Product Review: HandsOn Grooming and Bathing Gloves
My new go-to grooming tool that all my barn friends are trying to steal.
HandsOn Grooming Gloves are made with flexible scrubbing nodules on the fingers and palms that are perfect for attacking dirt, loosening dead hair and distributing natural oils for healthier hair and skin. Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.
What’s in your grooming kit? If it’s anything like mine, it’s a completely unorganized box with several old brushes, a dirty curry comb, mysterious sticky stains from spilled products and a whole lot of odds and ends. But that was before. Now, all I need is a hoof pick, a soft brush, mane and tail comb, and my new HandsOn Grooming Gloves.
HandsOn Grooming Gloves have quickly become my favorite grooming and washing tool at the barn. Used wet or dry, these gloves are effective at lifting dirt, removing loose, dead hair, and giving your horse a nice massage at the same time.
These gloves are made with flexible scrubbing nodules on the fingers and palms that are perfect for attacking dirt, loosening dead hair and distributing natural oils for healthier hair and skin. The gloves close at the wrist with Velcro for a secure, comfortable fit and as an added bonus will keep your hands clean and fingernails dirt-free while you use them.
The gloves are extremely easy to clean. A quick flick of the wrist removes accumulated hair and dirt clods trapped between the nodules — no more picking clumps of hair out of brushes — and a simple soak in soap and water makes them look good as new.
HandsOn Grooming Gloves close at the wrist with velcro for a secure, comfortable fit. They come in black or green and are also available in Junior sizes. Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.
My young Thoroughbred, Beau, lives out 24/7 and loves to roll in the mud. So when I bring him in to get ready to ride, I spend a solid ten or 15 minutes just knocking the dried dirt off, and he’s still a walking dirt cloud by the time we head to the ring.
What I love about the HandsOn Grooming Gloves is my grooming time is cut in half because I can work faster with both hands. After easily eliminating the obvious patches of dirt, I just follow up with a quick swipe of the soft brush and away we go! That means less time in the cross ties and more time in the saddle!
However, Beau so loves the feel of the gloves that he happily relaxes into a good, long grooming session. HandsOn prides itself in creating products that help you bond with your animals, and I’d say the Grooming Gloves go a long way in doing just that. You’re basically petting and massaging your horse at the same time you’re cleaning him.
One of the best things about these gloves, in my opinion, is the ability to groom with the contours of the horse’s body. You can give all the undulations of the legs a good scrub without causing the horse any discomfort over the bones or tendons. It is also comfortable to use on the horse’s face, which can get so itchy during shedding season.
You’ll also find you can reach some of those spots you previously overlooked because the traditional curry comb and body brush wasn’t the right size or shape. With HandsOn Gloves you can clean behind and inside the ears, scratch underneath the jaw, and gently groom the belly and between the legs.
We’ve had high precipitation in recent weeks, and I have found that the gloves are also great for getting rid of scurfy hair that was the result of prolonged exposure to moisture, especially on the back of the hind legs and fetlocks.
Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.
Designed to be used wet or dry, these gloves are the best thing for bathing. I rarely use a sponge to bathe my horses unless they are getting a simple liniment wash. To me, a sponge doesn’t do a thorough job of getting at the skin-deep dirt and bringing it to the surface to be rinsed away. Instead I’ll use a stiff bristled dandy brush, but it can be awkward and sometimes the horses are sensitive to the bristles.
The HandsOn Grooming Gloves are the perfect alternative to a sponge. The scrubbing nodules are effective at bringing dirt to the surface and the dexterity afforded by using your hands versus a stiff brush ensures a thorough cleaning.
Photo by Leslie Threlkeld.
For all the daily grooming and washing that is done, however, the HandsOn Grooming Gloves have been a blessing during shedding season. I didn’t clip my horse this year and I’m paying for it now, as he’s a ball of disintegrating fluff and his hair is everywhere.
In the past I would spend hours with a curry comb, grooming in a circular motion to pick up the hair and then taking a few moments to pick out the slab of hair before I could continue. With the HandsOn Grooming Gloves, I can simply flick my wrist to remove the accumulated hair, and then get right back to work. And the whole process is much gentler than a shedding blade.
If my horse is happy then I’m happy, and we’re both happy to use HandsOn Grooming Gloves. In fact, the entire barn yard will appreciate its massaging effects, including the cats, dogs, goats or whatever fur children make up your menagerie.
HandsOn Grooming Gloves come in black or green and are also available in Junior sizes. At only $24.99 (with a discount for multiple pairs!) you’ll want these in every groom box in your barn! Visit www.handsongloves.com to order.
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