Its also that awkward time of year where she's grown about half her winter coat in, but not enough where I can clip and not have to clip again in a month. But enough that she harbors dirt and sweat during rides like nobody's business. Last year I couldn't stand it and I clipped her in early October, but then she was a fuzzball by November.
It seems like the "perfect time" to clip Amber is mid-late November. I've never had a clipping routine - I've done something different every year, and thus learned a lot about her coat growth. Let's recap a few of Amber's clips:
Amber's first clip ever, circa 2013! I was so over-prepared. I even took time to wrap her tail.
Amber's first clip was done with a pair of adjustable Andis Tackmate clippers and a pair of Oster clippers with dull blades that I borrowed from my boss. I wanted to do a trace clip, but I was also afraid to "take off too much" (HA!), and wasn't really sold on the traditional look, so I made up my own thing. Not the worst in the books, I'll give myself that. This was mid-late November, and the timing was perfect. Didn't have to re-clip, but I also broke the biggest rule and clipped her without bathing.
In 2014 I didn't clip because Amber was really not in heavy work during the winter that year, and the barn I was at wasn't really blanketing up to my specs, so I let her be.
Amber's 2nd clip...looking a little more traditional this go around. She is a little underweight in this picture...we had a go around with this barn's management about proper feeding for horses in heavy work. This was about 2 months prior to us leaving this establishment.
Amber's 2015 clip was definitely more refined than my first "designer" attempt. I did her in early November, and she was a fuzzball in a month, and I ended up clipping again in December, which ended being a mistake. Reason being, in the spring I decided I couldn't wait for her to shed, so I body clipped the rest of her coat off...and there was a very defined line where the trace clip had been. Fairly sure it was due to that late reclip.
Stripey legs! But not on purpose. Circa 2016.
I was fairly pleased with the full clip I did in the spring, so my thinking for the following fall was to just body clip her fully, do it early, so that she could grow back just enough coat that I wouldn't have to change blankets 100 times a day. I did the deed in early-mid October...and she may as well have had her full winter coat by December. Oh, and the legs were creative brainstorming on my part, in attempt to cover up a huge spot I accidentally clipped off when she twitched at a fly.
And then spring 2017...more leg designs.
I hate shedding season as much as I hate winter coat season...so for the second year in a row I body clipped instead of dealing with the shedding. And just added some more pizzazz to those legs.
This year I'm really not sure what I want to do. Definitely want to get some hair off her belly/chest/girth area. I also don't think I want to body clip her fully either, not just because I'm lazy...okay maybe it all leads back to me being lazy. But, she fares just as well either way, any clip I give her should serve it's purpose fine. The choice on which one is more a matter of convenience for me, I think...