Clipping Guide. Introduction. Clipping Guide

Transcription

1 Clipping Guide Introduction A month to six weeks before the show you should already have begun walking and handling the calf. This will give her confidence and make clipping a lot easier. Before clipping your calf for the first time you should give her a good wash to remove the natural grease from her hair, this will also make clipping easier and cause less wear and tear on the clipper blades themselves. SAFETY NOTE: you should make sure the calf is dry after washing her, as water and electricity DON'T mix! Your calf should be tied at a comfortable and natural level, roughly the same height it will be shown; this will also help the training of the calf. SAFETY NOTE: You should ensure cable lengths are kept to a minimum and extension cables are fully undone to avoid them overheating. It is also advisable for yours and your calves safety to use a circuit breaker on all electrical appliances. When starting out ask a friend or parent to help restrain the calf if necessary. Always give yourself plenty of time and don't rush. Take a minute to look at your calf and decide if you need to leave any hair behind the shoulder to blend her better into her body or under her belly to give the illusion of a deeper rib. Start body clipping on the no-show side of the animal (the left as you stand behind her). This allows for a margin of error when you are learning to clip. Start at the vein just above the hock on the hind leg and go into the hair up towards the spine in as long a 'blow' as possible keeping the blades as flat as you can against the calf. Then work along towards the shoulder always from bottom to top into the hair. Page 1 of 6

2 Leave 5cm (2 inches) either side of the spine for blending for the topline and stop the blow with an angle rather than suddenly stopping as this will make blending in easier when finishing off. When clipping the tail, allow 2 handfuls from the end of the bone of the tail plus the switch and clip up the tail towards the tailhead, leaving some hair over the tail head for the topline. Blend the bottom half of the hind legs into the vein above the hock and the front legs into the knee, again working into the hair. Page 2 of 6

3 SAFETY NOTE: It is especially important when clipping the legs that you keep your other hand in constant contact with the calf so she knows where you are. When clipping the head you may need someone to help you to hold the calf and move the halter out of the way of your clipping. Work into the hair again (the hair on the head goes in different directions). Work from above the eye up to the poll then onto the jaw and nose. The ears can be tricky because of the noise directly into them; use one hand to hold the ear while you work from the tip in towards the head. Page 3 of 6

4 SAFETY NOTE: Be wary of metal ear tags as they don't do clipper blades much good! Blow up the hair on the topline starting at the tail and working along against the hair. Keep your hairdryer which should have a narrow nozzle at a 45 degree angle brushing the hair in front of the dryer working slowly so that the hair stands straight upwards. When you get to around the shoulder the hair changes direction so you will need to work from the head to this point. Blend the topline into the body working steadily along to create an angle over the topline and remove any excess hair. Use a small set of topline clippers to create a finished blend on the sides and top of the topline. Work slowly along in one 'blow' if you can from front to back, always keep looking as to where the calf is naturally high or low on its topline so you can improve the overall appearance and outline of your calf in the show ring. Page 4 of 6

5 Use scissors to finish off and remove any stray hairs from the topline especially over the tail head. You can spray products such as 'clear magic' into the white hair and 'black magic' into the black to keep the topline fixed when you have finished preparing the animal. To remove clipped hair from your calf use a soft, long bristled brush and your hairdryer at a distance gently moving over your calf. This will help the overall finish ready for the show ring. Page 5 of 6

6 Finally use your topline or other small hair brush to brush out the hair on the tail to finish off your calf. Ready for the show ring!! Your calf has now been fully clipped ready for the show ring and is consequently showing more cleanness of bone, dairyness and femininity throughout the whole calf, all of which will help to catch the judge s eye. Remember Clipping is like everything in life, the more you practice the better you become. SO GET CLIPPING!!! Page 6 of 6