Different Ways to Hold Horse Clippers

Regular Body Clipping

• For large areas of a body clip and trace clip, like bellies, sides, necks, and rumps, clip against the direction of hair growth. Hold the clippers at the same angle as you glide along. You will usually hold the clippers the same way the whole time.

• Usually, this means keeping your hand under the clippers. Putting your hand between your horse and the clippers gives you something to lean on and helps you keep the same angle as you work. This position will also steady the clippers as they rest on the back of your hand.

• If you need to twist into a pretzel to clip an area, you may need to hold the top of the clippers instead or switch hands.

Using Shears

• Shears are large, wide, and powerful clippers that zip through heavy coats in a flash. Their bulk and added weight may fatigue your arm and wrist, so you should switch hands and position as needed.

• Shears may also have a stronger vibration than smaller models, which may influence how you hold them against your horse’s body.

• Holding these from the top can help when working on those larger sections of hair. Switch to regular body clippers for faces and legs, as the shears are too big for those areas.

Clipping Lower Legs

• How you hold horse clippers on the lower legs depends on your clipping technique and how much hair you wish remains.

• You can hold them just as you would for the larger body areas.

• If you want to trim the hair back a little and not clip to the skin, you can point the blade downward and rake the hair in the same direction of the hair growth.

• As you point the blade down, the angle you place it will change the result. Be careful not to press the edge of the blade deep into the hair as you rake, as that will give you a divot. Which doesn’t matter; the hair will smooth out with enough time.

Ears

• For ears, hold the clippers pointing down as you would for your horse’s legs. Fold the ear like a taco and trim along the edges. The inner ear hair protects the skin and ear canal, and it’s perfect to leave that, even for a show horse.

• If you clip inside the ears, put ear plugs or puffs inside to prevent hair from falling into the ear canal.

Bridle Paths

• This is a spot where you can hold them with the blade facing down or up as you zip under the bridle area. You can flip them back and forth for a perfect finish.

• Trimming the bridle path is always recommended, even if you don’t do a full-body clip. This smooth path makes the bridle’s crownpiece rest smoothly on your horse, boosting comfort.

Hold Horse Clippers Like a Pencil

• The biggest challenge to clipping is adding a fuzzy saddle area, a clever design, or making borders for a trace clip. It’s ideal to use stencils, but how do you make a stencil for a line that goes from nose to butt?

• Anytime you won’t be body clipping entirely, use string, stencils, or saddle pads to define the shape. Then, hold your clippers like a pencil and use the corner to “draw” along that shape. You now have a “dent” in the hair to act like a border.

Creating designs and outlines

• For designs on rumps or shoulders, use the same pencil technique. Stencils made from cereal box cardboard are best for small clippers like a pencil. You can find free designs online. Canva.com has fantastic vectors and elements to print and transfer to cardboard.

Straight edges

• Turn the clipper upside down and press it into the hair for short, straight lines. This technique works well for patterns with short, straight parts or for half-face clips. Another place to use this is the coronary band, which creates a “stylish” bowl-cut look.

Can the way you hold horse clippers affect the outcome?

• Yes! Keeping them comfortable in your horse helps you steady the clipper blades against your horse, resulting in a smooth finish. You will also help avoid nicks, cuts, and tugging when they are properly held.

Quick Clipping Tips

• Avoid using dull blades. If they start to tug, cut unevenly, get too hot, or otherwise make clipping terrible, add coolant and then clipper oil. Wipe away any excess oil. If you still have trouble, it’s usually because your horse is dirty or the blades are dull and need to be sharpened or replaced. Get into the habit of stopping every five minutes to brush the blades and add oil, this will prevent hot blades.

• Your horse should love this process if they equate clipping with a positive experience. Sedation from your vet is rarely necessary if you invest in clicker training and positive reinforcement.

• Have a helper handy to assist you in holding the front legs forward to reach elbows and helping if you need to remove a halter to clip your horse’s face. Friends are also great at sharing the flying hair that lands in your skivvies.

• A full body clip is more accessible than a trace clip. You need to mark the edges with trace clip patterns, which can get tedious. If your trace clip attempts look like Swiss cheese, don’t worry. Everything grows out.

• There’s no one right way to clip your horse. It’s all a big experiment anyway, so find what works best for you.

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