Cleaning Muddy Boots

When we get lots of rain or snow we have mud to deal with while working the horses or cleaning their stalls. In addition to being careful with our footing, so we don't end up sitting in the mud--which we have all done at least once--we also find that it works best to clean the boots before leaving them for the next time.

By cleaning the boots every time we have better traction, the boots last longer, and walking is much more comfortable when we aren't carrying around extra mud with each step. Besides all of these reasons, its always a good idea to get the boots clean before getting into the saddle so less mud gets on the saddle or in the stirrups.

To clean the boots we have tried several things and found that a combination of a few work best for us. Using an extra hoof pick seems to work relatively well, but this means you have to bend over or sit down to scrape the bottom of the boots.

Right now our boots have a rubber bottom and canvas top. To clean the rubber bottom when they are extremely muddy, we are now using a product called The Scrusher (https://www.scrusher.com/). It is made of stiff brushes so you can push and pull your boot through while its still on your foot. The one we chose also has a steel base with room on either side to stand. This helps hold The Scrusher still while we pull our other boot through.

We placed The Scrusher on the back porch and have noticed that the use of it keeps us from tracking too much mud around. Mud from the boots flips a little to the front and back of The Scrusher, so we placed it in a corner where most people won't be walking.

Since The Scrusher is short, it only cleans the bottom of the boots and the sides down near the soles. For the upper part, we have found a stiff brush works well.