Would a fake (show) tail/tail extension work in this situation? I’m thinking Black Minx, of course, but would it work?
@Frostbitten , this isn’t exactly fair to say, but since you care about his welfare he might be better off as your pony than as someone else’s.
My horse lost the use of his tail due to a traumatic injury over the summer. I was incredibly concerned about the flies as they were awful here in August/September. A high powered fan aimed at his stall when in, and a nice fly sheet when turned out did the trick. Oh, and lots of fly spray. A bit more effort required than in summers past, but overall not a big deal at all.
And a lovely aside, a recent rescue came into the barn where he is boarded (there is also a non-profit rescue based at the barn my horse resides) and they bonded instantly. We were all amazed to watch them standing shoulder to shoulder so closely that they were mere inches apart - and then we watched how the new horse’s tail swept over the back end of both of them. So ingenious! And heartwarming… 
Thanks again for the input, everyone. I will know better if and when I meet him. Wacky I may be but that’s a discussion for another post. I realize It’s certainly not the pony’s fault and certainly doesn’t send any sort of message to the person who docked his tail. I have to decide, amongst many other factors, if he is a fit for me. Fly control can become a real labour of love after the first few weeks. The current owner did say the pony had a rough summer with the flies and I would want to do the utmost to help him. All will be revealed in the fullness of time (if not fullness of tail).
My daughter rides an appy with a minimal tail. Lots of fly spray while riding, she stays in during the day, out at night. You can have a fan on during the day to help and at night it might not be too hot for a fly sheet.
@Frostbitten, unfortunately I didn’t own that horse very long, so I don’t know if he chipped his back feet. He didn’t for the one summer I had him. He was pretty young (six, I was told) and had good feet. I kept him barefoot, but I think he’d had shoes before I owned him. He was ridden a lot under previous ownership as he was used in trail rides and lessons.
I was way overhorsed and sold him after about eight or nine months. I got tired of eating dirt and going to the hospital. It got to the point where I’d go to the ER and hear a chorus of “Sell that horse, dammit!” So I finally did. I gave up riding and took up driving a few years later, and was far more successful.
Rebecca
If the current owner really said this then I would not hold onto too much they say about the horse.
Unless the tail bone is completely gone the horse can certainly toss that little tail all they want to show discomfort.
From my experience (following way too many Haffie groups on Facebook) even the more draft type haffies do not get their tails docked (like the heavy draft breeds do). I would make the assumption that it was docked for medical reasons before I leaped to evil owner.
My horse that has a huge tail still stomps their back feet and kicks at the darn things on their belly. I do not find the back feet chip anymore than the front feet do during fly season.
I apologize if I’ve misunderstood the meaning of “docked tail.” Do you mean the dock has actually been partially amputated, or that the tail hair has been cut to shorten its length? I thought tail amputation was illegal.
Trunandloki, I have seen several Haflingers with deliberately docked tails. There was a breeder who showed at CanAm who docked all his horses tails. He drove them all in harness and liked them to look like mini Belgians. Also saw some very large Haflingers at Equine Affair in Ohio with docked tails. They are a bit of a rarity but do exist. RutlandH20, yes, the tail bones are docked, or amputated. The tail has 18 to 25 vertebrae and the tail can be docked at various levels. Not sure about my meet and greet with the Haflinger who started this thread, it’s supposed to rain in all directions tomorrow…sigh, welcome November.
Cue the melodramatic music…
At the last barn I worked at pretty much every horse went out in fly sheet, mask, legwear every day in the buggy months and my own is sensitive enough to have a riding fly sheet for trail rides on top of all that. Protecting horses from flies isn’t that laborious, nor is it really an expression of love compared to what real equine special needs can demand.
Any chance you’re subconsciously looking for an excuse to not like this horse? This all sounds like more of a psychological battle than a real problem.
Xhalt, given that you don’t know me or my situation, that was a bit of a rush to judgement. But thanks for the input.
Sounds like you’ve never dealt with a horse who goes bat guano crazy and trashes his anti-fly wear the minute he’s loose. I have one of those. He has left me wondering if he ATE the danged things with the tiny bits that have been left for dead in the paddock. No more flywear outside of the ultra-tough double-velcro Kensington mask, without ears, and only when the other horse has his own on. Totally not worth that drama, would rather spray three times a day.
Ha. Mine is so incredibly gentle on blankets … until she decides to KILL THEM DEAD (there are people on this board who can confirm that her leave-no-evidence approach would put the Istanbul Saudi consulate to shame). We cope. Fly protection is never the thing that keeps me up at night (and def. wouldn’t be if mere 3x/day fly spray were enough to keep her from stomping her feet to oblivion or running the fenceline from dusk to dawn or throwing herself dramatically to the ground in protest of mosquitoes).
I just don’t think that the possibility that a horse that hasn’t even been visited yet might potentially need a bit more fly protection than some other horse is really worth this much hand wringing at this stage in the horse buying process. Nobody knows if this is even a good fit, let alone if the horse is one who is happy to hang out in a fly sheet 24/7 or one who does not tolerate such silly human inventions.
I don’t know OP or their situation, as they’ve said, but given the tone of the thread and the arsenal of fly protection options available to a modern horseperson I fail to see how this is about flies, rather than OP’s personal values (like not wanting to be seen as supporting the practice of docking tails). There’s nothing wrong with that!!! I don’t blame OP at all for not wanting to be judged or to have that conversation over and over. But the fly thing seems like Mt. Molehill in comparison to those matters and I really do think that OP should consider whether they’re finding excuses not to like this horse for some reason. God knows that horse buying is fraught enough when your personal ethics aren’t challenged along the way. I really do hope that it works out, whether or not this is the horse for OP.
Minor Hijack:
@Zuzu : Are Cobtail Hackney’s really docked?
I thought the tails we’re just done up like they do for Drafts showing.
& Same for the Budweiser Clyde’s.
OP: you could braid some twine or fabric strips into the tail that would serve as swatters.
[B]Yes … if a pony grows over 50" at the withers … tail is docked for classes shown to the viceroy … though if the docked tail is awful as not attractive enough usually a tail /wig cap is worn during the competition… adding most wear tail caps for shows for uniformity and ease with presentation.
At the breeding farms one will see many hackney broodmares with docked tails with their foals out in the pasture.
The Budweiser Clydes are docked … this a practice for several reasons, one being to prevent tails getting caught in the harness/hitch chains.[/B]
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