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Professional show grooms, what kind of things do you bring with you? If any

Hunter/Jumper
#1

I have an opportunity to groom for a H/J barn next month at a big show. My experience as a show groom is very minimal. Years of exp with on-farm horse care, grooming, tacking, lunging, etc. I want to be prepared and I want to be seen as professional. So I have some questions!

  1. Do you bring any of your own supplies? Or do you use only what is provided by the barn? If you bring anything, what do you bring?

I was going to bring a small spray bottle for water (for wetting braids) and a couple of seam rippers as I groomed this past weekend and removing the braids was one of the more challenging tasks as they were super tight! That braider was not messing :rofl: And if I will need to unbraid 8 horses daily I want to be sure I can do it quickly, efficiently, and with minimal hair loss.

  1. What do you wear?

I know what the farm’s colors are and was planning to grab a couple of polo shirts that I can wear as I do not believe anything like that will be provided. Would that be weird or a good touch?

Any tips, tricks, or wish you would have knowns that you can share?

#2

When I groomed professionally, I wouldn’t bring anything besides myself. I am picky about hoof picks, so I would bring mine if I remembered it, but it wasn’t the end of the world if I didn’t have it. Employer should provide everything you need for a temporary show groom job.

I would wear a pair of jeans or nice shorts with a belt and a plain t-shirt. Always bring a raincoat and light jacket, at least two pairs of shoes (so your feet stay dry!), nicer outfits to go out to dinner in. I would also bring boots and breeches depending on the job. I wouldn’t buy shirts just to groom. If wearing their colors is that important to them, they can provide them.

8 Likes
#3

I would ask the trainer if they have anything special you really want like a seam ripper.

I would bring extra clothes, make sure you are good for spring temperature swings including hot afternoons, chilly evenings, and thunderstorms. And yes to extra shoes and socks. If you are going to be bathing horses you want gum boots.

One of our pony club girls turned up in a big full length carpenters apron which seemed really practical but maybe was more for keeping her show clothes clean.

Give some thought to how you are going to keep your phone, keys, wallet, safe and on your person in a huge public space. I really like a waist pouch. You do not want to be the person shrieking where’s my phone? Twice a day. Also I assume there is a per diem for food, but you may not have time to fight your way up to the food trucks so bring along your favorite healthy dry snacks like bananas or babybel cheese or protein bars, and water.

7 Likes
#4

All good tips.

I wouldn’t worry about a spray bottle—a big sponge dunked in a bucket works well, or just hose the horse off entirely before unbraiding. Seam rippers do break easily, but any good barn should have plenty on-hand.

I wouldn’t worry about the polo shirts. It’s a nice thought, but I’d actually be surprised if someone noticed. My go-to is a sunshirt, jeans, baseball cap, and paddock boots. Waterproof sneakers are super trendy these days too, but they make my feet insanely hot, so YMMV.

2 Likes
#5

I wouldn’t buy my own polos. My go-to wardrobe when helping and not also riding is jeans or some sort of pants with pockets (or maybe shorts if it’s quite warm), a sun shirt, a hat with a good brim, and good socks and shoes. Plus extra socks and waterproof footwear as noted above.

For unbraiding, I remove the critical knots and then either wet the mane with a sponge or take the horse to the wash rack and hose it off. They will generally shake their heads and sent pieces of yarn flying. It sometimes helps to rub your hand up and down the wet mane.

Make sure you have non-perishable snacks, water, a water bottle and something like Nuun tables to put in the water. And sunscreen.

Take advantage of any reasonable opportunity to sit while you do something else, such as rolling wraps.

3 Likes
#6

Off to Google sun shirts. Didn’t consider that especially since Texas will be hot and the sun can be brutal.

I just thought polos would look professional. I don’t have much in the way of plain tshirts.

1 Like
#7

Well actually everyone who can afford them :slight_smile: rides in equestrian sunshirts now, not polos. The show shirts are essentially sunshirts.

2 Likes
#8

If you are going to be braiding, bring your usual supplies. Supplies that are different may slow you down or cause your braids to suffer
Ask the trainer what they expect for clothes.

3 Likes
#9

Bring gloves, especially if you think you might have to lunge anything.

And check the weather forecast right before you pack so you can bring the appropriate attire for the weather. If the forecast calls for rain, it’s a good idea to bring an extra raincoat in case you need to alternate them while one dries out.

I don’t think it’s a bad idea to bring your own seam rippers, just so you know you can find one when you need it, and it will be new and sharp, not old and pathetic. Ditto for bringing your own pair of scissors, just so you know you always have them when you need them. I would definitely keep my own stuff separate, not let it get mixed in with the barn stuff.

I will second (third? fourth?) the idea of bringing food and drinks for yourself, maybe in an igloo cooler. Especially in hot weather, you want to make sure to stay hydrated.

Even if there is a per diem involved, you might not necessarily have time to go and wait in line at the food stand if you’re busy with the horses. And some food stands don’t offer many options.

If you’re not already familiar with the horses and the tack, it’s a good idea to take a picture with your phone of the bridles hanging on the bridle rack with the horse’s name if they organize the equipment that way. Then you have a quick way to double check which tack goes on which horse, especially if you end up with a pile of assorted tack on the cleaning hook. Lol.

If the horses show with martingales, try to keep the respective martingale with the right bridle so they don’t get mixed up by the end of the day.

10 Likes
#10

If you’re intent on polo shirts, JCPenney’s St. John’s Bay are VERY well made. No logos, nice colors, usually on sale for $9-$12.

Don’t forget sunscreen.

3 Likes
#11

Go check the sale rack at REI or something like that! No need to pay $80 for fancy TS ones, but as a fellow (former) Texan, don’t roast in a polo shirt.

4 Likes
#12

Generally barns will have their own supplies they want you to use.

I actually WOULD bring an extra seam ripper, but that’s because at my barn at least, I swear to god we start with 6 on Wednesday and somehow by Saturday there’s only one. Maddening.

Bring gloves if you’re lunging. Bring a sun hat or ball cap if you’re outdoors. The sun will get to you if you’re out there ringside most of the day.

If your phone has an unreliable battery, I’d be sure to have a charge pack for it. You really do need to be available at all times in case anything in the plan for the day changes.

1 Like
#13

It’s not just your barn. Somehow that happens at a lot of places. Lol.

#14

For me:
Sunglasses
Jacket
Gloves
Water (LOTS of water!)
A hat
A hairtie

For the horses:
A spray bottle of rubbing alcohol
Towels

Theres not much you can’t solve with a bottle of rubbing alcohol and a towel. Horse is dirty from warmup ring? A good towel rub with the alcohol will remove it. Boots dirty? Towel+alcohol. Rider just fell off? Drink the alcohol :rofl: (I joke, don’t do this). It even can work as fly spray in a pinch.

11 Likes
#15

Just chiming in to say that if you are putting in hunter braids, that service is typically NOT included in the standard pay rate for grooms these days. It should be an additional charge per horse, for sure.

Jumper plaits, maybe, maybe not, since they can be done much faster.

3 Likes
#16

For me:

  • Liquid IV
  • Sunscreen
  • Sunglasses
  • Gloves
  • Boots
  • Sneakers
  • Flip flops (after a long day it’s nice to…air out)
  • ringside bag (I keep a couple water bottles in here for riders)
  • headphones or speaker for early morning stall cleaning
  • non perishable snacks
1 Like
#17

Boooooooooze.

There. I said what everyone’s thinking. Jokingly.

In seriousness: Water, water, water. Jugs in the car to refill bottles. When I think of riding as a kid, and then as an adult, chronically dehydrated … and that was the norm for so many people. Maybe you’d down a soda before or after a ride or while doing stalls, and that was it. Crazy.

Let us know how it goes! I’m curious about a first-timer’s experience.

8 Likes
#18

Folks have covered pretty much all of the items that are good to bring/wear. The only other prep items I would add are operations related.

Have you worked with this farm before? If no, it would be good to get the following in writing from them: what each horse gets for feed/supplements on rest days and show days, typical feed schedule, what each horse wears to lunge/school/show, any notable quirks that the horses have.

Beyond the horse specifics, I like for the barn to confirm what my responsibilities will be.

I also like to get a quick rundown on the clients personalities. For most folks, horse shows are a vacation for them and I want to help ensure they have a good experience.

I typically like to drive to the show by myself. I’ll bring a pitchfork in my car and get all the stalls set up with shaving a few hours before the trailer is expected to arrive (be sure to confirm with the barn how many bags of shavings they want per stall and what which stalls they’d like to keep as grooming or feed stalls). Once the stalls are set, I’ll walk around the property to time out how long it takes to get from our stalls to the lunging area, wash racks, and the rings.

I’ll see if the trainer has any specific preferences. Maybe they have a certain show pad that they always like to use or maybe they always want the horses to come out fully groomed before they do anything (lunging, hand walking, etc).

Lastly, confirm the best method of communication during the show. Some venues have terrible service, so you may need to use different messaging apps.

8 Likes
#19

No suggestions on horsey gear, but I love my Chilly Pad towels with the (easily neutralized) heat of a thousand suns. Wet it down, and evaporative cooling keeps it cold against your skin. Amazing on long, hot days.

Grand Prix-level cooling: The same material, but in a sun hat. You’re welcome.

3 Likes
#20

Tylenol
Advil
Bandaids
Lip balm with sunscreen

3 Likes

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