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Miss A is dusty. I curry and bring up dirt. I body brush and dirt goes away, but she is still dusty. I then use a soft brush but I’d have to brush forever to get the dust off. What am I doing wrong? It’s far too cold for a bath.

I have the same problem with my mare.
The dust just sticks to her.

I have tried so many different types of brushes and none get her really dust free, I also do a rub rag and it helps a little but not as much as I’d like.

I do have a vacuum and that’s the only way I can get her dust free.

Although we can still do baths in the middle of the afternoons (high 60s to low 70s). I find a damp rag/towel is the only thing that takes care of that surface dust. The curry or a body brush to bring it up then a damp towel.

I use waterless shampoo and it works quite well. There are many options designed for dogs, there is also this horse specific one that I quite like:

https://www.chewy.com/absorbine-showshe ... Q6EALw_wcB

I know those who have a vacuum say it's the best thing, but they are pricey! though i wonder if a hand-held car vac would work? Maybe not as well as on official horse grooming vac, but perhaps better than nothing?

I had a nice vacuum…it worked great until the dry winter air and it started zapping her with static. That was the end of that. I gave it to straightforward when I moved barns.

Miracle groom spray works quite well too. I just lightly spray the brush…brush, clean brush, respray and brush some more…rinse and repeat.

Me, I have never particularly worried about dust. Kyra isn’t currently clipped and it is next to impossible to get the dust gone…or even reduced much.
I just wash my saddle pads regularly.

Susan

I had a Royal Dirt Devil for my gelding. He didn’t care about the noise. I have a new RDD for my home but I fear Miss A would not tolerate it.

I have a grey (white grey) horse. And I do try to keep her skin happy and her body looking nice. But I live in the mid-south. I'm on the verge of no baths for awhile due to weather, but if it's above 50 F it is fair game--with coolers and time to dry before weather exposure or blanketing. Without that, she becomes a pale biscuit color.

I think a vacuum would be your friend. Many folks with calm horses use shop vacs---a cheap test??

Yes, many people use shop vacs or even a lawn blower.
I worried my mare would be so afraid of the vacuum noise, ut it didn’t bother her a bit. She loves being vacuumed. When she sees me bringing it out, she comes to her stall door!

I bought mine on eBay, it was never used! I can’t remember the price but it was way lower than buying from a retailer.

One of the best purchases I made was a horse vacuum. I use static cling and other anti-static products which includes Show Sheen to address the issue which can be pretty serious in our dry climate. Dampening the coat with something like Show Sheen before vacuuming really helps and I still see plenty of evidence in the vacuum cleaner bag that we're removing the 'dust'. I only have the test group/population size of 4 but so far all have been very tolerant of the vacuum on their first and subsequent experiences.

Kyras_Mom wrote:I had a nice vacuum…it worked great until the dry winter air and it started zapping her with static. That was the end of that. I gave it to straightforward when I moved barns.

Wait around long enough for someone to give you a horse vacuum I vacuumed both of them this weekend, and along with the hemp oil I've been feeding the last few months, they are quite shiny in their winter coats.

I recently bought a horse vacuum with a gift certificate. But I use a very short bristle soft brush and clean it every stroke to get dust out.

A good quality shop vac (because the fancy ones have more power and tend to be quieter) with the right attachment works just fine. I have both the big blue horse vacuum and a fancy shop vac and they do an equal job. The shop vac is way easier to move around. I have a Wap Turbo and it is the bomb dot com. They're not cheap either but 100% worth it.

My mare hates any type of grooming spray, even if I just put it on the brush, as soon as she smells it, she scooots!
I vacuumed last nite and she again loved it. I wish there was a good attachment for the legs! The metal one that comes with the blue vac doesn’t cut it.
I like that with the vac, there is a hole on the hand held part that you can open to lower the amount of suction, works well for the neck and belly skin.

Exvet, do you just spray the static cling on the horses blankets or on the body?

I th8nk I have every imaginable brushes and wash them every time I use them, ut they just don’t get all the dust off. Agree that a damp microfiber rag helps for the surface dust.

All of my horses have had skin allergies of some sort, so I don't use anything chemical. A thorough brushing — curry, stiff, flicker, soft — followed by a barely damp rag will make them look freshly bathed. Just don't smell Maia. She likes to use her manure pile as a pillow, and smells like it too!

Now that Miss A is wearing a blanket full time, she’s not as dusty. Just don’t look at the inside of the blanket. The barn has an ancient giant blue horse vac (can’t remember the name) that I might see if she will tolerate.

Paula, don’t be surprised if she more than tolerates it and actually enjoys it!

Be sure to treat it like clippers, run it over her body without it being on. When you turn it on, use the low setting and keep it running for a bit away from her, let her get use to the noise before you get too close to her with it. If it has the little hole in the handle open it for a bit less suction the first time you put it on her.

I really thought my mare would freak out, so rather than have her crossed tied, I had a friend hold her and she was fine.

Good luck and Merry Christmas

Sadly, just the sight of clippers freaks her out. I turned on clippers the first time about 50 feet from her. Oh it was not pretty. But I’ll try the vac. It’s so old it probably is pretty quiet!