What grooming items do leading showing experts swear by in order to make the horses in their care look their best in the ring? Renowned pony producer Katy Carter and Jo Jack, head groom to Katie Jerram, reveal eight essential items that give their charges the winning edge
Katy Carter and Jo Jack’s grooming kit essentials
1. Oven gloves
Ideal for lifting coats out and, because they are soft, horses will allow you to rub their whole bodies, including their legs, top of the head and around their ears. According to Katy, a clean pair of oven gloves is also useful for a final wipe over.
A must-have for early-morning or late-night plaiting. You might feel silly at first, admits Jo, but it makes a fiddly job far easier when the light is poor.
Both experts agree that you can never have too many of these to hand. Use a tea towel damp to remove any dust before spraying the horse’s coat, or mane and tail.
OK, this isn’t technically in a grooming kit but, according to Jo, it is the only way to make a coat look its best, so get brushing.
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Aimi was responsible for Horse & Hound’s showing, pointing and veterinary pages, as well as assisting with eventing content. Aimi also edited Horse & Hound’s popular occasional magazines, Ask The Vet and Ask The Trainer. She is the former deputy editor of Eventing magazine. She left Horse & Hound at the end of 2017 to take on new challenges in the publishing industry and is now editor at Your Horse.
