Are you seeing SI issues in your horses since they’ve been wearing the sheets?
Yes, as you’ve noted with your video above, they swish more without sheets because bugs have more access. They are responding to bugs landing. Is that a surprise?
It seems kinda mean to remove effective bug protection from senior horses because you’re worried not swishing will cause an issue you haven’t seen.
In my area fly sheets are fairly uncommon. Maybe 1 in 20 or fewer. I’ve seen zero evidence of correlation. Do what you do but of all the well being things for a horse, tail muscle disengagement from a fly sheet isn’t the hill I’m dying on or even interested in worrying about.
Yes they have mild SI issues. They are aging after all. Just like I do. I find mine is kept in check with exercise and that’s where I am heading with this.
Again, I am sure they don’t need the tailpieces that are designed to keep the tails in perfect shape for the showring.
I will find out next if they swish without the tailpieces but with flysheets.
And I won’t have the “girl juice” my mare gets on everything, including her legs, since she can’t lift her tail high enough to squirt when in season.
No hill to die on. Just tossing ideas around. 
And that’s shown up since you added the fly sheets?
Huh, I’ve always found the tail flaps help protect the butt and udder/sheath area from bugs.
Not necessarily. I’ve had the flysheets since I got them. Don’t have a timeline on the aging issues - they just kinda creep up.
I will have to think on the backend protection. I might just end up shortening the flaps. Or figure a way to velcro my mare’s up when she’s in heat.
You could loosely stitch it.
Today is full sheet day going forward…still need to figure out the tailpiece and mow my pastures! Put it off as we are in a drought, but they have eaten the good stuff down finally (I waited until end of June to put them out so the sugars would be lower).
Those ARE long tail flaps.
That’s what I have been saying. However, I realized I can experiment tying them up with hair ties!
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