Gelding sheath cleaning??? How do you???

Question

Everyone has their way of doing it. Please share, there are many questions on this. So everyone share! How do you do it?? What works for you??

I use a hose! No, I have never been kicked in the face .I use baby soap or Ivory. & I have been cleaning gelds & stallions for 20yrs. This way has worked great!

Answer 1

http://www.horsebuddies.com/article/shea...

Answer 2

I've never cleaned my gelding's sheath! My vet does it for me and he's so bad about it we have to do it when he's sedated. He HATES it!!

Answer 3

Baby oil, rubber gloves, disposable wash rag and, recently, the hose. ( I was amazed that they really didn't mind that !)

Tried that wash stuff and one got a rash so I gave that up as a bad idea.

I also try to do it when everybody else has bogged off out somewhere - it never works - I end up with people popping around to say "Hi" just when I'm up to my elbow in horse.

Answer 4

You may never have been kicked in the face- but that's because you are just lucky. If I tried to do what you have been doing with some of the geldings I have worked with, or even those on our farm, I would be lucky to avoid a trip to the ER, or worse. Most horses don't like having their private parts sprayed with a cold hose, any more than you would- and if you wouldn't do this to yourself or another person, why would you do it to an innocent animal that can't say NO, American??  I mean, come on, at least be CONSIDERATE about what you are doing-your horses will be far more likely to cooperate, and the risk of your getting hurt will drop considerably if you do what I do.

I use a product which is made specifically for this type of cleaning, such as Excalibur. Many horses are allergic to Ivory- it has ingredients in it which can irritate the skin and cause infections, and I personally HATE THE SMELL OF IT, so I don't use it. I also use warm water ( at the minimum, it should be room temperature or tepid to the touch, and test it on the inside of your elbow, like you would for a baby's bottle, NOT with your hand or fingers) and clean sponges to do this- and I have separate buckets for washwater and rinse water, as well as two sets of sponges. I wear close fitting gloves to do this as well, and am careful to remove all jewelry and rings prior to starting. Most rings have edges on them which can scratch- and again, this is a matter of comfort and consideration for the horse. Tie the horse up to clean his sheath ( that sounds like a no-brainer, I know, but the number of people who seem to think they can do this with a horse while he's wandering around grazing never ceases to amaze me) and if he is sensitive or ticklish around his sheath, then you may need to tranquilize him. Many horses ARE ticklish, and will kick if they are not handled with respect in that area- which is why spraying horses with a hose is not recommended if you want to avoid a kick to the head, face, or arm.

If a horse is really dirty, or has been neglected for a long time, I won't start with the Excalibur at first. Instead, what I will do is to take some baby oil or mineral oil and apply that to the entire sheath and p***s, to loosen the smegma and crusts, and help them come off more easily. I generally will do this on one day, and come back the next morning and clean the horse with the regular Excalibur. Work your hand in and out of the sheath gently, and give the horse a chance to get used to the feel of your working on him. You can always take off the loosened smegma and crusts a little at a time at first. Also, move quietly, and talk to the horse as you work. The whole point of doing this is to get the animal to relax and trust you- and if he does this, he may do something which will actually help you, such as dropping or extending his p***s. It's much simpler to clean the p***s while it's dropped- just ask anyone who has to clean breeding stallions for a living, and they will tell you this is true. I continue washing and removing the smegma until the horse is clean both inside and out- and at the end, I will try to take hold of the p***s to check for the presence of a "bean" in the end of it. It's extremely important to do this, because the "bean" can block the urethral opening if it gets large enough, and cause the horse a lot of pain, not to mention cause infections by itself. Not every horse will have a "bean" each time you do this- but you should always end the cleaning session by checking for one. Untie the horse, put him back in his stall or paddock, dump out the dirty water, clean your sponges, and you're done until the next time. If the horse had to be TQ'D, then make sure he's fully awake before you let him eat or drink anything.

This is the method that I use when I clean sheaths- I have used it for years too, just as you have done with your way. There is no one right or wrong way to do this, I think- but I do know that when you do it, you should put the comfort of the horse first- after all, these are HIS private parts you are messing with, and he deserves to be treated with respect. Would you like it if a doctor was rough with you when you had an invasive exam, such as a pelvic exam, and hurt you or said nasty things about you when doing it?? If your answer is no, then imagine how the horse feels. You need to be gentle, patient, and accept that not every horse is going to cooperate with having this done- some of them are scared of it, and some just plain don't like it. I have known more than a few of the ones in the latter category, which is why I have learned to be cautious in how I do this.  Your experiences are different- not bad, not good, just different.

This is my way- it may not work for everyone.

Answer 5

Baby soap, I'll have to try that...I buy sheath cleaner and i use wash clothes i have just for the horses, the cleaner, gloves and water of coarse.  I have a new gelding and just the other day i touch near there to see if i had a kicker...unfortunately i do.  We'll have to work on that LOL

Answer 6

I use the hose and soapy water .I put some soap on a bucket I usely use baby soap in this area,Get the spunge and get to work...I use the hose to rinse ...I keep it low though so I dont blast the poor guys ..when the water is clear we are done and good to go,I do this at least 2 a month .most people think you need it more or less but yeah that is my input :)

Answer 7

I don't...I let my vet handle it.  I've got one that will knock you into next week if you touch him, "there"....so, he gets a little ace for an attitude adjustment.   He must be pretty proud of his accoutrements.....he's in a "look don't touch mode".

Edit:  We usually combine it with the guys having their teeth floated so they're already in la la land...my memory isn't for diddle so I'll say ...  $80.00, plus the barn call fee,  and I could be wrong as everything else is going up in price.

Answer 8

I just grab a bucket and put some ivory dish soap and water in it.  Then I use a small tack sized sponge, soap it up and head for the sheath.  I soap everything up and then stick the hose up in there and start peeling anything and everything that will come off.  Once the water's clean, he's done!  Then when I'm hosing my horse off after a workout, I generally stick the hose back up there and just squirt.

Answer 9

2 x yearly is the average that we do this.

I used to pay a vet $30 to do this. He had to be Aced for he would get all upset if he thought anyone was even glancing in that direction!  Very protective over his junk! :)

Since we've been working on him I now only take him in every 2 years to have a bean check and up personal down and dirty cleaning.  He never has a bean so a check every 2 years is not a worry (vet agrees)

Calving gloves (go up to the shoulder)

Lots of extra soft towel scraps (but not a cheap one that pills/sheds)

Excalibur

Warm water

Hose if possible

Since he's just now adjusting to this we go slow and at his pace. He still won't stay dropped but he's working on it.

Retracted p***s:

Get a handful of Excalibur in our hand and then work it into the sheath.  We squirt some up there if he allows the bottle in close.  Sometimes he won't.

Let is sit for 5 minutes.  

We prepare some warm water at this time.  2 buckets for sheath cleaning ONLY.  Hubby accidentally used one to wash his truck.  I was ear to ear grin when I asked him if he liked the 'new car scent'.

Ok...it's been sitting now we use one bucket of warm water and some towel scraps to clean out the sheath.  Squirting more Excalibur onto the towels (walnut size dollop each towel)

New towel scrap each time we retreat.

He's p***s is so retracted we don't bother finding it.  He would kill us if we looked anyways.

Now we rinse when we feel there is not so much smegma on the towels.  Warm water rinse with clean towels.

Hose up there if he lets us (normally that's a big NO from him)

Dropped:

When he is dropped he will sometimes let my son grab hold and take a towel and excalibur and wipe him down.  It's rare but nice when he does.  

If he is willing to let us touch his p***s then I know it's a good day to do a sheath cleaning.

I just try to keep him comfy so I don't have to Ace him.  

When he's bad I can always take him to the vet.

EDIT: If your boy is 'squeaking' that does not mean he is dirty.  It's trapped air inside the sheath pocket.  If you were told that it's because he's dirty you were told a MYTH!

It's the same idea as the boys that do armpit farts...or a 'q***f' (air trapped in a female's nether region)

Answer 10

Well, the best time to try it is right after he's had his teeth floated, while he's still relaxed from the sedative. This way, it's more likely he has dropped, making our job easier. If he's dropped, I use baby oil to loosen the stuff up and scrub it with a soft sponge. If he's not dropped, I squirt a bunch of Excalibur up there and let it soak for a few minutes. I then stick a gloved hand up there with a tiny sponge and scrub away and if he lets me, I can get at the bean with my pinkie finger. Then I squirt it out with warm water in a big syringe, and if needed, scrub again with more Excalibur and rinse again. There's a really humorous website out there, I'm sure someone will end up posting it.

EDIT: haha told ya so... Pesky Fly's got the link up.

Answer 11

I usually just get it done during a bath. I use an oatmeal based soap for sensitive skin (I use it on my horse anyway, have to.), Rubber gloves, a clean rag and my favorite weapon of choice, the hose! During the bath my horse usually drops anyway, so it's really easy to get it done.

EDIT: YEAH! That hose comes in handy!!

Answer 12

Both of my Geldings are now used to me handling them in that area. I use a MILD soap and a sponge, and ENSURE that it is fully rinsed off before I'm done.

I would NEVER use a hose, OMG, all that cold water and pressure, my guys would freak out.

They are used to warm water and having it done gently. This is a VERY delicate area ladies, don't use a hose, PLEASE!!!

EDIT: I don't know whether they would hate you for that....although if you sprayed my bits with cold water I'd be close to it!!!!! Lol

Answer 13

5 gallon bucket of warm water, bottle of ivory soap & my hand.  To rinse, 5 gallon bucket of clean warm water & a cotton rag.  Usually keep cotton diapers around for this purpose.  

You know, my blue roan, "Sage" is now 8 yrs. old, got him when he was 3.  When I go about the business of cleaning his sheath, his head goes up & he slowly turns his head towards me, like "Excuse me!!"  I think if he could manage it, he would c**k an eyebrow & shake his head with a weird smirk on his face.

**EDIT**

Gues I should add that I have hosed the area on all of ours while giving them a bath.  Sort of, well, it's there might as well.  I don't use pressure of course.  Never been kicked, never even had a horse react to it.

Answer 14

I use the hose.  It is the best tool.  My gelding could care less.  Altho me vet did  it last time and That was maybe a month ago, and he is already squeking again.  samthing happened with another horse when my vet did it.  But my gelding is so calm and patient,  I can sit down next to him when clipping him anywhere.  But here is my method----

http://jmatt.net/ElecEq/sheath.html

keeps me laughing.

Answer 15

I clean my geldings' sheaths all the time.

I like to take a bucket of warm water and a rag and swash it with it for a while and treat it like i'm washing a baby, than they gently drop it--liking the warmth of the rag and water and I take my excalibur and wrap my hands around his p***s and work the cleaner all around it and up inside of the sheath not only with my hands but also the soft rag, than I take another soft rag and wash the p***s and sheath clean so that no residue is left and than I wipe it clean with one more towel.

In the end it's squeaky clean and pink.

I've never had a horse not like this treatment, but hey, maybe it's just my speacial touch ;V

Ah and remember, never be rough or mean. This is a p***s you're handling.