I want to do one more body clip before Spring and the summer coat growing in. I’ll try to get it done before the end of February but am wondering if there is a time cut off after which it is not good to clip anymore to not adversely affect the new coat. Thanks
Nope. You can clip whenever your horse needs it.
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I think it’s somewhat dependent on the climate where you live. I was taught the first clip not before October and the last clip not after February or you might have an odd summer coat. But I think that generally applies to the typical “English” winter. If you live somewhere warmer and the horse is uncomfortable then clipping earlier or later is in the best interest of the horse.
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Thanks, I am in Colorado. It’s been a very cold winter and it tends to not get really warm until June or July
Then you can probably clip whenever it starts warming up and you feel like it.
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I’m in Ontario and usually trace clip the wooly mammoth pony end of October and again end of February. Never had any issues with his summer coat. He is always the last to shed in the spring and can look quite strange until mid May.
How so? Length? Thickness?
That wasn’t exactly made clear to me. 
But the 30 something year old clipping manual I was given concluded it would “interfere with the summer coat” so I suppose I took it on faith as something to be avoided.
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For what it’s worth, I live in Wyoming and have to clip every 5-6 weeks throughout the summer if I want a show worthy coat. They don’t get ruined for a whole season and usually look great at 2-3 weeks post-clip. Just make sure the horse is clean, it’s a quality clip job, and post-clip conditioning is done. It’s usually when a dirty horse is clipped, or they’re not conditioned properly post-clip that makes for a streaky, burnt looking coat.
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Also in Ontario and I’ve done spring clips as late as April with no ill effects.
I typically do first clip in October and then again in late February. I’ve clipped my show horse as late as June and noticed no difference in the coat appearance after a week or two.
I agree that thorough prep (bathing, clipper blades, etc), a quality clip job, and a good post-clip conditioner are more important to the final result than when you clip.
Many years ago I was told clipping too late in the season would take the tips off the summer coat and make it dull, thus where ever it was clipped would look different from where it wasn’t,
This has not been my experience and while I can’t find the article do remember reading that this was a myth.
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If you clip while their coat is actively changing, you end up with them looking a bit patchy. It is because you end up cutting hairs that are at different growth stages, so cutting the tip off a hair that still has a lot more growing to do, as well as cutting most of the length of the hair off that has already reached its seasonal length. Give it a couple weeks, and you have a horse with cut hairs of different lengths, which looks a bit rough. Given that horses often shed out in stages (neck, then barrel, then back, then belly), you can get a very interesting look! 
Of course, this is all easily fixable by just clipping again. You can clip as often as needed to keep the coat exactly how you like it, no harm done. Timing your clip job only becomes important if you are trying to minimize how many times you clip, and keep the horse looking nice for as long as possible.
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I’m in MO/IL and have clipped throughout the year without any issue. I’m actually planning on clipping my two this weekend, weather and personal motivation depending.
My horse is white so I don’t worry about timing. I am considering it now…she is shedding so bad. I know it wouldn’t stop shedding but at least the hair coating my clothes would not be 1-2 inches long😛. I look like a Yeti by the time I leave the barn.
Susan
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Clipping is why God gave us the Tyvek suit.
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I was also taught not to clip after the end of February. But I have a mini who doesn’t shed out so I clip her in mid-May or June (just before it starts getting hot here). Her fur does look a little strange for a few weeks, but after about a months, you can’t tell she’s been clipped. I also clip her super short, so that might also be why it looks funny.
I don’t think it really matters - clip when you want. A clean horse, good blades, and a correct job will turn out just fine. We used to clip almost monthly throughout show season since the horses sweated so much (southeast US) even a summer coat was too long. We also clipped the entire horse; if I was planning to leave faces or legs I might say differently.
Yeah I think this is key - don’t do anything other than a full body clip at this point or you’ll definitely not see it grow out normally lol! As someone who is too lazy to do a full body clip in the winter (and I do prefer leaving some hair for warmth on spots like the belly and ears), I do have to be careful about timing unless I want to do a full clip later to even it out (which I don’t).
I’m in ME, I body clipped mid March last year after partial clipping late fall and didn’t notice any weirdness with his summer coat. I plan to do it again, saves so much shedding season headache.
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