Boomerang’s First Haircut
Boomer has a lot of hair. And when I say a lot…I mean a lot! If Mane n’ Tail got a hold of him – he’d be their new spokes-pony for sure. Because not only is it thick, but its got gorgeous natural highlights that shimmer in the sunlight. I’ve always loved horses with a full head of hair. Manes that flow in the wind – reminiscent of their wild ancestor’s locks (without the mats and burrs of course). So you may be wondering why I CHOPPED IT ALL OFF yesterday!!?? I’m sort of wondering the same thing myself.
I’ve always wanted to roach a horse’s mane. Because lets face it, in my equine sport of choice, mounted games, long hair just doesn’t cut it. Sure its pretty and stylish, but it gets tangled in your hands and your reins and it just basically makes multitasking near impossible. So I secretly always wanted to roach one of my ponies mane’s to see if it would make things easier for me while competing. So after my competition with Boomer on Sunday (which I really should of posted about first….but I just couldn’t wait to post about Boomer’s first haircut) and one jammed finger later, I decided what the heck if it looks stupid it will grow back!
So onto the haircut. The idea was simple. Roach Boomer’s mane so that I had about 2 inches left with the hopes that it would stand straight up – I opted to leave a little because #1 I was chicken and #2 I still need a little something to grab when I vault on or when Boomer decides to act like the baby he is and throw some bronco bucks. Then I realized…as far as I know Boomer’s never seen clippers before. Humm. Out comes the treat bag and my clicker.
Within a few minutes Boomer the wonder pony was letting me clip off his gorgeous locks with the heavy duty (super loud) clippers without so much as a flinch. All thanks to the clicker. I think if he had known I was stealing his hair he might not have been so tolerant.
I told him to keep his eyes closed until I was finished. 🙂
I was a bit scared after the first pass. Thank god we don’t have mirrors in the barn – Boomer would have never let me live this down.
But after some more touch ups and a shampoo and wash – I think it turned out ok. The real test will be next weekend when we head to the Prince George Equestrian Center for 2 days of competition. Hopefully I don’t dread Boomer’s first haircut.
So what do you think? Was this a horrible mistake on my part? Should I have cut it even shorter? Tell me what you think!
-KD
www.ponypaintings.com
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Looks MUCH better with his mane short 🙂
He looks good with a Mohawk.