A clean gray horse! Photo by Sally Spickard.
Ah, spring. Warmer temperatures, sunny skies … and pits full of mud. Surely you understand my sentiments when I glance out the window and realize that paddocks full of mud and equally mud-covered horses await me at the barn.
I particularly sympathize with those of you who own any sort of light coated horse — especially grays. Fortunately, I am not in the camp, which doesn’t mean I’m not in the trenches with you trying to make my horse look presentable. But still, I know you’ve got it worse than I, and for that I am truly sorry.
Luckily, there are a whole range of options for all of you gray lovers (or those of you stuck with a gray horse) out there, and Cowboy Magic is one of the most popular options around. I can’t tell you how many times Green Spot Remover saved my butt at a horse show with a slobbery gray horse, and I’m sure you can share many stories of your own.
I was able to take both the Shine In Yellow Out shampoo as well as the trusty Green Spot Remover for a spin recently, thanks to a suitably filthy gray horse who resides at my barn. When I asked my barn manager if she’d mind volunteering her horse for a free bath, I think she perhaps thought I was a bit nutty, but obliged — because why would you turn down a free bath for your gray horse?
Sherlock clearly has the same amount of love for the dirt and mud as any horse, but he’s unfortunately cursed with an almost pure white coat that will show literally any speck of dust. I’m sure he takes every measure to keep himself clean, but this just isn’t possible when dealing with snowy white locks such as his.
Upon initial appraisal, I was pleased to discover that Sherlock had plenty of grimy stains scattered about that I could work on with my two nifty products. The first thing I tried was the Green Spot Remover.
Pesky dirt stains be gone! Photo by Sally Spickard.
One thing I’ve always liked about Green Spot Remover is the convenience factor. Nothing is more annoying than returning from a quick bathroom break at a show to find your horse mysteriously covered in a rogue manure stain that he swears just came out of nowhere. Your ride time is approaching rapidly, and you can kiss any chance of a quick bath good-bye.
Enter Green Spot Remover, which sprays on to any offensive stain and can quickly be wiped off, taking the dirt and other unmentionables with it. It’s a really simple process — spray on the Green Spot Remover to the dirty spot, let soak for a few seconds, and then wipe away with a damp cloth. Voila!
Seriously, though, this product really is easy. And it works. Once the spot dries, it’s as if there was never any dirt there in the first place. I have always been amazed at how easily the dirt wipes away, even if it’s a decently caked on pile of mud. Of course, I usually curry any truly muddy spots first to ensure the dirt is loosened, but once I do that it wipes right away.
Little work with large rewards. Photo by Sally Spickard.
Another plus about Green Spot Remover is that is lasts. I’ll be honest with you — I spray the product on pretty liberally, but I still am able to make a bottle of this last for a few months. To each his own, of course, but I find that it’s a worthwhile investment when it comes to keeping light colored horses looking sharp.
Once I played around with the Green Spot Remover on Sherlock, it was time for the whole shebang. I uncapped the Shine In Yellow Out shampoo to see what I was using, and I was happy to see that the shampoo is, in fact, blue.
You may think the colored shampoos are only for gray horses. I thought as much for the longest time! But the Shine In Yellow Out is actually designed to brighten coats of all colors, which is great for show season.
Naturally, I was excited to see how shiny and bright Sherlock would look once I bathed him with the Shine In Yellow Out, and I was not disappointed. The shampoo lathers quite well, and you can use it sparingly and still have plenty of lather to work with. There’s no bigger annoyance to me than a shampoo that doesn’t lather well. Just a personal preference.
Sherlock in all of his dusty glory. Photo by Sally Spickard.
I was really pleased with how well the Shine In Yellow Out worked. Sherlock’s coat also turned out very soft once he began drying. He’d gotten a bit impatient during our bath, so I focused on getting his back as clean as possible for photography purposes.
Of course, he immediately went back to his turnout and rolled in the muddiest spot he could find. It’s as if he couldn’t stand the feeling of being clean!
You can purchase Cowboy Magic products at multiple retailers around the country. Click here for a store locator. In the meantime, check out all of the great products Cowboy Magic has to offer here.
Go (clean) horses, and Go Eventing!
