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nerissanic
Bronze Member
 England
156 Posts |
 Posted - 03 Feb 2012 : 10:46:25 PM
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hi everyone,
does anyone on here clean their mares teats?
my shetland and my filly have a load of black, crusty stuff between their teats and in the crease between the hind legs just above the teats. sometimes it is dry and flaky, at other times it is 'rubbery'. i've been carefully rubbing it off, which they sometimes enjoy - other times they get really stroppy and threaten to kick or bite, in which case i think i must have hit an uncomfortable spot.
my shetland isn't as threatening as my filly, who could land a good boot or bite so i've taken to having a fence between us; if she is going to kick it is safer for me. at times they will stand on three legs to make sure i get the right spot!
i don't insist on doing it but maybe i should? or should i leave well alone? they both mug me at times to have it done though; both of them come up to me, then walk past closely,stop and back up, then look at me over their shoulders. the shetland will stand and spread her hind legs so i know exactly what she wants!
am i creating a problem by cleaning this area? is this black stuff normal; is it protecting the teats and am i creating a possible area for infection by removing it? if not, what is the best cleanser to use; at the moment i am only rubbing it off or very carefully scraping it off with my nails - yuk i know but needs must! my nails are very short by the way so i don't think that is the reason for the kick threats.
i'd be very grateful for any comments/ideas. nic x
ps the ponies have all been de-loused to within an inch of their lives(!) and are much more comfortable; thanks to everyone for your replies. just a thought - could the black gunk have anything to do with the lice, although i would imagine the lice would prefer the hairy areas?
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Mrs Vlacq
Platinum Member
Wales
3776 Posts |
Posted - 03 Feb 2012 : 10:56:25 PM
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Oh yes you must clean The Booby Groove every now and again 
Seriously though, if you're on muddy fields, pony is fat adn sweaty, or use a very sandy arena it can can rapidly accumulate into a very sensitive situation. They love it until the skin pulls, then they turn grumpy, understandably!
We slather in aqueous cream (cheap as chips from chemist or pound shop) and leave for a bit, then wipe off with a cloth in a general massaging motion - so you're not picking, but the stuff just comes away. For really stubborn bits repeat daily until the clumps ease off without pulling. The cream leaves a gentle but not sticky/sweaty moisturiser on the skin.
Same for boy bits (different pot!), and painting on hooves, and all sorts of little jobs.
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- V Khazad - V Calacirya & V Sulime - Quarida(L) - V Boogie Knights - V Hamra Tofiq |
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Vera
Membership Moderator
United Kingdom
8652 Posts |
Posted - 04 Feb 2012 : 11:10:01 AM
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I call it a booby groove too!
My shetland mare Holly will cock her leg if you scratch or clean her booby groove  . |
    
Hampshire |
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Quarabian
Platinum Member
Wales
4340 Posts |
Posted - 04 Feb 2012 : 11:24:47 AM
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Well, I treat this as part grooming and part pleasure because all my mares love having the greasy gunk rubbed off or peeled if I left it a bit too long. I always start with the foals so that they are used to me stroking under their belly.One of my mares lifts her hind leg as if presenting her udder to a foal. If your horse hasn't had it done before you should stroke the girth area first and gradually work your way back to the udder. If the horse is particularly sensetive try to do this on a warmer day and definately with warm hands!! As Mrs Vlacq says, if it is dry use some aqueous cream (warm)!!
Funny that I enjoy doing this with the mares but hate cleaning stinky sheaths on geldings. What does that say about me? |
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pinky
Bronze Member
England
57 Posts |
Posted - 04 Feb 2012 : 9:58:59 PM
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how on earth do wild horse,s cope... i wonder if they clean each others bits ,,,???lol |
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nerissanic
Bronze Member
England
156 Posts |
Posted - 04 Feb 2012 : 10:57:43 PM
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lol, the booby groove!!
thank you mrs vlacq - as always you are a fountain of knowledge. i shall use aqueous cream the next time. i know it's great stuff for all manner of things as i use it myself being allergic to a lot of the creams on the market.
thanks also quarabian - both my shetland and my filly generally love it; i started the shetland off when she was a yearling as i realised she liked being scratched and accepted me rubbing her there. my filly is 8 1/2 months old now and very friendly so i tried it on her and she too was happy for me to do that. my older mare - the headshaker - doesn't like being touched too much generally and was not impressed when i tried it with her; however, she will let me rub annoying flies or mozzies off her belly if they are really bugging her and i can get very near to her udder so maybe in the future she will let me get there too! i will definitely warm the cream first before i use it though!! the two boys have quite disgusting penises; they can unfortunately only be done when they have to be sedated for any vets work, which isn't very often as they are not happy at all when i try to clean them otherwise; they are 20 and 15 and i've tried for the last 6 yrs to get them used to having their bits touched but they are having none of it.
vera - both the girls cock their legs too, just to make sure i definitely get the right spot!
pinky - i often wonder how horses would manage in the wild too and whether i'm overdoing the care bit but i just can't help myself! i also wish i could understand my horses more as i know there are so many things they are trying to tell me; some things i understand pretty quickly what it is they want, other times i think they are disgusted with how dense their human can be!!
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pinky
Bronze Member
England
57 Posts |
Posted - 05 Feb 2012 : 09:13:17 AM
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yes it is amazing how dense some of us humans can be ,, imagine treating horse,s as if they were human !!last night with all the snow i nearly brought all my 15 in gave them a fish supper and tucked them up in bed!!!Instead i made sure they were all fed watered warm and beded down well for the night!!! |
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nerissanic
Bronze Member
England
156 Posts |
Posted - 06 Feb 2012 : 9:32:47 PM
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| pinky - well, i wouldn't go so far as to treat them as humans as they are not!! but i do want them to be as comfortable as possible in their skins and as they are not in the wild and if i can help.......! |
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Topic |
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cleaning teats - black gunk?
