Vacuuming Horses?

For years I saw those expensive grooming vacuums in horse catalogs, but have never used them. Then when I bought this house they had left a big and a mini shop vac. It got me thinking that maybe those would work on the horses. But I have no clue how to vacuum a horse or if there are any considerations. Obviously I would slowly get them used to the noise and not just come at them with the vacuum

Do you vacuum your horses and if so, what kind of attachments do you use?

I don't even vacuum my my floors all that often.

Lol at one of the barns I worked at they vaccumed horses once they get used to the noise and stuff they learn to love it
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Me either Celeste!

The ONLY reason I am curious is because the soil here is super fine sand, not really silt or loam, and the static makes it cling to their coats. I brush it, then it seems to land right back on the tips of the hairs and it drives me nuts! I thought perhaps the vacuum could get it.

Don't tie the horse when you first try this. It's less stressful if they think they can escape and will often stand. I find the shop vac quite noisy and wonder how sensitive a horse hearing is to this. It's not so bad if done outside. I used the little flat brush that came with mine and the horse got to quite enjoying it. With the wands one can really get to scrubbing with it. The clean coat will come out a different color than a bathed coat. My bay looked more blood bay.

More than vacuuming, I like to "blow" or fluff (use the exhaust port). I go against the hair growth and really get the scurf and dirt out. You will leave a fine layer of dirt/dust on top. For that a microfiber towel works great.

A shop vac can be loud but you can get them used to it.

I use a mini shop vac occasionally on my horse - I think it's the one gallon size? I use it to help dry him off and it works well. He was fussy about it the first time but got over it really fast.

Agreed NOT to tie the horse when vacuuming.

I have a narrow aisleway, so I don't even halter my guys.

I use the shop vac with soft brush attachments.

Never vacuum the family jewels, unless you want plastic surgery for yourself (no I didn't do that, it's just good common sense

Two of my horses love their faces massaged with soft brush attachment, two get wild-eyed and say "not on your grandma's tintype"

Legs can sometimes be an issue for certain horses. Horses are flight animals so sometimes the sucking sensation of the vaccuum can give them heart failure. My Arab used to be that way but I worked him out of that.

I love the shop vac in the winter months because I can't brush four horses good enough to get all the dander up. I'm old, short and my shoulders hurt from doing this stuff all my life. I am all for any piece of equipment that will make my barn life easier and get the job done without killing someone

I vacuum mine. Well, most of mine. I have one that still acts like it's a flesh-eating machine whenever I bring it out.

I'd much rather bathe, but it's helpful when it's too cold out to bathe. I generally start vacuuming two weeks before the show/event and work on the horse for half an hour or so a day. I have the Vac 'n Blo Pro from Spartpak. I'll warn you that they can't get replacement parts if they break for this vacuum. I used the rectangle-like piece most often before it cracked.
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I use a Black & Decker rechargeable car vac that you can easily hold and we sometimes use a shop vac too. Saves a lot of effort with a brush but all of our horses are used to clippers so they had no problems with it all - plus they trust us well enough to deal with pretty much anything we throw at them - makes a difference.