Walking On Volume 6, Issue 10, October 2019 | Page 12
Back to Basics
Things You Must Do When
Cleaning Your Horse Blanket
By Theresa Truscott
For hygiene reasons each horse
should have its own blanket.
Sharing blankets can facilitate the
spread of skin problems such as
girth itch, ringworm, and other
fungal infections. Even if no hors-
es in the stable have known skin
problems, fungal spores can cling to
the blankets and be spread to other
horses.
If the blankets are used often
during the winter they should be
washed at least twice, using cold
water and a disinfectant soap. Rinse
the blankets well to make sure that
no soap residue remains otherwise
it might irritate the horse’s skin.
It is better to wash a winter horse
blanket in cold water rather than
dry cleaning it. Dry cleaning will
not remove odors, and the heat
and chemical solvents can dissolve
the waterproofing and shrink the
bindings.
Moreover, using a domestic
washing machine can wreak havoc
on your home drainage system,
which probably will back up even-
tually.
This is not to say that you can’t
launder some blankets at home.
Lighter weight blankets that don’t
get too dirty, such as coolers and
show sheets, can be washed in your
machine. Some stable sheets also
can be machine washed, depending
on their bulk. If you’re going to put
a blanket into your washer make
sure it has enough room to agitate,
otherwise you won’t get all the dirt
off. That pretty much eliminates
heavier, bulkier blankets that barely
fit into the typical domestic ma-
chine.
The two biggest problems people
encounter when they clean their
blankets at home are storing them
before they are completely dry and
not rinsing them thoroughly. You
do need to ensure that your blanket
is completely dry otherwise it will
rot if you fold it and put it away for
the summer.
Generally speaking, the best
choice - especially if you have
expensive, heavy turnout blankets
- is to send them to a dry cleaner to
have it cleaned professionally. This
cost will be self financed as it will
allow your blanket to have a longer
life.
For a free report on “How to Improve Your
Riding” see Theresa’s Horse Aficianado blog at
[http://www.horseridingblankets.com/blog] and
have fun with other horse lovers.
Article Source:
https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Theresa_Trus-
cott/359757
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3636125
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