The title says it all… My horse’s tail is falling out, in chunks! It doesn’t appear that she’s rubbing it or catching on the fence or stall wall or buckets or anything like that. I’m just finding clumps of tail in the middle of her stall. I banged her tail shorter incase she was stepping on it somehow… But she’s not. I inspected it as best I could and all I could find was a little dandruff, but it didn’t seem itchy. I’m really freaking out – her tail was beautiful! I haven’t put anything new (or anything at all) on her tail in months since she’s taking the winter off. Any ideas or suggestions?
I think selenium can do that if not properly balanced on the diet. That is one supplement I never feed without testing blood-selenium levels first. Hope that helps!
[QUOTE=Nevada10;8517839]
The title says it all… My horse’s tail is falling out, in chunks! It doesn’t appear that she’s rubbing it or catching on the fence or stall wall or buckets or anything like that. I’m just finding clumps of tail in the middle of her stall. I banged her tail shorter incase she was stepping on it somehow… But she’s not. I inspected it as best I could and all I could find was a little dandruff, but it didn’t seem itchy. I’m really freaking out – her tail was beautiful! I haven’t put anything new (or anything at all) on her tail in months since she’s taking the winter off. Any ideas or suggestions?[/QUOTE]
Is she a show horse?
Many show horses today have their tails deadened or even cut so they can show without losing points to tail switching.
I have heard of such horses some times starting to lose their tail hairs, or part of them because of that and needing falsies to show.
Also as above, some deficiencies show up in losing hair, but a vet would have to examine her and address that.
She isn’t on a selenium supplement. She is a show horse, but her tail hasn’t been injected. She is going to need a fake tail now :(. I will call my vet on Monday. If anyone else has ideas, please share!!
Possible spider bites. My pony had a hysterical and panicked fit in the turnout one day. Racing to get out, bucking high to the sky, kicking behind him. Like something was biting his ass. I got him out as fast as I could. A week later, hair fell out of his tail in a patch. No sign of irritation or rubbing. I discovered dozens of brown widow spiders nesting on posts out in the turnout. I got rid of the spiders and haven’t had a problem since. Try an antihistamine with vets guidance.
Is it possible tail was wrapped too tightly recently?
Otherwise, a skin scraping is in order… call the vet.
Sorry.
One of mine had ringworm on his tail one time :eek:
No idea how it got there or where it came from but unlike yours, it was definitely itchy
Thanks for the responses. The spider bites are an interesting thought, but I haven’t seen a spider in months since it’s winter.
Her tail hasn’t been wrapped. However, she does like to sit on the wall… Wonder if that would be enough pressure to compromise blood flow and make her tail fall out? Though this isn’t a new behavior…
I washed it the other day and coated it in MTG. Talked to my vet and a nutritionist and they’re both baffled. I hate when my horses stump the vet.
You coated it in MTG before the hair started falling out? Or afterwards?
My previous mare had a horrific reaction to MTG and all her hair fell out over her back, along with acquiring some kind of chemical burn. You have to be extremely careful with letting them out in sunlight after application as well.
The MTG has my vote if you used it before the hair started falling out.
[QUOTE=Cataluna;8520873]
You coated it in MTG before the hair started falling out? Or afterwards?
My previous mare had a horrific reaction to MTG and all her hair fell out over her back, along with acquiring some kind of chemical burn. You have to be extremely careful with letting them out in sunlight after application as well.
The MTG has my vote if you used it before the hair started falling out.[/QUOTE]
No, coated her dock with MTG after it started falling out. Thankfully, the tail flap of her blanket covers most of her tailbone. But her tail is still falling out at an alarming rate. Everyone is scratching their heads… except me… I’m pounding mine on the wall. 
[QUOTE=Nevada10;8517957]
She isn’t on a selenium supplement. She is a show horse, but her tail hasn’t been injected. She is going to need a fake tail now :(. I will call my vet on Monday. If anyone else has ideas, please share!![/QUOTE]
There have been a couple threads here on Selenium. Here is the link to the map that was posted previously and if I’m not mistaken that was the problem for one COTHer. I’d have the vet out and have her levels checked.
http://tin.er.usgs.gov/geochem/doc/averages/se/usa.html
Edited to add that selenium toxicity and selenium deficiency can produce similar symptoms.
Did you pull blood to check her Selenium level?
I have a senior horse with next to no mane, no forelock & minimal tail hair. It’s very frustrating, he came to me like this 13 yrs ago and it never got any better. Over the years, I did have bloodwork done, nothing was ever found as a reason, all came back normal each time.
Various lotions & potions never made a difference either.
But he grows foot like there’s no tomorrow. It’s near impossible to keep up with. It’s winter and he needs a trim every 3 weeks. The quality of his feet has always been excellent. We joke about it now, all nutrients appear to go to his feet and none to his mane or tail.
I hear your frustration though, best to get bloodwork done to be sure, especially if this is a more sudden thing.
If you go with a fake tail, I’d be curious to know how this works out. I may consider one this summer, so he has something more to squat the flies with vs the few strands he has at present :(.
Keep us posted please.
You’re sure she’s not rubbing it, on purpose or by accident, on the tail flap of her blanket? do her udders need cleaning? have you looked around her stall really closely to see if there’s a place she’s rubbing more than in the past? What does the inside of the blanket flap look like? has she been in heat yet?
[QUOTE=betsyk;8527297]
You’re sure she’s not rubbing it, on purpose or by accident, on the tail flap of her blanket? do her udders need cleaning? have you looked around her stall really closely to see if there’s a place she’s rubbing more than in the past? What does the inside of the blanket flap look like? has she been in heat yet?[/QUOTE]
Definitely not rubbing it – there aren’t any broken or frayed hairs and it’s the long hairs at the bottom that seem to be falling out, more so than the short hairs at the top. I cleaned her utters the other day (nearly got my head bashed in for that) but they really weren’t dirty. I haven’t found a strand of hair attached to the wall – I’m finding chunks in the middle of her stall. I checked every nail to make none had popped, even the slightest bit. I don’t know if she’s been in heat yet – she doesn’t make a scene when she is. I’ve had a number of different blankets on her so all of the tail flaps are a little different.
I was thinking about doing a hair mineral analysis. Would that be worthwhile or is a blood test more reliable?
If the loose hair is more in the middle of the stall…I’d think she’s standing on it when she gets up from sleeping or rolling or she’s getting it caught in the leg straps on the way down or up.
Natural Healer Farrier Services
Contact David A Qualls, CJF1 who works with the horse to find the problem. www.davidqualls.net. The best farrier I could have!
Hair analysis is all but useless. Don’t bother.
Have you thoroughly investigated her tailbone?
When was she last dewormed, and with what?
If it’s just the tail, and the mane and feet are fine, it’s unlikely to be a selenium issue.
I have absolutely no idea why a farrier is recommended 
[QUOTE=cbwerg;8527662]
Contact David A Qualls, CJF1 who works with the horse to find the problem. www.davidqualls.net. The best farrier I could have![/QUOTE]
Did you even read the title??? has to do with horse losing its tail hair. Don’t think a farrier will do any good for tail troubles…
Seems [h=3]Werginz Innovations[/h]is responsible for the farrier’s website
