Static - dumb question
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February 7, 2010 11:45AM
My gelding is full of static. I can't touch him. I've tried rubbing him down with dryer sheets, but it doesn't work terribly well. I thought I'd try static guard. All the information I've read talks about spraying it on their blankets. My horse isn't blanketed, and I really need to give him a good grooming.
Do I spray the static guard on my brushes, wipe him down with a cloth and then brush him, or can I just spray the horse directly? Any other static stopping tips would be much appreciated. He's the only one of my four that has a static problem to this degree.
February 7, 2010 11:56AM
Hey! GREAT question...I was thinking of asking myself. My one mare (but she IS blanketed) is in the same boat. Of course she is my huggy bear - and I have to keep my hands off her  as she gets such a massive ZAP from me that she nearly hits the roof...and so do I. Hers is at least related to the blanket tho I think. I feel your pain tho alimom...(literally, figuratively)
February 7, 2010 03:39PM
I don't know what's in static guard, but for some reason it kinda creeps me out to use it on horses. I know lots of people that have, some spray it on their brush and then groom and spray and groom... some spray it right on.
Because it creeps me out, I've never used it... I have instead used some watered down leave in conditioner (human stuff, I think it was infusium, perhaps?) It worked out pretty well, I sprayed in right on the horse lightly and then groomed it in. It never really made them greasy, but I was careful around the saddle and girth area.
Another person I knew swore by just regular human conditioner watered WAY down and put in a spray bottle and applied the same way I did... she said it was quite a bit cheaper and didn't seem to cause any skin conditions.
Mind you, if we HAD had any problems, we also had access to an indoor wash rack with hot water, so we could've bathed even in the coldest weather to remove it. And of course, we bathed our horses on the very first warm day in spring too. 
Good luck, I hope you find something that works... I hate static and shocks and horses that snake their heads around and bite you when they get shocked  (that was what prompted my use of the leave in conditioner, to save my own hide!!)
GP who is incredibly far behind on emails and posts... but who IS making progress on sanding the floor in her new yoga room!
February 7, 2010 07:39PM
Thanks Jazzman. It's good to know I'm not alone, although it's a drag you're going through it too.
GP, I'll give the conditioner a try, and see if it works.
Reply by TH
February 13, 2010 09:51AM
My gelding won't even come near me. Once I put his blanket on in the fall he stays an inch away from my reach, unless I have treats of course. I think he remembers from last year and associates blanket + me = shock. So Any ideas would be great as I would like to start working with him. He is on 24/7 turnout.
March 3, 2010 08:18PM
I just had a brain wave re: this static issue that is so simple its probably just stupid
I was at WHMIS training the other day and they discussed the dangers of static when fuelling your vehicle. Some service stns have a neutralizing surface to put your hand on to be sure you don't give a shock if you leave the car and re-start fuelling.
So last couple of days I've been running my hand down a non-fabric surface (ie the wood of the stall walls etc.) and then petting the horses who've just had their blankets removed....no shocks! 
Does that help or does it not address the issue some are having?
March 3, 2010 08:48PM
Strange, but all winter long I dealt with one or two horses with blankets and never got a shock! We removed the blankets yesterday afternoon and will put them back on if it starts getting colder again (they are in at night), but never got a shock... why do some get shocks and others don't?
March 5, 2010 02:38AM
FI, it is strange, because when I first read this a few of weeks ago, it dawned on me that with all the horses we have and have had , I never get shocked !!! blanketed or not, inside , outside, so when a friend was here for a coffee I mentioned it to her and she told me she gets zap's off her horse all the time, and it makes her mare really crusty and jumpy, I even asked my husband , thinking that maybe I just didnt recall a horse we've had that was" staticy", he told me that he gets a zap off them once and awhile, but only when he's been on the road a lot and returns home for the first day or so !!! and then he look's at me very matter of factly and say's " you never get shocked because you can witch for water really good !!!! ??? and that people who have a trouble with livestock and getting shocks, should roll a Cow magnet around in their hands before they touch the horses " Cow Magnets are what we put down into a cow's stomack, they are shaped like your thumb, but rounded and smooth, goes into their belly and keeps hardware they may have ingested from poking thru " Im not sure where they can be bought, we've always just had lots of them in the milhouse. I dont think they are expensive, might be and old wise tale, but worth a try !!! leave it your coat pocket of just inside the barn door and make sure you roll it around in your hand.
March 5, 2010 10:03AM
They can be purchased at any farm store.... quite cool.... funny CA5 I never get shocked either I mean never and it happens to Sheldon all the time.
Funny huh..... perhaps it has to do with each individuals energy field.... I can crash a computer just by sitting in front of it... not since we started using Macs but with PC it is kind of funny....
March 5, 2010 12:10PM
Stonehedge I'm the same way! I walk into my hubbies studio and all the computers just freeze. I also don't use a blow dryer anymore, as I tend to fry those as well.
I'll try the touching wood, and as I'm going to the feed store today, I'll check out the cow magnets. Sadly, the conditioner didn't work that well. We have been trying to stick it out with the dryer sheets.
Anyone else's horses really starting to shed out? Hopefully the static will end soon?!
March 5, 2010 12:14PM
lol There was a time where I would get blamed for power outage. I just had to show up somewhere and bang, the power would go off! The August power outage was my fault, I'll let you know! It's been a running joke with our friends that any time I go near their cottage, there is a power outage (even in November one year!!!). But shocked by blankets, nope, never! And I have no cow magnets! It never even crossed my mind that I could get shocked! I'll have to ask other boarders and my daughter. Maybe it is more the land than the people?
March 5, 2010 12:36PM
Weird HUH ... Perhaps that is why we all get along so well....
March 5, 2010 01:59PM
My mare and the gelding we take care of are shedding, but nothing dramatic (he was blanketed). But, my BO's mare is shedding up a storm. On Sunday, I just scratched her neck and I could not believe what came off. I promised her I would come back just to groom her! Funny thing, when I came back on Tuesday, she was the first one at the gate. We texted her owner that we groomed her and left a small pony behind!!! I love it when they shed that much. She was chewing a lot and was quite appreciative of the attention! (as was the BO ...) I could have groomed longer, but I felt she still needed some hair on her!!! She is a 24 yo QH! She was blanketed this winter and was quite happy to go back out with a nicer hairdo and no blanket!
March 5, 2010 05:26PM
Put me down for one of those shocking people... I'm constantly getting shocks... my one dog is like a furry ball of static electricity, poor little guy, he always thinks he's in trouble when you pet him and *zap* 
Sorry to hear the conditioner didn't work well for you Alimom.
My goats have started shedding... not huge amounts, just enough that my gloves are always covered in goat hair!
GP
March 7, 2010 03:01PM
Just curious, has anyone tried out the Cow Magnet yet ??? be great if it work's !!
March 7, 2010 09:18PM
I forgot to ask the other boarders at the barn today... but I asked my daughter and she looked at me as if I had two heads.. static? what static? do people drag their feet before touching the horses? She has never been shocked either...
March 8, 2010 01:30AM
LOLOLO........ dont you just love when they give you that look !!! My daughter and all of her 16 years of wisdom, gives me those looks at least twice a week.
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