A woman at my barn recently purchased a wonderful horse who has a long thick mane, forelock and tail. She wants to pay me to keep it up and I have no idea what to charge.
The horse is super easy to handle and groom, the woman is a wonderful boarder, good payer and easily pleased.
We did discuss shortening mane and forelock, but she would like to try keeping it long and see how it goes.
What should I charge for maintaining this hair do and does anyone have any tips for hair care like this?
I’ve had Arabians, so I’m no stranger to long hair but this mane is thicker and fuller than what I’m used to. Thanks in advance!
I used to have a flat rate for pulling manes, braiding and general “clean-ups”. I would have the first-time pull be a little more as I had to do some clean-up on a few and they would take me a little longer. With all that said, I would charge the going rate for a mane-pull in your area and adjust if needed to the amount of time it takes to complete the care.
DH’s TWH came to us with a mane reaching well below the point of his shoulder & a tail & 1/2.
Texture was coarse.
What worked for us was brushing carefully - Dollar store hairbrush with spaced plastic bristles - starting at the bottom & slowly working up, along with Cowboy Magic detangler.
For his tail, a trick a pro groom taught me:
Twist like a rope, starting from the bottom - section about 6", brush tangles out, allow “rope” to untwist to next section, brush through & continue to the top.
Very little hair left in brush.
When DH was ready to show (H/J) he conceded mane needed to be shortened.
I did not consider doing a running braid at the time :rolleyes:
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I had several horses with long, thick , abundant manes, tails and forelocks in the past . I just used something like show sheen occasionally so it didn’t tangle, brushed it lightly with a wide spaced bristle brush and really tried to work out any twists/ tangles by hand before brushing. It really wasn’t labor intensive as I kept up on it regularly.
My current horse of 14 years has NONE of the above. I don’t even know where my brushes for her mane, tail & forelock are:no:
No idea what you would charge to keep it groomed? Maybe figure a monthly rate?
I do not know what to charge.
However, do have P.R.E. horses and they have quite a bit of hair. I keep the mane braided (but not too tightly) and usually give it one “rest” day a week when it leave it down and rebraid again. I use no product in the mane except for shampoo and conditioner. I use horse shampoo or human shampoo and conditioner. Since it is mostly braided, I don’t brush it often, but always start at the botton of the hair and work your way up. Same with the tail. I put detangler in the tail about once a month and give it a good thorough brushing and a wash if warm enough. Otherwise I use a hard brush to get shavings, hay, and other things out of the tail, or pick out by hand.
The less fussing and silicone products, the better in my opinon. Braiding is easier for riding and if the horse gets sweaty.
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I would start out by running a large toothed comb thru the mane to get out tangles. Do NOT try to power thru tangles. Hand pick them apart or use a couple of the comb’s teeth. Always start from the bottom of the mane and work up to the roots. I usually used ShowSheen as that really got the tangles out and made hair easier to comb. I did not like the Cowboy Magic stuff as it was oil based and attracted and kept a lot of dirt. Follow comb with brush (I liked the Oster brush
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If you plan on braiding the mane do not apply the ShowSheen. Don’t braid too tightly as that can break hair and never braid hair while it is wet as that encourages breakage. Also do not comb or brush while hair is wet - again, breakage. And never use regular rubber bands; always use those covered ones. They cost more but will not damage hair. As far as conditioner, I used the Rio Vista stuff but also a Tresemme product that had the consistency of water but what it did for their hair - made it like human hair! If the mane is very coarse you may want to use a heavier conditioner - just avoid greasy stuff. I used these tips on a Friesian mare I cared for and her mane and tail always looked like she was show ready.
Coconut oil is your friend. Buy it in the grocery store and use it to condition and prevent tangles. It dries fast and is great
I have no idea what you should charge. You could try a trial run and see how long it takes you to maintain it after you have got it under control and charge a reasonable amount by the hour?
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Thanks for all the great tips and the picture. I do have a charge for mane pulling and braiding, but have never been paid to keep a long mane and tail in shape. I think I will work with it a few times to see how long it takes, that’s a good suggestion.
The trainer will be pleased if the mane is braided on training days. :winkgrin:
I keep one of my three boys in a long mane. He’s a black appaloosa cross and he just doesn’t look right with a hunter haircut. The trick with a really long mane, is to keep the ends neat looking, but natural. Just like a human who grows out their hair to be waist length, the ends can get split and look more damaged and be thinner. I (personally) don’t like to see a horse (or a human) with just wisps of hair in the bottom 4 to 6 inches, when the top is super thick. For that reason, I prefer trimming with scissors to pulling a really long mane.
I like Mane N’ Tail shampoo and conditioner. Have used it on my horses for eons (and I use it on myself as well). Other than washing and conditioning occasionally, I prefer not to use any products in the mane - I think they attract dirt, dust and dander. The only exception would be if the horse has really dry or brittle hair. The coconut oil sounds like a great idea - all natural, biodegradable, no chemicals and relatively inexpensive.
The other product I’ve used is Cowboy Magic Detangler. My big draft cross gelding has the thickest tail, and it has a tendency to get these big sections of hair that twist/curl starting at his tailbone, twisting all the way to the ground. That detangler is a lifesaver - at 17.2 he has a very long tail! But instead of leaving it in (as I believe you’re supposed to do), I’d detangle first, then wash and condition.
As for price, I think I’d come up with a monthly service plan - (just as as an example) washing/conditioning 1X a month, braiding 6X a week, brushing/combing 5X a week, deep conditioning 2X per month, trimming 1X per month = $125. I think doing it by month will make it easier to compute. And my example price may be woefully inadequate, so just ignore that if its wildly off base! 
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Oh yes, trimming. I keep my horses tails banged. I keep them shorter than usual during our muddy season. So find an appropriate length for the tail where it isn’t stepped on and isn’t dragging around through mud and other things. Usually a trim every few weeks works.
I do trim the mane every once in awhile just as you would human hair to keep the ends looking healthy, but still natural. I have thinning and regular trimming scissors for this. I bought them at a beauty supply store awhile back. Good scissors that are sharp make things easier and turn out better!
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Yes, you need to see much of your time is involved and then charge accordingly. I keep long manes braided, I take them out every week or two, wash, apply detangler, and rebraid. There will be hair loss when you unbraid and wash, that is normal because mane sheds regularly, but the braids keep the hair from falling to the ground. So you will feel that the horse loses a ton of mane. Just make sure you do the braids loose at the crest, don’t pull tight.
With tails, it’s your call. I have good luck with leaving the tail alone, and just washing once a week. I put in a ton of detangler before a competition and brush the tail out at that time.
I think it depends upon what the owner wants done. Does she want the horse maintained with the mane loose and long? Or does she expect it to be braided for protection? Different needs and philosophies.
Current horse is the first one that I have kept a long mane on. I dont keep it braided for two reasons. First, I don’t trust him to not catch a braid on something and pull it out entirely! Secondly, if I am keeping his mane long for the appearance, then I want to be able to see it! Its not like we are showing weekly and he is wrapped up in between. To keep him braided would remind me of the women I know in my childhood who always had their hair in curlers- I dont know if they ever went anywhere without them, but I just saw them in curlers!
So I use Cowboy Magic and brush the mane carefully about once a week. Just finger detangle any problems in between. The tail is banged a little higher over winter/mud season and I mostly leave it alone until warmer weather. I did a running/crest braid for lessons.
She doesn’t have any plans to show him, so prepping him for a show isn’t an issue right now. He has some nice dressage training and is a pretty mover, so showing isn’t out of the question, just not a concern right now.
Im going out there today to play around with his hair and see what kind of time it takes. Thanks again for all the help.
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One horse I ride has a long mane the owner wants to be maintained. Three days a week I cut out the rubber bands (rather than pulling them out), comb out from the bottom all the way to the base of the mane, and loosely rebraid. It takes me about 15 minutes. Once a month I really scrub it with a focus on the roots, deep condition, and thoroughly soak with Healthy Hair Care spray. I do it for free but it is probably 3 hours of effort a month plus about 30 minutes for the bath. I’d probably charge $30-40/month if I had to charge. Personally, I love playing my little pony and it is no trouble at all as long as the mane is regularly attended to and not allowed to tangle.
Healthy hair care, gentle detangling starting at the bottom, and special attention to keeping the dock and neck (where the mane is sprouting out of) clean, dandruff free, and healthy enough to offer new growth.
Yo had a thin, short tail when I got him, regular care of the hair and dock saw him develop a lovely thick tail, and he enjoyed having his tail pampered to boot.
My horse has a thick double mane and tail and because of his breed I’m growing it long. I second the keeping it braided, but I love this coat conditioner. You can get a single spray bottle of it, but I love the concentrate just because it lasts so long!
That moisturizer looks very interesting. I met with the owner yesterday and went through his mane and forelock with just some finger picking and Cowboy Magic. The tail is a whole 'nother story. It’s very, very thick and has some dreadlocks around the dock. I’m thinking it will take a good hour at minimum to get through that mess. Hopefully once I’ve got everything de-tangled I’ll be able to keep it up without too much trouble. Thanks again for all the help.
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I have a horse with a ridiculous amount of mane and tail and I keep the mane braided for safety reasons. Before I started braiding him, one day he bolted and when I tried to pulley rein him to the right my hand got caught in all of that mane! I had to drop that rein, he sped up like a freight train and I was forced to pulley rein him into the rail on the left and I took a nasty spill. Never again! He will always stay braided.
I don’t like doing it, very tedious work! However, that episode taught him inadvertently that he can pull out of a pulley rein (he evidently thought he got out of the right pulley rein through strength…so now he no longer pulley reins to the right, something that I have ingrained in my memory for emergency purposes.)
It takes at least 2 hours to re-braid his entire mane, with him being good (eating). He has three braids made out of his forelock it is so big.
It looks pretty braided, not like a woman’s hair in curlers. I use those thin black elastic covered in fabric bands they sell in drug stores in packages of 20 or 30. I put them at the top and at the end. Black rubber bands you buy for braiding don’t last as long and break over the course of a week. The elastic ones last weeks. I try not to braid very often, but it’s inevitable because the top gets messy fairly quickly.
I wanted to chop it off after the accident, I was so mad at the whole incident (light concussion and cracked shoulder that prevented riding for 7 weeks). My husband was appalled at the thought… and it is a pretty mane, so I relented!
We have a couple of long mane horses in the barn. Our grooms braid them daily for riding, and unbraid right after. Other than the 3-5 minutes it takes to put in a running braid every day, it really isn’t more time consuming. They have a really good human hair brush and some moisturizing detangler spray to use when there are knots.
I personally keep mine short regardless of breed.
