Horse care © Benkert

Cleaning place

The cleaning place is the place where you usually tie up your horse to clean it afterwards.
Horses are flight animals that like to have a view all around. They do not like to stand in front of a wall. Horses get used to it, but feel more comfortable with a tethering bar at chest height, which allows them a clear view. In the stable alley it is also common to tie horses from the right and left side at the same time.

The grooming area should meet a few conditions:

• For example, it is imperative that the space around the horse is free from objects standing around and has a level, non-slip surface. An object such as a pitchfork, a wheelbarrow or a stable butler, lying between your horse's legs, can quickly lead to dangerous situations if the horse panics. You should therefore make sure that the horse cannot reach objects of any kind, neither with its mouth nor with its rear end. Other tied up horses can also be a danger if there is a dispute. For this reason, it is imperative that you keep a safety distance of about two horse lengths (approx. 5 metres).
• Never tie a horse to a moving part, such as a stable door or similar. If the moving part, for whatever reason, starts to move, the horse may panic, which can lead to serious accidents.

• The length of the lead rope should keep the horse safely in place, but at the same time offer him security in his sensory perception. How long or short a horse is properly tied depends on the horse. An approximate average length of the tethering rope is 60 to 80 cm.
• The floor of the grooming area should be slightly moistened in one or two places. Of course not in the places your horse can reach with his hooves, because that would increase the danger of slipping considerably. In these places you can then wonderfully beat the curry cob without the dust being whirled through the air and settling directly on the horse again.
• Furthermore, you should always leave the grooming area as clean as you found it.