12/10/2020
THE TAIL:
This is a comprehensive post that will give more detail than you might have wanted to know. :)
How do you get a big, beautiful one? If you stick to these few tips, you’ll start to see a difference in yours.
DIET: it matters a lot. You’ll want to choose a feed and/or supplement that has quality vitamins and minerals. I use KIS Trace as the quality and quantity of minerals is tops. In fact, I think you’ll be hard-pressed to find a product out there that can compete with it. In the comments, I’ll include a short read on why it matters where the minerals come from as well as a link to the supplement we feed. I also feed ground flax seed and a quality fish oil for the Omegas (I like Wellpride because it has plenty of EPA/DHA and doesn't smell like fish. The horses actually love it).
GENETICS: Some horses, just like people are blessed with thicker hair than others. But how we take care of it can still make a huge difference.
ROUTINE: Ok. So first is washing. Clean hair is happy hair and that means you must scrub down to the tail bone thoroughly. Letting grime and scum build up over weeks will cause the hair to weaken at the follicle and promote breakage. Dirty hair will easily catch on things whereas clean hair will slide past it. I try to choose a gentle shampoo with minimal chemicals.
Next, I will brush out the tail but only when it is perfectly clean. Start at the bottom and work the knots out slowly, detangling by hand as needed to prevent breaking. Here is the most critical piece of all... I do not use plastic combs or brushes of any kind in the tail. I use a short bristled boars hair brush or a soft body brush will do fine as well. I’ll include a link for these in the comments also. The reason this is superior is because the soft, flexible bristles will flex around each hair strand. Additionally, the bristles pull the dirt down the hair shaft. Use a curry every couple strokes to collect any loose dirt off the brush. Plastic or metal will rake against the hair and break it. Just throw those things in the trash!
When it’s cold and you don’t want to wet the entire tail, you can take a hot damp gently down the hair to pull any surface dirt off. Rinse the towel and repeat several times until the towel is clean. Of course this is not the best regime, but is good for in-between washings to help prevent extreme build up.
DETANGLERS: They almost all contain silicon which breaks the hair so I avoid them for the most part. If it can’t be avoided, I prefer Effol brand. I really like many German products for hair care and tack cleaning also.
See links in comments 😊
