Painting with Your Pony (or Horse)

In order to have a little horsey fun and celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, last week, a trainer at my barn hosted a pony painting party. Several years ago on social media, I followed a retired racehorse named Metro who actually painted with a paintbrush clenched between his teeth. I wasn’t sure if Knight (also a retired racehorse) would take up the art so easily. I learned this painting-with-your-pony party would involve canvas, water-based paints and a layer of saran wrap, and treats. With treats being part of the equation, I knew Knight would go for it wholeheartedly.

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Materials Needed for Painting with Your Pony (or Horse)

In case you want to try painting with your pony or horse, first, gather your supplies:

• tempera paints in multiple colors like these 
• stretched canvas and/or flat canvas
  • I recommend an 8×10 stretched canvas like these
  • And these 8×8 flat canvases
• plastic wrap such as Glad Cling Wrap or Saran Wrap
• paper plates (to serve as palettes)
• small to medium-sized paintbrushes
• paper towels or rags (to dab up spills or errant paint splotches)

Once you have all your materials gathered, set up an art “station” on a table for ease of use. Also, it helps if your horse is in a stall or paddock (without other horses around to potentially try to get in on your painting).

Painting with Your Pony Using Stretched Canvas

Before we begin, the gist is if you place food atop the canvas that has plastic wrap with paint underneath, as your horse’s muzzle brushes over the surface, that will cause the paint to glide around the canvas, creating a unique artwork.

1. First, grab your canvas and decide what colors you like and will look good together. I used yellow along with shades of green for a St. Patrick’s Day vibe.
2. Next, determine if you are trying to make a shape or just mix colors for an abstract creation. I was trying to create a shamrock, so I doused the paint in the shape of a large canvas.
3. Once you have the colors on the canvas (try not to be too scant, nor too globby with the paint), tear off a piece of plastic wrap that will cover your canvas from edge to edge (so your horse won’t touch the paint).
4. Place grain, hay, peppermints or any treats your horse likes on top of the canvas (these cookies are Knight’s favorite)–like you are serving up delicacies on a platter for your horse.
5. Present the canvas like a tray to your horse. You could slide open their stall door and leave the canvas on the ground, OR you could hold the canvas up for your horse. I opened the top part of Knight’s stall and held the canvas up to him. He was appreciative of the yummies. And once he ate them he actually used his upper lip to kind of smooth the plastic wrap around a little bit. I think he enjoyed the texture or thought it was a novel experience to paint.
6. Examine the colors and design. If you think your horse’s creation needs more work, you can always add another layer of food or horse cookies to the top of the canvas for round two of painting with your pony. You can keep going, piling treats on top of the canvas until you are satisfied with the overall look.
7. Let the canvas dry overnight, and by morning, you will have a new masterpiece to hang in your home or barn.

Painting with Your Pony Using Flat Canvas

The other option I tried with Knight on the day of the painting party was to do a hoofprint. I learned this needs to be done on a flat canvas (so your horse doesn’t step through a stretched canvas—lol). Here are the steps. I recommend having a helper or two for this painting with your pony funtivity.

1. First, get a paper plate and shoot a dollop of paint onto it. Have a clean medium paintbrush at the ready. Set aside.
2. Second, use a hoof pick to clean your horse’s hoof that you plan to use for the hoofprint.
3. Next, sweep the aisleway to keep dirt, shavings, shedding hair, etc. away from your paint and canvas. (I would NOT recommend doing this in the stall).
4. Have your helper hold the flat canvas and the paper plate with paint while you swirl the brush around on the paint and then paint your horse’s horseshoe.
5. Next, place the canvas on the ground and pray that your horse will place his or her hoof squarely on the canvas.
6. Wait about ten seconds and lift your horse’s hoof. Voila! You should have a nice horse hoofprint.

Full disclosure, Knight didn’t set his hoof on the canvas in the center. I like symmetry and it was bothering me so I then repeated the paint and plant (the hoof) process a second time. Interestingly enough, when he stepped back on the rubber mat in the aisle, it had a PERFECT horseshoe shape–it even showed the nail holes! I was disheartened so my sister (a retired teacher) encouraged me to do a different paint color and turn the canvas the other direction. After that she said I could use the tip of Knight’s tail like a paint brush and swab the paint around. So I did.

The flat canvas was very stiff. I think the hoodprints looked so good on the mat because it had some give. If I try this arts and crafts with my horse thing again, I might get a heavy duty piece of art paper and see if that works. Also, perhaps I should have just touched the canvas to Knight’s hoof while I was holding it up like a farrier. I thought his bodyweight would make the paint imprint really solid, but not so much.

All, in all, we had a fun time at the barn with our ponies and horses. It was a great activity for all ages and art abilities. This could be a simple and creative project for a pony camp or birthday party too. I hope we do it again!

As you can see from the photo below, horses can be artists too. Look at the variety of colors and textures and designs represented. Next time you are feeling creative, grab some paint, your equine best friend, a canvas, some plastic wrap and a few treats and let the magic happen. I promise you will have fun.

Thanks for reading this blog post! I hope you give painting with your pony (or horse) a try.

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