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A winner's circle photograph of 2002 Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event winner, and 2002 World Equestrian Games team gold medal winner, and the 2002 USEA Horse of the Year Winsome Adante wouldn't lead you to guess that he is a pasture pony. On the contrary, his glistening coat, perfectly pulled and banged tail, and oiled muzzle would lead you to believe he's kept under a microscope. "The key to good grooming is good nutrition," Bennett said. "Each time a new horse comes to Plain Dealing Farm, we work with our vet to develop a feeding program that addresses his dietary deficits. Some of that program includes supplements, which are supplied to us by SmartPak Equine Supplements, and, for us, include selenium and vitamin e, as well as electrolytes," she said. Bennett stresses, "don't just start feeding your horse a bunch of supplements - definitely work with your vet and local agencies to ensure all of his nutritional requirements are being met - it could be that he doesn't need any supplementation." "Once your horse is on a proper nutritional plan, the next step is to establish a thorough grooming schedule," she said. "And that begins with increasing circulation in the skin to increase the production of oil, which is what makes the horse shine." "You can accomplish this in several ways; the most common is currying and I prefer to use a small curry comb with gentle tips," she said. "If your horse isn't keen on the curry comb, try a plain towel, rubbed in a circular motion," she advised. "After a week of daily currying - which should be done for about ten minutes - you should begin to see the horse's coat improving. He should be a little shinier, and within a few weeks you should see that when he comes in dirty, you are capable of getting him cleaner, faster," Bennett said. "This is because you have been successful in producing more oil in the coat and the beauty of oil is that is also serves as a 'dirt deflector," she noted. "Again, it's OK for your horse to be dirty. That's what they like to be - dirt serves as their natural sunscreen and bug repellant. I think some people make the mistake of not allowing the horse to be a horse and we all know that this can have a direct affect on the horse's behavior and his willingness to participate in a chosen discipline. Try not to worry if he comes in looking rough - it will clean up quickly if you've established an oil base on the coat," she said. "We don't bathe the horses very often at Plain Dealing," she said. "In the summer they get "showers" each time they are ridden, but that is with plain water and is actually done in an effort to help them cool out faster," she explained. "A detergent will strip the oil from your horse's coat, so always use a shampoo that has been formulated for equine use - not human shampoo," she said. When it necessary to bathe, always for a competition, Bennett adds, "give your horse a final rinse with a mixture of plain white vinegar and water - this cuts out any remaining soapy residue." What about sun bleach, and scratches, and many of the other daily afflictions that can affect our show horses? "Scratches and fungus do require careful management and, as you can imagine, our horses can be prone to these with all of the time they spend outside. What works best is to clip the horse's legs, and to use a towel to ensure his legs are very dry, then treat the affected area with whatever method your vet recommends. At Plain Dealing we scrub with Nolvasan and then apply a cortisone ointment to the affected area," she said. "As far as sun bleach is concerned - well, it can happen. There is no easy way around it. And it can even happen at times of the day when you think the sun isn't so bright, like five o'clock in the afternoon. At Plain Dealing all of our horses go out in a fly sheet that is also UV-protective. This helps to a degree, and for any horse who is prone to more bleaching, we will feed a supplement such as Black as Knight," she concluded. "But, again, the more oil your horse has on his coat, the less likely he will be to sun-influenced coat damage, so if you do one thing each day, definitely curry," she concluded. "And the answer to the most commonly asked grooming question ... do I have any magical tips for a gray horse? ... no, I'm afraid I'm stuck right there with the same dilemmas as everyone else, she said with a laugh. "The best advice I can give is to keep them groomed each day, and be careful where you turn them out. Obviously if your pasture is in the Southeast and contains any amount of red clay you should identify different footing for your turnout."
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