I think acknowledging that being ridden is not something our horses typically like is pretty darn empathetic.
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Not really fair to outright dismiss legit instances when trimming can be distinctly humane.
I am NOT an ear shaver. Never have been. On show horses, I trim what sticks out, and nothing inside. However one summer, my homebred 2yo developed some nasty bug bites in his ears; he wouldnāt keep a mask on, and I was unable to get ointment on properly due to ear hair. Against my instincts, I shaved his ears inside, and slathered them with Swat daily. He actually enjoyed the clipping and the ointment-- those ears were itchy! After two weeks, the bites were healed and the hair slowly grew back. Never had to shave his ears again.
I also never touch eye whiskersā¦unless it folds back into an eye from a fly mask (happens very rarely).
But muzzles? Sure, Iāll clip them. I have a big strong gelding who needs a figure 8, and his 5" chin whiskers get caught in the flash. It causes him discomfort and can make buckling the noseband (not overly tight) difficult. Iāll trim the offending whiskers between shows as needed to keep his chin pinch free.
Every single horse sold at Keeneland TB sales has its muzzle clipped (and usually ears too, which I hate in winter). Million dollar mares and yearlings would not be shaved if there was significant incidence of injury due to clipped whiskers. Weanlings that spend the majority of their lives outside, unclipped, are shipped to an unfamiliar place, stalled for 4 straight days, and muzzles clipped. If any horses were going to suffer dangerously from loss of vibrissae, it would be this group. But they just arenāt gashing eyes bumping into walls like pearl-clutchers would expect.
If you donāt like shaved noses, donāt do it. If you do, I donāt think you are an animal abuser. My 2 cents.
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I never realized people were so passionate on shaving their horses faces.
I used to clip the entire face, stopped years ago and honestly the pictures look the same to me and the horses donāt mind long whiskers 
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Same. I donāt mind the new rules. If a whisker is in the way of tack I highly doubt an FEI vet is going to notice it being clipped or trimmed. I donāt think people clipping whiskers are abusive but I do think horses, dogs, cats have them for a reason.
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Iām just not into organizations making meaningless rules when no studies have been done, while overlooking blatant abuses. Meanwhile, the whisker fan club cheers while not asking why their club hasnāt addressed the serious, horse welfare threatening issues.
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I agree with your comments about the FEI, but to be fair a lot of people do question the FEI, they just donāt GAS.
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SO I havenāt been able to find the article about cats and whiskers, but I would not be surprised if the whiskers of said cats/kittens had been āRemovedā mean not clipped, but the body part that produce them cut out of their faces. Which is a lot different from clipping.
However, having worked in rule-making for various entities, it absolutely makes sense to me that rule promulgators likely did not differentiate between studies of animals (Probably not horses) whose whiskers were surgically removed never to appear again, and animals whose whiskers were simply clipped, and could grow back. Thus making it easy to argue for a rule about something (surgical removal) that probably isnāt even happening to performance horses.
But, like helmet wearing, rules are rules. If you donāt like them, either join the legislative process, donāt join that group, or rely on the old adage that forgiveness is easier to get than permission.
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So you ignored my story because it didnāt fit your narrative? Looks like Iām not the one with a confirmation bias problem.
The horse in question was extremely ear shy when I bought him, so I didnāt clip his ears at all at first. The whole ābug stuck in my ear hairā issue literally caused him to start rearing and pawing at his own head frantically. While I was on him. Iām sorry, but I value my safety more than my horseās ear hair. I started clipping his ears AFTER the second incident, and we never had a problem again.
Iāve also had to treat boarder horses with horrible tick infestations in their unclipped ears. The owners didnāt notice because of the hair, until the horses became defensive about their very painful ears.
So, yes, not clipping at all can be a health and safety issue, whether that fits your preconceived notions or not. I donāt scoop out ears, but I do clean up the edges and the excessively long hair. I clip eye whiskers, as mentioned by myself and other posters, to prevent injury to the eyes of horses wearing fly masks. I clip muzzles and the āgoat hairsā from under the jaw because it makes horses more comfortable when wearing a halter or a bridle with a noseband. If you think thatās cruelty, well, then, I donāt guess thereās any point in trying to keep having a logical conversation with you.
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In the article (abstract) they note that whiskers are more important to cats than to dogs, but horses are not mentioned.
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Interesting article; https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/head-shaking-horse-faced-being-put-down-owner-speaks-out-on-whisker-trimming-732115
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Please, for the love of god, donāt use Andy Kocherās set-up as an example of ātypical jumper bitsā. The man isnāt exactly known for excellent horse welfare decisions 
Are there big bits used in jumpers? Sure. Is this picture the norm? Hardly. This is like taking a picture of ML over to another forum and being like āWTF is up with eventers anyway?ā
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The point is that ^that^ is still legal while a nonresearched, highly unlikely to be harmful due to how many horses manage just fine without, topic has them clamoring to ban it. It makes the whole group feel like a joke.
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I agree with you, itās incredibly frustrating that time was spent on whiskers when there are a lot of much more significant issues the FEI could be working on.
Probably this one got someone to stop bothering them and few even looked at it as easy decision, rarely enforced low hanging fruit. But the rollkur and other abusive practices require finesse and a lot of capital because the cheaters gonna cheat so those rules take time and effort, and letās just be honest, some of those rule makers likely did/do it too, so they donāt want to admit their rides to glory were on the backs of abused horses.
So much ego in this.
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I know someone whose horse stopped headshaking when the whiskers were removed. Almost as if they were causing the sensory overload.
How many people pull manes? Is there not anything more superficial that is painful to the horse - āI want neat, clean, evenly spaced braids, and a thin mane that stays on one side.ā Same with tail pulling. When will these be illegal?
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Their decision was made because whiskers are considered sensory hairs. Mane, tail and ear hair are not.
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I back comb seems snip with scissors. I think pulling probably looks better, but my horse didnāt like it, so this is the way I do it. Tail hairs I just use scissors as well. Or clippers.
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I donāt pull my mareās mane. She is very sensitive and doesnāt like it so I donāt do it. Iāll trim it up with scissors in the summer so she doesnāt get sweaty but her mane usually looks terrible. I love the look of a nicely pulled mane, if it wasnāt so painful for her Iād pull it in a heartbeat. She is not an inanimate object that I can just do whatever to. She feels pain and discomfort just like I do.
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Iāve stopped pulling manes. I think itās a stupid tradition. Most horses clearly find it uncomfortable or painful, even if theyāve learned they have to stand still.
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I feel the same. Even now I sometimes feel like I get judged for not pulling my girlās mane. Itās as if some people have the attitude that Iām incompetent and canāt teach my horse to stand still. Itās not that I canāt, Iām sure if I really wanted to I could teach her to stand still I just donāt want to and I donāt believe thatās an important skill she needs to have.
But anyway @endlessclimb, I donāt like mane pulling any better than whisker clipping. I know you brought this up as a āgotchaā argument but if some organizing body banned mane pulling tomorrow Iād support that too. But after how much backlash whisker clipping is getting, theyāll never do anything about mane pulling.
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