I am one of those where some small details I hardly pay attention to. For example, I am very unlikely going to notice you got your eyebrows done. It’s the same for me and the whiskers, I don’t even notice them and so I leave them alone. Like someone mentioned, the judge would have to be very close to notice the whiskers.
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I used to clip my girls muzzle whiskers but decided that she probably prefers them just how they are. She is so cute that she can get away with anything!!!
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I stopped clipping muzzles when it became a fad a few years ago. I almost feel guilty not clipping them, as my horse LOVES having them clipped. He used to fall asleep and drop his head to the ground when I clipped his whiskers. He spends a lot of time outside grazing, so I figure if there is any benefit to keeping his whiskers intact, I want him to have it.
I wish he loved having his ears clipped as much as he enjoys whisker clipping! I can mess with his ears all I want, but to clip them I need Dorm, a twitch and an assistant and he still puts up a fight 🙄.
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I stopped clipping whiskers about 15 years ago when I clipped a lovely 3yr old gelding for the first time.
He was such a good boy and I put him back in his stall and dropped a carrot in his feed bucket. He reached quickly to grab it and evidently couldn’t feel the bucket like he used to and promptly hit the bucket hard enough to bloody his teeth.
I felt so badly I refused to ever do this to another horse…
I also leave ears poofy and tails long in summer and bang them for winter mud. Call me a freak but think my horses enjoy longer tails for bugs and shorter ones out of mud. Haha
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Yup, I haven’t clipped whiskers in about 15 years unless I’m being paid to clip someone else’s horse (I ask if they want whiskers and insides of ears done or not).
I clipped a mare’s whiskers, she had competed in Switzerland and then spent a couple years as a broodmare in Canada before coming back to the show ring. The poor thing didn’t eat for almost two days, barely drank, and was borderline head shy for almost a week.
My horses live out 24/7 and show rated. I don’t clip whiskers, and I don’t do the insides of their ears. No one has ever said anything to me, and it has never affected my placings. The only time I would consider it would be if I entered a model class and thought we were seriously in contention.
My geldings aren’t sensitive guys so it doesn’t appear that they use their whiskers much. But my 2yo filly? You so much as move air near one of her whiskers and she’s got her eyeball on you. If you watch her closely she checks EVERYTHING out with her whiskers before she’ll actually touch it.
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I don’t clip my horses whiskers. I like the natural look. I use to groom for someone who had a head shaker and leaving the whiskers fixed the problem. 50/50 of the other clients horses got clipped whiskers.
I clip the extra ear hair that grows, I don’t clip the insides.
I also keep legs clipped down. I reallllllllyyyyyy hate leg feathers.
My husband has ranch horses and the first thing I did was clip the non existent bridle paths and clipped off ugly feathers haha. He hasn’t noticed.
I show high level ‘AA’ jumpers, and I don’t clip ears or whiskers on my guy. We still win fairly frequently, but jumpers aren’t about looks.
I used to show ‘AA’ hunters, didn’t clip their ears or whiskers either. Didn’t really seem to effect placing, we still did rather well. Depends on the judge, I guess.
Bridle paths, I understand. I would be super cautious about feathers. They protect far more than people realize, especially for horses that live outside.
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They can also create the perfect habitat for fungal nastiness, especially for horses that are bathed or rinsed frequently. When I was a WS and had a few Friesians in my care, keeping the feathers dry and crud-free was practically a full-time job.
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Yes, for friesians. There are lots of feathers and there are some feathers and all those in between. Feathers and fur also protects trom moisture and bugs and fungus. They drip moisture away from the heel. All depends on the situation. The clipping can be in a range as well. No need to strip all of it. Just recognize there is a purpose and it may matter depending on environment.
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Except that my TB that can be prone to scratches needs to be clipped to allow the area to dry quicker.
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Don’t clip ears or whiskers, but clip legs. Horses are under lights and blankets in the winter so don’t need to body clip. It’s amazing!
My own body is my own body. It is not somebody else making the decision whether or not I shave off my hair.
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That’s why I clip my outside horses legs. We have a year round creek that they enjoy playing in. The extra leg hairs keep the mud packed on. I clip them down fairly close. Easy to curry off all the mud, legs dry. I’ve had no problems with scratches since. I fly spray regularly and check on the horses often. Plus like I said I really don’t like the look of feathers 😂 I’ve found out over the years it’s best to clip all the TB legs 
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I grew up in a highly competitive 4-H environment.
There would commonly be 50 in a showmanship class.
If you didn’t clip EVERYTHING you might as well not enter. I remember razor shaving muzzles after clipping to ensure they were baby-butt smooth. Shaving cream and all.
Better clip any socks a week in advance to eliminate anything not snow-white. But with enough time to avoid any clipper marks.
My mother was horrified, on the grounds that there is PURPOSE to all that hair. But she rolled with the trends of the day.
I do recall clipping long eye hairs…and accidentally scalping the eye lashes too. I felt so badly then, and worse now!
Live and learn. Nowadays Ill keep the bridle path cleared, and the fetlock trimmed to a reasonable tolerance and forgo the rest.
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My reason for posting was my own experience of originally hating feathers. Especially when they caught ice and mud in the winter. It never crossed my mind that this may be the point of them. The other being kids from show circuits immediately drawn to clipping any horses legs. It really can cause problems if the horse lives in a rougher environment outside. I have a TB and have never clipped legs. Not stating that entirely as a contradiction but I shudder at the problems I could have introduced if I did, since I’ve gone through the vet bills for finding the one section of bramble in a field of grass and that includes wet tall grass in the spring etc.
If I had an actual case of scratches, I probably would clip as well , but there is something to allowing the legs to protect themselves.
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Ahhhh! You win! Legitimately a perfect response. I have no rebuttal. :applause:
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Except that the hair is a breeding ground FOR scratches. Yes, you clip if they get it, but you also clip to PREVENT it.
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It depends on how it is spread and I can’t say I agree the risk of getting it outweighs the risks of what can happen when a horse has a protection barrier like fur consistently removed. it is there for a reason and even horses that run wild in marshes can have furry legs and fetlocks.
Fur acts as a barrier and if something gets under neath the barrier that is the right fungus etc you have a problem. It’s not an automatic breeding ground for scratches.
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As all this shows, even clipping hair on legs, draws out the arguments…people really need to stop trying to make others do what they do…while I clip and you may not, it’s not upto you to tell me I’m wrong and you’re right and vice versa! People today seem to be loosing these boundaries
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