FEI: No more shaving cream or marshmallow fluff

Effective as of July 1, 2025. USEF has until July 18, 2025 to register their disapproval.

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Is that a thing?? I never knew.

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I thought this was already banned. Maybe it already was at the USEF level?

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I have never seen anyone use either product lol…just a sugar cube here and there

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Shaving cream?!?! :hushed:

My mare would be horribly offended and would be fussing and coughing and spitting. I can’t imagine that most horses would respond any differently.

I do give her a slice of apple after I bridle her - and a couple of sugar cubes once I’m mounted.

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I mean shaving cream? What a delightful experience for your horse. Not.

But in the many issues with dressage, I think including marshmallow fluff is a bit ridiculous. How is it different from a sugar cube to the horse? And if it does have a foaming effect (hit or miss with my pony) I guess the side perk is that if he bites his tongue, then nobody is going to miss it, given that pink is spread all over. Not to mention I never met a judge worth riding under who mistook white foam for a real connection when there was none…

I used it a few times when the pony decided to boycott sugar cubes (yes, you read that right :rofl:) but it is more of a pain than it’s worth, but this seems like focusing on the problem nobody identified (except for the shaving cream part).

How nice that the FEI is catching up with the 1980’s.

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How does that work? Do you smush the bit into the jar? Plastic disposal spoon and glob it into the side of the mouth?

Or are they using the marshmallow fluff to BE the foam. Not produce the foam. That’s what I would think. Same with the shaving cream. Uck.

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That’s what I assumed too. But I can’t wrap my head around how you manage either one. I’d expect any horse to shake their head violently at the taste of shaving cream around their mouth, and marshmallow fluff would be such a sticky mess that it would be all over anything the horse touched.

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I just put a tiny blob on the bit with my fingertip which then usually managed to get all over the place (chin, nose) as I slipped the bit in the mouth. As sticky as the stuff is I can’t imagine coating the mouth with it. Plus it wouldn’t foam, it would just be there, sticky and dripping in the heat. From my perspective it wasn’t any different than a sugar cube since marshmallows are just sugar.

Will this mean things like Gumbits will be banned?

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Yes.

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This feels like a reactive response to some sort of social media outrage, and not a move that’s prioritizing actual welfare issues.

I mean, putting shaving cream around a horse’s mouth to make it look like he’s foaming is not great, but I have a hard time losing sleep over a horse getting a little sweet marshmallow treat or sugar cube along with his bit. I’ve never done it, but it seems pretty benign to me and not really worthy of an extraordinary rule change.

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FEI has been worried about marshmallow fluff since at least 2021.

The problem with marshmallow fluff etc. is that in addition to trying to making dry mouths look appropriately foamy is that they can be used to hide gaping mouths, tongue issues, and other problems with contact. Not sure how successfully but I believe that’s the reason for the ban.

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Why on earth do you want the horses mouth to be foamy? I don’t understand the reasoning behind this…

I guess it’s because a foamy mouth is seen as a good thing in dressage? I personally have always felt like this is a internet rumor and a knee jerk response. It’s not like you score better just because of foam. There have been a few FB posters who have been all over promoting that this is wide spread and rampant.

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