Horse Halloween Ideas for Your Equine

 Create Easy Attention Grabbing Costumes for Your Horse!

These horse Halloween costume ideas are fun and simple. The easiest costumes use paints. Paints are inexpensive and allow you to cover areas of your horse’s body that you may not otherwise be able to decorate.

Even ‘spooky’ horses will tolerate painted costumes. Paints are comfortable, durable, and cannot blow in the wind or startle your horse.

I have found kid’s water base non toxic tempera paints to be effective with a few exceptions. Many of the colors do not show up well on a black horse, especially the darker colors. White shows best. Brown horse hair is similar, but you can get the colors to show if you paint on several layers. For clean up, wash your horse with water and a curry comb. 

The War Horse Halloween Costume

This War Horse Halloween costume will require a bit of construction on your part. You will need lots of cardboard, a can of silver spray paint, a roll of heavy silver/gray duct tape and an old mesh fly mask (optional).

War Horse Face Armor: Cut eye holes out of your fly mask. Spray the mask silver. Line the edges if your fly mask with duct tape. This is now your horse’s face armor.

If you haven’t a fly mask that you want to sacrifice, you can create the effect of armor using a piece of flat cardboard. Cut the cardboard into the shape shown (this one is 21"W x 22" H). Spray silver and line the edges with duct tape. Cut 2 one inch parallell slits on the three ends that will attatch to your bridle. Thread the cheek pieces and top of your bridle through the slits in the cardboard. This will firmly secure the face armor.

War Horse Breast Plate: Cut a piece of cardboard out for the breast plate. Spray it silver and line the edges with tape. Paint a coat of arms symbol on it if you wish. Thick tipped black permanent marker works great. Use it to outline your symbol. To attach the beast plate to your breast collar, fold tabs over the brest collar and tape from behind.

War Horse Saddle: You will be making large long tapederos. Tapederos are Spanish stirrup covers. But these ones are going to be ‘armor’ stirrup covers! Cut out two pieces of cardboard to fit to the stirrups using the pattern shown. These ones are 14"H x 17"W. It does not need to be exact. Spray the cardboard silver and line the edges with duct tape. Attach the covers to your stirrups using duct tape or twine.

Optional: Drape a piece of cloth over your saddle blanket, or over your entire saddle if you wish to hide it.

For the rider: dress as a midevel warrior. Cover a helmet in duct tape and add cardboard cheek pieces to it to create an armored helmet. Make a cardboard shield for yourself and carry a large chunky medieval type sward. Even better, consider buying a pre-made armored costume for yourself!

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The Patriotic Horse Halloween Costume

This one works best for light colored horses. All you need for this is red and blue paint. The little horse in this picture had no interest in allowing us to add the Red, White and Blue accessories we had purchased. But as you can see, he came out looking pretty cute anyway!

Had he tolerated more, we would have added garland and ribbons to his tail and mane. A flag themed saddle blanket and decorated breast color would work well with this costume. No need to buy a saddle blanket, just cover your saddle pad with a yard of patriotic themed fabric from the fabric store.

For the rider, I would suggest blue jeans and a Western style flag print shirt. If you haven’t the shirt, you could easily take a white t-shirt and paint it yourself. Spray paint a straw hat and decorate it with stars, a flag bandana or whatever suits you.

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               The Zebra Horse Halloween Costume

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The Clown Horse Halloween Costume

To create a clown horse Halloween costume you will need tempera paints in several bright colors, several large and medium sized pom-poms and one yard of spotted fabric (or other clown inspired fabric). Start by painting spots all over your horse. Make them in bright colors of green, yellow, red, orange, blue pink and so on. The circles can be all one size or different sizes. Paint your horse’s hoofs a bright color and top with glitter while the paint is still wet.

Attach the pom-poms across the front of your horse’s breast collar and down he cheek pieces of your bridal. Drape the cloth over your saddle blanket. Attach more pom-poms to the edges of your saddle blanket if you wish. For the rider, dress as a clown.

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The Witch Horse Halloween Costume

This Witch horse costume is wickedly easy! Paint spider webs all over your horse. Use white paint for a dark horse and black paint for a light horse. Dress yourself as a witch. You’re done!

The Zombie Horse Halloween Costume

This Zombie Horse costume is so simple and effective, I just love it! Paint a horse skeleton on your horse. Use white paint for a dark horse and black paint for a light horse. If your horse is a Pinto, paint the spots out with a solid color to match the rest of the coat before you paint the skeleton on.

For the rider, dress as a zombie. Ripped up jeans, bloody, ratty shirt and all the gory makeup you can muster! Hang bits of tea stained gauze from your bridle and larger pieces over your saddle pad to complete the look.

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The Princess Horse Halloween Costume

To create the princess horse Halloween costume you will need decorative trim and 2-5 yards shiny, sparkly or metallic fabric. Base your color scheme around what is available at the craft/fabric store. The princess horse is bejeweled in sparkling gems and rich flowing fabrics.

Princess Horse Bridle: Use decorative trim with dangling beads to create a bejeweled bridal. Attach the trim to the cheek pieces and brow band of your bridal. If you have enough you may also want to attach some trim to a portion of the reins.

Princess Horse Saddle: Drape your cloth over your saddle pad or the entire saddle if you wish. Use enough fabric that is hangs down and flows out as the horse moves. For extra decoration, line the fabric with more beaded trim.

Princess Horse Breast Collar: Create a breast collar fit for royalty with 1-2 yards of your chosen fabric. Scrunch the fabric together accordion style. Fine lightweight fabric works best. Tie 3 knots in the fabric six inches apart, with one knot in the center. Hang a ‘dangle’ at each knot, saving the largest one for the centerpiece. Create a 'dangle' using tassels, large crystal beads or flowey fabric scarfs. 

Princess Legs and Hooves: Use vet wrap to wrap your horses lower legs. Then wrap a strip of your decorative material over the vet wrap. You can use a spray adhesive to secure it. (Remove with surgical tape scissors for safety) Apply coordinating glitter glue to your horse’s hooves. Add ribbon and beads to the mane and tail if you wish. The more elaborate the better.

For the rider: dress as a princess of course. Let the royal games begin!

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The Egyptian Horse Halloween Costume (Recommended for cooperative horses only)

For the Egyptian horse Halloween costume, think Sphinx. This costume revolves around a Sphinx inspired headpiece worn by your horse.

Supplies Needed:

• 3"-4" thick foam
• craft paints
• a permanent marker
• 12” wooden dowel
• white fabric
• Velcro
• Gorilla tape (a very heavy duty duct tape)
• Egyptian inspired trim if you can find it (use paint if you can’t)

Egyptian Horse Headpiece: You will need to measure the width of your horse’s upper neck area (behind your horse’s ears) Use thick foam to create a 'U' shaped Sphinx head piece. The 'U' will be worn upside down over the horse's neck just behind the ears.

You will be attaching the headpiece to your bridle in three places; at the very top and high on the cheek straps just below each ear. Add 10" lengths of Velcro at these three poionts on your headpiece.

Overlap the first 3” of Velcro onto the underside of the foam. Use ample amounts of tape to secure the Velcro to the headpiece. This is what will be holding your headpiece in place…so it’s got to be durable!

Paint the head piece gold. When the gold paint is dry, use your craft paints and permanent marker to finish the design. Attach the headpiece to your bridle in three places; at the very top and high on the cheek straps just below each ear.

Egyptian Horse Breast Collar: Glue one end of a 12”x12” piece of white cloth to the wooden dowel. Add Egyptian inspired trim to the bottom and sides of the fabric. Attach the dowel securely to your breast collar using fishing line.

Egyptian Horse Saddle Blanket: Drape a large square of fabric over your saddle pad. Line the edges with decorative trim. Take a 1’x 6’ piece of cloth and decorate the short edges with trim. Paint large Egyptian symbols on the cloth with black craft paint. Then drape it behind your saddle and safety pin it to your saddle pad to keep it in place.

Egyptian Horse Legs and hoofs: Paint your horse’s hooves gold and wrap their lower legs with white or gold vet wrap.

Egyptian Horse Rider: Dress as Cleopatra or any other ancient Egyptian!

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Harley Davidson Horse Halloween Costume

To transform your horse into a motorcycle you will need a head light, a red reflector, two bandanna's and 1-2 yards of flame print fabric. Optional: bicycle handlebars, PVC pipe and chrome colored spray paint.

Harley Davidson Horse Bridle: Tie two Harley bandanna's to your bridal or let them hang from the bit.

Harley Davidson Horse Saddle: Cover your saddle pad with 1-2 yards of flame fabric. Use black leather saddle bags if you have them especially if they are fringed or silver studded. If you have them attach the bike handle bars to the pommel of your saddle using ample amounts of duct tape.

Optional: Attach to chrome colored (spray paint) PVC pipes to the sides of your saddle blanket to mimic exhaust pipes. 

Harley Davidson Horse Breast Collar: Attach the headlight to the breast collar with wire, duct tape or leather twine.

Harley Davidson Horse Hoofs and Tail: Attach the red reflector to the upper portion you your horses tail and paint the hoofs black.

Harley Davidson Horse Rider: Dress as Harley Biker! 

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More Horse Halloween Costume Brainstorming Ideas

You can find accessories for nearly every costume listed above and full blown costumes galore at the Costume Super Center. Costumes and accessories can be used as is or modified for the rider to create just the right look to go with your horse's costume. Click the banner to check them out. Or you can search for costumes and accessories on Amazon from right here. It's fun!

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