Hello!
I am looking for some advice on trimming my new horses incredibly thick and long(he’s part mustang) forelock. I don’t want to cut straight across because I’ve seen that and it reminds me of a kid cutting their bangs straight across like I did once:lol:
Thanks!
[QUOTE=donutbacardi;8566496]
Hello!
I am looking for some advice on trimming my new horses incredibly thick and long(he’s part mustang) forelock. I don’t want to cut straight across because I’ve seen that and it reminds me of a kid cutting their bangs straight across like I did once:lol:
Thanks![/QUOTE]
Easy! The best way to trim a forelock is to NEVER TRIM THE FORELOCK!!!
Do you know how jealous people with sparse-locked horses are of you? People who have one sad little weenie hunter braid up there at horse shows instead of a beautiful thick french braid?
For the love of all of us who have so little, please don’t wantonly trim that of which you have so much!
(Seriously - a bushy pony-like forelock is awesome! I’d keep it!)
what’s wrong with the moe-cut? :lol: i have a TB and he didn’t get the memo that he’s not a halfinger - he grows about six horse’s worth of forelocks and if i am not on it constantly it grows into his eyes and irritates him.
what I do is brush the forelock out straight down (flush against forehead) - get it a little damp if your horse will allow - cut straight across to about half an inch longer than the length you want and then pull the forelock up straight up. stand on a stool if you are short or horse is tall - band the forelock straight up, brush it out so all strands are sticking upwards and you will be able to see the uneven or overly long strands - trim them at an angle until you are satisfied with the uniformity – brush the forelock back down (flush against the forehead) and take small trimming scissors and trim the outer edges so they are slightly shorter than the middle.
that’s what i do anyway - it results in a slightly layered but presentable forelock. within a week it looks as if it was never touched with scissors at all.
i don’t ever pull forelocks, i think it hurts most horses.
Whatever you decide on, could you please make a toupee for my mare out of the leftovers? She has one little wispy sad strand that often sticks straight up. We are jealous of your flowing locks.
My horse has a cartoon forelock and I trim it with scissors when it gets out of control. If you trust your horse not to move, get a pair of scissors and hold them vertically in front of your horses face and clip upwards at the ends - I go in one direction at a right angle and then the other direction at a left angle. Angling up and in like that keeps the cut looking normal for me.
Just don’t do it like this.
As a young kid, I once cut a school horse’s forelock straight across like Lloyd Christmas from Dumb and Dumber. I was proud of my work and showed a friend. I was then horrified the next week when the trainer asked me about it and I immediately realized how ill-advised my endeavor at hairstyling had been. I was terrified and lied through my teeth.
Nooooooo!!! Don’t trim the forelock!
I’m always secretly tempted to cut them straight across-- luckily for them my personal horses all always seem to just have the short puffy type of forelock.
In all seriousness, I don’t ever worry about thinning, just backcomb it a bit and pull as you would the mane. I find if they’re really long it can irritate the eyes so I try to keep them above eye level at least.
[QUOTE=AmmyByNature;8566503]
Easy! The best way to trim a forelock is to NEVER TRIM THE FORELOCK!!!
Do you know how jealous people with sparse-locked horses are of you? People who have one sad little weenie hunter braid up there at horse shows instead of a beautiful thick french braid?
For the love of all of us who have so little, please don’t wantonly trim that of which you have so much!
(Seriously - a bushy pony-like forelock is awesome! I’d keep it!)[/QUOTE]
I agree!
Don’t cut it if you can help it.
Otherwise, do as us “DQs” :winkgrin: do-if you have to trim it up, brush it out well, then trim in a “V” shape-never straight across. Never.
(To trim in a “V”, literally, trim where the mid-forelock is longest, and sides are shortest, literally, a " V ". I do it in two cuts- first, left to right, angled down, then right to left, angled opposite and down, meeting the point of the V at the middle of the forelock).
However, the ONLY time I trim one is if its straggly and just needs a neat trim, or if it is bothering their eyes and needs to be trimmed higher than the eye. Some finer haired forelocks can blow into eyes and create issues-otherwise, they are there to help protect the face from flies, and long, thick forelocks create fantastic braids!
I have a few that get stringy bits to their otherwise nice forelocks. To fix them, I hold onto the stringy pieces, and back comb the rest of the hair out of the way. I then snip off the long bits short enough that they’re hidden by the normal length hair. Hair on the sides of the forelock gets trimmed a bit shorter than bits in the middle to keep a natural V-shape. I would think this would work for your horse as well, as long as it isn’t so thick that you end up with a short pouf!
For a really thick forelock (think Thelwell pony), I clip the edges to make the entire thing narrower from the sides, and sometimes bring the bridle path forward a bit as well to take some off the top. Shorten what is left as needed in the manner I described above. You just need to keep it clipped short, or you’ll end up with awful looking bristles surrounding your remaining forelock.
Last ditch resort? Roach the whole mess off, mane and forelock, like a polo pony. 
Really unruly forelocks… ie pony manes I pull a bit.
My mares forelock is pretty thin. I blunt cut for a thicker appearance.
My mare’s forelock gets long, but not particularly thick. Usually once a year or so, I’ll trim it a bit, trimming up the way you’d trim the bottom of a tail so it doesn’t look banged. If it’s not trimmed, hers gets a bit too long to braid neatly.
[QUOTE=kashmere;8566546]
Whatever you decide on, could you please make a toupee for my mare out of the leftovers? She has one little wispy sad strand that often sticks straight up. We are jealous of your flowing locks.[/QUOTE]
Haha - I do a mane “comb over” for this problem. I don’t cut a bridle path and am letting that grow into our oh so sparse forelock. For braiding I just extend the start of the braid.
Are you braiding it?? If so I totally get the desire to avoid the “Unicorn” look with a giant knott on their heads :lol: but I would maybe let the braider do it if possible. DEFINITELY DON’T CUT STRAIGHT ACROSS :eek: :lol:
I feel like I have maybe pulled a forelock back in the day, but it was a draft/TB cross who was going to be braided for eq, and she had enough mane, tail, and forelock for four horses (seriously the thickest I have ever pulled or delt with), which would not have braided nicely! I wouldn’t suggest that route for many, but IFRC she didn’t mind (not much bothered her though) and the braids looked much more respecatble. Even if I had cut in the “V” with her (did that with others), she would have been a bit strange looking due to how thick her forelock was 
For ones that will be braided, you can thin it by pulling like you would the rest of the mane.
I trim the approximately 3 forelock hairs my horse has that grow long once they get near eye level because that looks pretty goofy compared to the tiny tuft that is the bulk of his natural forelock.
I’ve always pulled the forelock, just as I would the mane. Except I try and do a subtle V, so pull the sides a bit more than the middle. If ALL of it needs to be shorter, I pull with clipper blades. It ‘cuts’ the hair without making a perfectly straight line. Tends to look a bit more natural.
My guy has a lot of hair for a thoroughbred and thus far I’ve just let it be. https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1lkKTIe3Bvg/VtUYo-jAeNI/AAAAAAAABMo/V5Z2_VouCE0/s320/20160228_155607.jpg But we don’t do any rated shows that require braiding.
I really wish I did not have to. I’ve never had to with my QH mare but my new guys is just insane! This is him https://instagram.com/p/BCvhmLvTOR9I6k0x56B1krun9cPO5IyrYyUlSM0/
Thank you all!
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