no dirt traces and a trim mane, tail, and ears, is sure to look good. 
*And by trim I mean an even cut mane and tail, and managed ear hair


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

A knack for horses said:


> *And by trim I mean an even cut mane and tail, and managed ear hair


Please do not cut your horses mane even.

If it requires shortening please pull it. Cutting is a serious no-no.



In my neck of the woods the horses at a 4-h show are turned out like they would at a breed show. It is rare to find a kid who has skipped clipping and braiding/banding and you most certainly do not place in fitting and showmanship if you have skipped the details.
Obviously the horse is totally clean, clipped and show ready on that front.
For a stock horse breed go with what is the usual (yes, not everyone but almost everyone) does at a stock horse show.
A nice short mane that is banded if doing western (doing fitting and showmanship in western apparel) or braided in hunter braids if doing english. Some kids who do show breed shows do use fake tails but they are the exception not the rule. Tails are left out (not braided).
Clipping white legs is pretty common. Neat clipped bridle path. Ears, eyes, muzzle, fetlocks, hooves all clipped. 
Hooves polished.


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## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

Rowzy said:


> Also asking around at your 4-H club or watching a show will give you a good idea. Paints aren't all that rare (atleast around here and I live in WA too) so you should be able to find somebody that can give you exactly what the judges are looking for.


 
I will talk to the 4-H leader, but I was just curious what is expected because I have to do some research (how to pull a main properly for example). I am used to dog 4-H, that's what I have been a leader at, and because I'm a leader, I have very limited time to go watch the horse shoes--I'm monitoring the dog club. Right now the leader doesn't want to talk to new members because she's trying to get the current memebers ready for this fair. I completely understand.

I am a cronic planner. I plan way ahead, and like to know what I'm doing before I begin, hence asking now, when I don't need to know until next fair! That's just the way I am. This time I find myself needing to learn a lot more to help my daughter be successful because I am relatively new to horses myself. This will be an adventure for both of us! Off to learn about pulling manes.


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

Find yourself a copy of Groom to Win.


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## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

Alwaysbehind said:


> Find yourself a copy of Groom to Win.


 
Thank you. I kow with dog 4-H we expect the kids to learn their breed standard and understand it...it's been a piece of cake for me to help my daughter because we have labradors, and have for quite some time...I know that breed. I'm assuming that it'll be similar because the 4-H rules say "according to the breed", I just don't know enough about this breed. When I looked at apha.com(org) I can't remember, it was overwhelming because the book was 300+ pages and I didn't know where to start. I'll look for that book.


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## sorelhorse (Feb 16, 2009)

Alwaysbehind said:


> Please do not cut your horses mane even.
> 
> If it requires shortening please pull it. Cutting is a serious no-no.
> 
> ...


for paints, everybody cuts-you dont have to, its just the "style" its not as hard as it sounds, just take some times to do it and be careful!


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

sorelhorse said:


> for paints, everybody cuts-you dont have to, its just the "style" its not as hard as it sounds, just take some times to do it and be careful!


Really? The people I know that show paints do not cut.

Fowl, Groom to win is a general grooming book. It certainly will give you ideas on far more variables than you will need. But, it can not hurt.

Is there a breed show any where near you in the future? Maybe stop and watch for a bit.


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## A knack for horses (Jun 17, 2010)

I meant pulled mane and cut tail.
I don't personally cut manes, but pulling is another and somewhat easier option. And if you do cut, don't just start hacking it off,


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## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

Alwaysbehind said:


> Is there a breed show any where near you in the future? Maybe stop and watch for a bit.


I will look into it. She had another amazing ride on him today so she's flying high right now.


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## Ridehorses99 (Dec 23, 2009)

If you can, go watch a 4H show in your area. That will give you the best idea of what the "norm" is for where you live. At a bare minimum, the horse should be clean, brushed, feet trimmed, and whiskers and bridle path clipped. To clip the bridle path, start between the ears and clip back to the point where the tip of the horse's ear reaches when you lay it straight back. 
The 4H shows around here are very big (20 to 30 in each class) and I am seeing more and more people leaving the manes long and unbanded for shows. However, we do have a lot of riders who show their Halter / Showmanship horses in performance events like reining, so that may contribute to the long mane being acceptable.


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## Rowzy (Mar 1, 2010)

Also it is good to practice/fool around with the grooming, clipping etc way in advanced to showing if you can, that way when you get to showing you will be completely ready for it. Just make sure its enough in advanced that any mistakes will grow back and that the owner is OK with it. I know the first few times I trimmed my mares face, did her bridle path, and her legs it wasn't very good.


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## draftrider (Mar 31, 2010)

Is there a Paint breeder or QH breeder near by that shows that would mentor your daughter?


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## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

draftrider said:


> Is there a Paint breeder or QH breeder near by that shows that would mentor your daughter?


 
Her instructor specializes in paints, but she hasn't shown them in a long time. She trains them for a combo of WP, reining and trail. I believe there is one APHA breeder that I know shows her horses around here but she's hard to track down. We will start practice at her arena in October. Her 4-H leader has AQHA, and a gal that I work with shows AQHA, but she's a 4-H leader also and there is just 5 weeks before fair, then one month to state fair so they're really busy right now with their current members. I don't doubt that I will have someone to tell me what to do in October, I'm just impatient and want to know now:wink:. A lot of the "ranches" around here are nothing special, or just breed and don't do anything with them, or they breed them for gaming:? which means they don't completely train them or show them, they just let them go fast.


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## draftrider (Mar 31, 2010)

Good Gaming horses generally have to be very well trained. 

Well check out videos of winners at APHA/AQHA shows and pictures and see what they look like. I think that your daughter would have some wiggle room if mom messed up a bit! Isn't there a handbook? I know in 4H when I was a kid we had flipping handbooks for EVERYTHING.


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## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

draftrider said:


> Good Gaming horses generally have to be very well trained.
> 
> Well check out videos of winners at APHA/AQHA shows and pictures and see what they look like. I think that your daughter would have some wiggle room if mom messed up a bit! Isn't there a handbook? I know in 4H when I was a kid we had flipping handbooks for EVERYTHING.


Who said they were good gaming horses:wink:? Truthfully, a lot of the big barns around here aren't kept in the best condition, or I have no idea of knowing who or how to contact the owner. I'm not real keen on just walking onto someone's property without contacting them first.

I printed out the 40ish page handbook for horse 4-H. It explains all the requirements for all the classes, including grooming rules which says "according to the breed." APHA's handbook was 300 pages and I'm not printing that out!

We might be changing horses for her. The one her instructor wants her to try out is also a paint, but the idea of changing is pretty exciting...This horse won't have to learn new things, but he can teach my daughter the new things she needs to learn. The only scary part is that he's 15.2 hh and my daughter is 8! She'll look stunning on this horse though!

I will look on youtube for videos and look for pictures. I kind of hope we don't have to pull the mane because he's got an amazingly full mane right now. He's stunning.


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## SavvyHill (Jun 29, 2010)

sorelhorse said:


> Always band, or braid for english...


In my barn, we band for Western and English.


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## SavvyHill (Jun 29, 2010)

My trainer has quite a few horses who need daily grooming, and for the life of me I couldn't understand how she kept her paint horses so shiny, especially in the white area, until she showed me her little toy.










She vacuums her horses. And they don't mind. If you have a pretty sound horse, you should try it.


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## sorelhorse (Feb 16, 2009)

SavvyHill said:


> My trainer has quite a few horses who need daily grooming, and for the life of me I couldn't understand how she kept her paint horses so shiny, especially in the white area, until she showed me her little toy.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


haha ive heard of those vacuums. only probblem would be some horses might be scared of it. makes life a whole lot easier though! haha


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## SavvyHill (Jun 29, 2010)

I didn't expect to find the same model my trainer has, but viola! There it is! And she can vacuum her yearling with no trouble. I'm sure it's a scary thing at first, but it just takes getting used to. Like anything with horses.


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## Fowl Play (Sep 22, 2009)

SavvyHill said:


> In my barn, we band for Western and English.


I'm noticing that most pictures look like the horses are banded here too. I'll definitely try to sneak over at the fair this year and watch. I know I'll be doing 90% of the banding if it has to be done because she's so young and in comparison to the horse, pretty small, so if I have to, I'll need some time to practice. I'm not sure how, but the paint my daughter is going to try stays quite white, even though he loves to play in the slough. He does wear a sheet all winter, not for the warmth, but to help keep his white clean, so that helps. He's also accustomed to the hose so I'm not worried about him panicing to be washed. He doesn't panic about anything but one neighbor's truck starting (it is pretty hidious sounding). He can even handle crossing a ditch that is belly deep with water without any issues. He's got a little more go than the horse she's used to, but he can handle any amount of pressure you put on him, and seems to handle everything quite well. He's known for checking everything out on a trail ride, but never spooks. I'm both excited for her and nervous because he usually reserved advanced riders. I have total faith in her instructor though, and if she thinks my daughter is ready I trust her. 

There is one arena around here that hosts shows, and she specializes in paints, but her website is down and I can't find any dates of upcoming shows. To the best of my knowledge there aren't too many other arenas around that host shows right now.


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