Hence the reason for those fugly neon colors 
Even then, you can walk right past them, searching the back 40 for missing wardrobe items.
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It’s about 50-50 in my observations at shows this summer. No penalty either way. We usually trim ears for neatness, and only pull manes if absolutely necessary, otherwise they are bladed for length. Just more humane overall, which isn’t a bad thing.
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I’ve wondered about this w a muzzle. We use flexible filly muzzles. Anyone have clear opinions? Whiskers don’t seem to be a problem…
Do they still have long whiskers on their muzzle?
I would think rubbing on the muzzle would just wear them down.
That is what happens to my horses who eat out of a hay net.
Which makes me wonder how places determine if the whiskers are trimmed or wore off from life with a hay net.
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Excellent point! That explains why some whiskers are longer than others. This is a moment where I go “Duh”!
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I’ve always figured that even without a grazing muzzle the whiskers are still coming in contact with the grass and ground. My horses’ muzzle whiskers are always worn off when they wear a grazing muzzle
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My haflinger mare had long eye whiskers. When she developed an aversion to her fly mask I figured out it was because the mask was causing the whiskers to poke her in the eye. The problem was resolved once I shortened them
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I had to zoom in to see! Even with glasses on
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There are clean ears in these photos
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I don’t believe the FEI has rules for ears, since ear hair is not considered a “sensory organ”.
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Thanks! (!! exclamation points added)
I was wondering if I was blind or there was a crazyarse clipping technique at work.
But an FEI horse absolutely must have the hairs on its chinny chin chin intact?
throws out back while throwing hands in the air
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OH - *facepalm * I see (belatedly).
I found the study again, btw:
Vibrissae of the horse, a pilot study on how to assess the effect of manipulation.
Idonea van Bergen
Student nr. 3258475
Supervisor:
dr. Machteld van Dierendonck
Just came across this Facebook picture of Lafitte De Muze rocking his whiskers after he won the first round of the hunter derby finals today at Kentucky out of 91 horses.
I believe the top 30 come back for the handy round on Saturday starting at 1 PM Eastern. The live stream is available for free at ushja.org.
Edited to add: Here’s his winning round from Friday.
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Correct… most people don’t clip inside the ears, but there are definitely some who do as it is not banned. Only whiskers are banned
My show dogs still have whiskers. Makes the professional handler crazy, but she leaves them on my dogs. They win.
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So how do ponies with long, thick forelocks manage with that hair contacting eye whiskers all the time?
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I know this thread is a bit long in the tooth (pun intended), but in searching for updated info about rules and best practices in the Hunter ring, I landed here.
My area of expertise is animal behavior, specifically equines.
Removing the vibrissae (whiskers) of sport horses has a significant impact on the horse’s ability to navigate his immediate surroundings, as well as determine certain environmental signals important for his comfort and safety. This lack of sensory input results in behavioral challenges not just in the show ring, but during training at home, where trainers are more likely to overcorrect or punish unwanted behavior.
When those behavioral challenges are stress-related because the horse is lacking a very important part of his sensory apparatus, we have a chronic welfare issue. When asking the horse to perform to our standards of athleticism, to do so cooperatively and elegantly, but take away a part of his body that is essential for meeting those standards, it’s counterproductive to what we are trying to achieve, and yeah, stressful for the animal.
Keep in mind that not all horses show clear or outward signs of stress. In fact, many of them internalize the stress response, ultimately creating problems like ulcers and inflammatory or other immune problems.
So, if you currently trim whiskers, I get it, it looks tidy. But, if you can bring yourself to let them grow out, please give it a try. A physically and emotionally healthy horse is what really stands out to the judges.
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