This one always comes to mind, for a busy tail.
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The placings seem to make it clear they aren’t being marked down. LOL.
Also I don’t think the poster is doing herself a disservice.
She knows she will be marked down. She’s choosing to continue to participate, be a good sport about it and support local lower level shows. No disservice there IMO.
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Not everyone is in a position to have a horse in the situations you described. Have you been to California? Lol. Let’s just say ample turn out is a luxury here. I am very fortunate to have access to a large pasture, but unfortunately it is not feasible for year round use. Usually will dry out a day or two after the rain, but when the rain is constant (like right now), well……the horses have to stay in. I’m also fortunate enough to have my horses at my neighbors house so I can tailor their feed program and provide free choice hay, smaller grain buckets fed throughout the day. Not all boarding barns offer this. Also, not all horses can thrive on forage only diets. There are so many variables in play.
I’ve had extensive discussions with my friend about this lately, ESPECIALLY talking about how to prevent so this doesn’t happen again. I also suspect one of mine has ulcers right now, so am really keen on hearing about preventatives and learning what I can do to manage my horses better so that they don’t develop ulcers. But at the end of the day, what we are asking the horses to do is inherently stressful for them. Trailering can be stressful, showing can be stressful. Stress can increase gastric acid production which can cause ulcers, so….it’s just a really tricky thing to manage and it’s not always as simple as turn out and feed alfalfa.
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Getting all eye-rolly about being legitimately marked down in Intro is, in my opinion, doing herself a disservice. It’s also disrespectful to judges who are doing what they’re supposed to do. YMMV.
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Hmmm. I vaguely remember a grey mare in the past that had a busier tail. In the end I think it was found that there was something medically wrong. I can’t remember what.
That video she is not busy the whole time, however it was interesting to see the name of the rider at the end and isn’t that the one that is up for cruelty in training and pushing the horses too much and she is only 9yo.
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II’ve had to mess around with several like this. Here are some ideas.
DO NOT strap her mouth down. That’s like putting a piece of tape across the check engine light on your dashboard because you just don’t wanna deal with the real problem.
Realize that most mouth problems are indicative of a connection problem through the back. The better you get the horse, working through the connection in the back, and really swinging, the better the connection in the hand.
Get a dental by a real specialist. The tooth guy of your area. Don’t wait, because if you find in the end that there was something going on in her mouth, you will want to shoot yourself. There could be a cracked tooth. There could be all kinds of little things that are normal GP could miss.
Rule mouth stuff out thoroughly.
Do a bute test after the Dental if she still sticks her tongue out. Doing a bute test is one way to establish a link between what she’s doing with her mouth and inflammation in the body.
Take a lot of mental notes about situations. Does she do the same thing on trail rides? Does she do it when she’s jumping? Does she do it when she’s doing a stretchy trot?
You can try working her in a spoon bit. It’s not painful, it just makes putting the tongue over the bit impossible. Of course, you can’t show dressage in it, but it might be a steppingstone kind of situation. https://www.chewy.com/horze-equestrian-spoon-mouth-loose/dp/330674
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OP, one of my OTTBs used to stick out his tongue while standing in the cross ties, similar to your mare. He no longer sticks his tongue out. It went away all by itself, after about a year or so.
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Great advice thank you!
And no, no matter the outcome I will not be strapping her mouth shut. I don’t buy into that methodry. Like I said - I ride open faced with noseband removed unless it’s in a class and I HAVE to have one.
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Why not both at the same time? Treat so they feel better, fix the root of the problem, and hopefully that prevents it from coming back.
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Update:
Rode the mare Saturday and Sunday. Each ride she does it dramatically less. Had a friend watch me ride today and said she didn’t do it once under saddle. Seems to be reduced now mostly to only when I first bridle her. And even then - a lot less. And moreso with her tongue still under the bit, not flipped over.
I think with time and just allowing her to have freedom with her mouth this behaviour will correct itself.
Pic of happy , quiet mouthed mare out for a hack in todays fresh dusting of snow ! 
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