CARING FOR YOUR COLLAR

Thank you for purchasing a quality, Australian-made, long-straw horse collar, hand-made from natural materials to ensure the comfort of your horse.

The following information will assist you in gaining the best use of your collar:

• On receipt of the collar, don't be afraid to cut the string tying the two 'ears' together at the top of the rim and, similarly, carefully snip the twine holding the two halves of the body together at the top. The collar is tied together during manufacture to preserve the shape;
• Soon after delivery, please ensure that you give the collar a generous application of leather dressing such as 'Ge-Wy' or 'Dubbin'. This is necessary because our manufacturing process requires the leather to be soaked in water, thus leaching out much of the preservative, which must be replaced. Put the collar out in the sun for a few hours to enable the dressing to soak in, and apply again if necessary. Finally, polish off surplus dressing with a soft cloth;

(Note: If you intend to use the collar for show purposes, ensure that it is dyed prior to applying the leather dressing. In the case of a show collar, only apply a light leather dressing to the flesh side (underside) of the side pieces and strapping, and use a good quality boot polish such as 'Parade Gloss' for the hair side (top) to maintain a good shine for the show ring.)

• With a collar-check-lined collar, pin a few little bags of naphthalene flakes or moth balls to the body when the collar isn't going to be used for a while, to protect this lining from moth damage. Dirt and sweat can be removed periodically using a stiff clothes brush or horse brush;
• With a leather-lined collar, give the lining a light leather dressing upon purchase; then after each use, give the lining (especially from the draught turns to the throat of the collar) a wipe over with a damp sponge or cloth to get rid of the sweat. This will help prevent cracking of the lining;
• With all collars, always open them to a minimum to get them on and off the horse, sliding the collar to the narrowest part of the horse's neck each time. After removing the collar, do the strap(s) up and hang upside down, with the lining side facing you, on a peg to air.

CARE OF SHOW HARNESS

• Top surfaces of harness leather should be regularly polished with “Parade Gloss” Black Polish to maintain shine;
• Bottom surfaces of all harness should be regularly given a good leather dressing with a product such as “Ge-Wy” or “Dubbin” to preserve the leather;
• Top surfaces of patent leather should be dusted off, given a light spray of “Mr Sheen” & then polished off.