Mane Gods

[Dani]

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Alright.

I have a 5yo Morgan (red guy) I’ve had for a year and a half that has not been growing mane in how I’d like him to. It seems like once it gets a little thicker he sheds a bunch of it out. He’s got white hairs mixed in that seem to fall out when they’re looked at wrong as well, let alone touched. If I keep him braided more than a couple days at a time it seems like he loses handfuls once I take his braids out. The braids aren’t tight, he doesn’t rub, and he’s healthy in every other way. Vitamins and minerals are balanced in his diet, he gets a cup of flax daily, and I groom him most days as well. We use the pink stuff all over, he’s hosed off most days as well as we’re in North TX and it’s HOT. He ALWAYS gets more pink conditioner after he’s rinsed. EquiFuse Gleam is my go to ‘heavy duty’ conditioner and detangler on spa days 2-3 times per month. His dad had a GORGEOUS mane and forelock (buckskin splash in first picture) and I’d love for his to be half as nice as his dad’s. What more can I do? I don’t necessarily need it thicker, but I’d really like to see some more length and it seems to have stalled out.

[Ceffyl_Dwr]

First off, your horse is stunning. Secondly, what type of brush are you using? I was taught to only use a dandy brush or similar because human style brushes will only pull the mane and tail out. I remember reading somewhere that the main grows an inch to an inch and a half a month, so it might be worth measuring. I also like to stay away from Show Sheen because the alcohol can make hair brittle.

[Weezer]

It sounds like you have a challenge with genetics on the dam’s side. I have used Cowboy Magic in the past to help manes grow out nicely. I wonder if his mane might do well if you leave it be for a bit, rather than conditioning and braiding so frequently? That may allow the oils to balance properly and grow stronger hair. I agree with the suggestion to brush with a dandy brush, or very gently with a wide tooth comb.

[Displaced_Yankee]

I will second the “benign neglect” theory. A heavy conditioning and spa day every 10 days seems like a lot. I have had good luck with a good shampooing and a heavy spritz of the pink stuff (Healthy Haircare conditioner I assume?) at most every 6 weeks. I may add an additional spritz of pink stuff if it feels dry or brittle just to make me feel better. To comb out I start at the bottom and tease out any tangles before moving up. I also use a wide-tooth comb.

FWIW, my half connemara grows mane and tail like a weed (hoof too for that matter). However, his forelock does. not. grow. I have stopped combing it and braiding it for shows, as every hair is precious. As itis already, it looks like his mother trimmed his bangs… :rolleyes:

[buck22]

Who is the sire? He’s gorgeous. As is your boy and the mare! Lovely animals.

If you can get your boy to eat Equipride, I’ve found it has magical mane growing properties, as well as the ability to bring out dapples (and grow feet!). I fed it for many years and loved the results on my entire herd.

But the Real Buck, now a spry 40 yr old, has officially descended into cranky-old-manhood and turns his nose up at the slightest provocation. As my main goal is just to keep a layer of fat on him, he sets the rules, and Equipride is officially out.

Takes about 60 days to really notice a difference, but the stuff is magic on manes and tails.

It is primarily brewers yeast and smells like old wine and cardboard. You have to feed upwards of 8oz per day, iirc, which is a challenge.

[PamnReba]

I have a mare that is also follicly-challenged, and out of all the products I’ve used to try and grow some semblance of a mane, MTG work best by far. I don’t bathe and/or condition, just apply it every few days, massage it in (to the base of her mane only), and leave it. I found using a smaller bottle made it much easier to apply, like the ones with a graduated tip used for hair dye. Just shake the big bottle really well and then pour it in to the smaller one. It will settle out in the smaller bottle as well, but a quick shake is all it takes. I prefer the MTG Plus, it smells great!

[Dani]

Thank you all for your compliments on my boy. His sires name is MEMC On Target, dam is Alathiea Fire N Ice, and he is MEMC Titan.

He might eat that supplement mentioned, he’s picky, but LOVES cinnamon and so a dash of that can get anything in him.

He does grow hoof like no other, I trim him every 2 weeks and one week of growth is

[Dani]

Sorry. Phone is wigging out.
One week of growth is much longer than I see on any of my client horses. I think I’ve got a picture at 1 week handy.

I have tried MTG in the past and it did burn him, he can be quite sensitive so I stay away from that one. Even fly spray burns him occasionally. I NEVER use show sheen or any products with alcohol in his hair, he does get some linament after rides, but it’s always followed up by a rinse and conditioner.

Benign neglect means wind braids and TONS of hair loss, his hair is quite unmanageable without consistent care. He can’t even go out in the mud because he will create dreadlocks encased in mud within an hour of getting to go out, and also likes to slide in to things like my mini and fences, someone is a little too playful to be outside in the mud. So he is stalled if it’s even a tiny bit slick outside.

Honestly, if people wouldn’t murder me, he’d be roached by now. I detest mane care, but he demands it.

[Dani]

1 week post trim picture

[4horses]

I must be lucky. My paint mare grows plenty of hair. I braid it for 2 weeks at a time and it always looks fabulous. Right now it is brushed and left down. I like to do 2 braids at the base of her neck and leave the rest free.

My foxtrotter doesn’t grow anything. She has a thin scruff. You can’t do anything with it.

[PamnReba]

Has anyone ever fed a product called Hoof & Hair Guard from the makers of HorseGuard? Saw an ad for it on FB and I bit on the “free” (paid for shipping) 5 lb sample - and while that’s not enough to make a noticeable difference yet, the main thing is my very picky mare likes it. So I’ll feed her the whole thing. But I also have recently purchased Triple Crown’s ground flax, and am wondering if I might get similar results from just feeding that instead. Has the OP tried either?

[outerbanks77]

A while back I had a foundation Appy with a rat tail. Bought her at three and thought I was resigned to a nasty little thread of a tail, but wanted to preserve what she could grow. The routine I settled on was washing about once a week except in winter. Leave in a conditioner (like Mane n’ Tail or whatever, not a specific kind) for a few minutes and rinse. Then when the tail was dry, rub in coconut oil (buy the kind that is liquid at room temperature). Give that some time to penetrate the hair so it no longer feels greasy, then follow the whole thing up by combing through carefully with Cowboy Magic. She had quite a cute little pouf of a tail by the time I sold her two years later. It was never going to be super thick and luxurious, but it got much better than I hoped for. Now I use this same routine on my girls and have quite a nice tail on the Appendix mare who’d had her tail eaten by a foal when I bought her a few years ago (and she is not genetically gifted in the hair department). I avoid most brushing in between washings although sometimes the tail is so full of shavings that I end up combing a bit.

Then there is my retired gelding who is 17H and would have a tail dragging on the ground and a 2’ long thick mane with zero effort if I didn’t routinely cut and roach.

[Kyrabee]

My mare has split genetics…her tail seemed to get one set (gorgeous, thick, long, luxurious) and her mane got another (thin, wispy, different lengths). I have never been able to coax her mane into better growth although I haven’t tried very hard. I have also tried benign neglect. Her mane does get longer but still different lengths (up behind her ears it is about 6 in long…in the middle, maybe 12 in and at the withers end back to 6). Anyway, she is 18 now. I like manes so I have never been able to bring myself to pull it. Makes doing a running braid for shows challenging. Caveat, I haven’t shown in years so haven’t worried about it much;).

Susan

[Dani]

@PamnReba

Has anyone ever fed a product called Hoof & Hair Guard from the makers of HorseGuard? Saw an ad for it on FB and I bit on the “free” (paid for shipping) 5 lb sample - and while that’s not enough to make a noticeable difference yet, the main thing is my very picky mare likes it. So I’ll feed her the whole thing. But I also have recently purchased Triple Crown’s ground flax, and am wondering if I might get similar results from just feeding that instead. Has the OP tried either?

Flax is the MUCH better option here, good omega 3 to 6 ratio, safe fat source, and no added iron. HorseGuard has added iron in their supplement if I recall correctly which is a huge NO in my barn. I’m doing everything possible to reduce excess iron in their diets and won’t feed any supplements that add iron. Additionally, the before and after hoof picture they used was absolutely awful. The before picture was a hoof that was healthy, but had a huge chunk trying to break off because it was in need of a trim. The after picture was a very nutritionally weak hoof that had been oiled so it looked shiny. It was missing the big chunk trying to trim itself off, but was way worse off.

My guy does get daily flax in his diet, it is a staple here.

My main drive for a nice mane is showing and we don’t show in braids for ranch versatility so his actual mane needs to look nice. Which it doesn’t.

[PamnReba]

Yeah, I thought the “before and after” pictures weren’t necessarily showing anything that great, and the good news is my picky mare (and other two out three mares) eats the flax just fine. Although it does make them lick their lips a lot after meals!

[Dani]

Adding a little cinnamon was the key to getting my gelding to eat the flax, he doesn’t really like it.

[2DogsFarm]

Mini mare owned by a neighbor.
Her tail is longer than her body by at least 3’[IMG2=JSON]{“data-align”:“none”,“data-size”:“full”,“src”:"https://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/core/image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==)”‹
Benign Neglect as tail is left braided for weeks :eek:[IMG2=JSON]{“data-align”:“none”,“data-size”:“full”,“src”:"https://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/core/image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==)”‹, wrapped with vetwrap.
Taken down, brushed, braided & re-wrapped… again for weeks.
Mane goes almost to her knees, that is not braided, just brushed.
Gotta be genetics, since it sure is not care

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ETA: corrected info post d (& flagged as Spam ”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹)

[blob99]

agree with others’ comments about there only being so much you can do as not every horse has the ability to grow a long mane.

But, given your later post about how easily his mane tangles, I wanted to suggest leave-in conditioner. I have one with a very long mane that tangles quite easily. I have to use leave-in conditioner with her (I get human kind) and not only put it in after bathing, i do also reapply between baths to dry hair.

With her braiding results in less growth and more breakage–so instead her mane goes wild and free. But if I odn’t wash + condition weekly, you can really tell.

[Dani]

2DogsFarm - I have a mini that grows crazy hair and I do NOTHING to it. It doesn’t get wind braids, it grows like crazy, and in the last 18 months I’ve brushed it out literally 3 times. It’s thick, fabulous, and infuriating. I roached it roughly 18 months ago and it’s already like 24" long. As for the tail and wrapping it, my gelding lives in a tail boot. I change it every 4 weeks. I take it down, wash it, condition and allow to dry, braid it back up, and put it back in the boot for the next 4 weeks. That’s been great for him, but the mane I’ve been struggling with.

blob99 - He gets leave in religiously, figured out he needed that pretty early on lol

The past few weeks I’ve been using E3’s hair growth shampoo and I think I’m actually seeing a difference. He’s had this short layer on top that refuses to lay down and (per instructions) I’ve been using it every other day and that layer actually seems to have the length to lay down now. That is a huge improvement, really cleaned up his look a bit, not as crazy looking (think electrocution lol).

I think I’m going to abandon braiding his mane entirely, I do think it hinders his growth completely.

[Dani]

Bringing this back to life because holy HAIR that E3 shampoo WORKS

My boy has evened his mane out and it’s WAY longer all over. I stuck with every other day washing up until it got chilly, now it gets done once a week or so, as weather permits here in North TX.! I am thrilled with the results and will be using this again for sure!