Best mane and tail conditioner?

[ShayDarra]

I recently bought a young Clyde/TB cross mare who is lovely with a VERY thick mane and tail. When I bathe her, I use Cowboy Magic detangler and usually spray Show Sheen on her tail. In just a couple of days that tail is again like a brillo pad. Needless to say, since it's very wavey and thick, it's a magnet for twigs and such from the pasture.

I need suggestions for products that will help soften her mane and tail. Please share your secrets for lovely, manageable tails.

Thanks,

SD

[GallopingGrape]

Coconut oil, you can buy it at any walmart. I use it weekly after a bath and it doesn't "coat" the hair like Show Sheen will, it literally soaks in, and leaves it super soft. Also, on a daily use, I use PINK, the stuff found in the ethnic hair section. Again, does not coat the hair, but soaks in, leaves it super soft and repells dirt!

[NorCalDressage]

Cowbow Magic Conditioner.

Shampoo & then apply CM Conditioner. I let it sit for like 5 minutes then rinse out. Hair feel marvelous!!!! Works just as good as when I used to do hot oil treatments - and this is so much less time consuming!

[Gunnar]

I recently bought a young Clyde/TB cross mare who is lovely with a VERY thick mane and tail. When I bathe her, I use Cowboy Magic detangler and usually spray Show Sheen on her tail. In just a couple of days that tail is again like a brillo pad. Needless to say, since it's very wavey and thick, it's a magnet for twigs and such from the pasture.

I need suggestions for products that will help soften her mane and tail. Please share your secrets for lovely, manageable tails.

Thanks,

SD

I have a Belgian X! Her mane and tail are really coarse. Daily care is the only thing that works. The woman who rode her most days left my barn so now her tail is awful! She spent time on that tail everytime she got her out. The current rider doesn't do this! :no:

Her mane is worse with enough mane for two! :lol:

I like Cowboy Magic too!

[bort84]

Your problem might be the Cowboy Magic (detangler) and the Show Sheen. Both products are quite drying, in my experience. I try to use Show Sheen for shows only, then when I get home, I immediately wash and condition the tail.

As far as conditioning goes, I just use a regular people conditioner (like Suave, something cheap), and that usually works quite well. Let it sit for a bit while you wash the rest of the body or something, then get it wet again and see if you can detangle (keeping it wet helps you slide through the tangles. If it's still pretty tangled, you could rinse and apply a detangler or do a second coat of conditioner and try again. Also, there's always hand picking once dry if you're a fanatic = ) I used to mainly work saddle seat saddlebreds, and those tails NEVER saw a comb. Hand picking ONLY!!! Haha.

I'd say maybe use Show Sheen (or some other detangler )to get the tangles out then condition again? Detanglers just often leave a drying residue that is not conducive to a healthy tail. Consider conditioning more often perhaps? That will help keep the tail soft and should minimize tangles.

Also, I've heard GREAT things about that PINK stuff raved about on here. I haven't bought any yet, but if I ever make it out to Walmart, I plan to try some.

[Guin]

Suave has always worked for me! :D

[cloudyandcallie]

Coconut oil, you can buy it at any walmart. I use it weekly after a bath and it doesn't "coat" the hair like Show Sheen will, it literally soaks in, and leaves it super soft. Also, on a daily use, I use PINK, the stuff found in the ethnic hair section. Again, does not coat the hair, but soaks in, leaves it super soft and repells dirt!

I keep forgetting to try the coconut oil! I'm using skinsosoft bath oil now, after using everything else anyone on coth has recommended. Great thing about skinsosoft in the tail is that it repels flies when horse swishes his tail.

[Nezzy]

Healthy Haircare Moisturizer w/ Lanolin mix 1 part to 8 parts water. i love this stuff. helps with dry skin as well.

[Perfect Pony]

Healthy Haircare Moisturizer w/ Lanolin mix 1 part to 8 parts water. i love this stuff. helps with dry skin as well.

DITTO! Best stuff ever made, and CHEAP!

[ShayDarra]

Thanks all! Guess the bottom line is that I just HAVE to condition her tail each time she gets a bath. The after bath detangler is just not enough. I will buy Healthy Haircare Moisturizer when I go to the tack store Sunday.

And I do use PINK (or a Pink version depending on where I buy it) and that stuff really is great! When grooming before lunging, it's very effective. Just does not seem to have any residual benefits The best part of Pink is the price!

If I discover any really wonderful products in this process, I will share.

SD

[pattnic]

Pink, Healthy Haircare moisturizer, and Infusium-23 are the best products I have used.

[Rikerkv6]

the best stuff I have ever found is Canter Silk mane and tail conditioner

it doesn't last 2 weeks like they say but I get about 5 days out of it with my 2 horses

smells good too! i believe its made by Carr Day and Martin

[ThoroughbredFancy]

Eqyss survivor or coconut oil are my top picks.

[Bluey]

Vetrolin Detangler.:)

[Seven-up]

Coconut oil, you can buy it at any walmart. I use it weekly after a bath and it doesn't "coat" the hair like Show Sheen will, it literally soaks in, and leaves it super soft. Also, on a daily use, I use PINK, the stuff found in the ethnic hair section. Again, does not coat the hair, but soaks in, leaves it super soft and repells dirt!

Where is the coconut oil in Walmart? In the hair section? Or like, um, in the...coconut section? :confused::lol:

[ChocoMare]

I have a Clyde-X, too, and per COTHers, tried Infusium 23 Leave In (human stuff...also from Wal-Mart). It smells awesome, isn't greasy/oily and does a fab job on Penny's 4X thick tail.

[luvmywalkers]

Suave has always worked for me! :D

Same here!

[luvmywalkers]

Where is the coconut oil in Walmart? In the hair section? Or like, um, in the...coconut section? :confused::lol:

Skin care section.

[Nes]

Half-Andalusian mommy here :rolleyes: I feel your pain!

I use Mane 'n Tail because it's cheap, the detangler is pretty good. I found CM too expensive, and show sheen leaves too much residue (which, when she's REALLY tangled is a good thing). Ivory soap does great things because it's gentle and very cleansing. Of course I may have a different view on how expensive detanglers when I have to go thorough 1/4 bottle of it at a time :). (I'd like to pay around $8 a bottle and can never find anything for less then $15)

I try to use as little product as possible (because of the cost) really the biggest thing is brushing it out every single day. I've learned my lesson after a couple 3 and 4 hour sessions getting everything detangled again.

I start with a wide tooth plastic brush (can never remember the name, orange packaging - the teeth break but the whole things are cheap so they don't damage the hair). The go to a wide tooth metal brush, then finish with my pulling comb to get the last bits of dirt out. I always comb before I wash and be carefull when washing or you'll just mash all the hair together again.

And then I braid. I've had lots of people freak out over how frequently I braid telling me all her tail hair will fall out - I've been at this for almost 4 years now and the only time she lost hair was to a burr bush! :D Lots of polo ponies are braided for turn out every day - coupled with a tail bag it really is the best way to keep everything clean. I like to leave some hair out the top of the tail bag if possible, keeps them warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer - but again I get allot of "that tail bag is too tight you're going to pull all her hair off!" :rolleyes: UGH!

I did try something once with a bunch of knots you kept under a loose piece of tail, it did work but I didn't use enough detangler so it got messy after a week. If she has to go a week or two on her own I'll use that method (wish I remembered the technique but I lost the web-page).

I think I got such a head-start (ha ha) on my mare's hair care because it's just like mine - curly, wild, and completely unmanageable :D

[ThoroughbredFancy]

Skin care section.

I found mine in the hair care section in with the ethnic hair products...

[Seven-up]

Ok, I'll check in the skin and hair care sections. I'd check the coconut section too, if I knew where it was.:winkgrin:




Referring to the Infusium 23, I've been using that for a few weeks on the top of my mare's tail. She spent all winter outside, so it was looking very fried and crunchy. Similar to what it looks like when they rub their tails, but different in that the hairs weren't smashed and broken, just crispy and curled up; sunburned, I guess. So I've been spraying that part of her tail with some of that leave in conditioner/detangler stuff every time I feed, or at least once a day, and then brushing it so it lies down flat. Now it's lying down by itself, and the hairs are no longer crunchy and gross. It's very smooth and silky. So that stuff definitely works.:)

[HJPony]

Another vote for Healthy Haircare

[Tee]

Infusium 23 leave-in conditioner. I used daily, or pretty close to it, and my guys' manes are super soft and tangle free.

[strawberry roan]

I swear by Eqyss Survivor. It makes all my horses' tails beautiful. :):)

[billiebob]

I love Vetrolin detangler! If you guys had seen the tail I detangled last week (it was a huge mat from the bottom of the tailbone and when untangled, it dragged on the ground by about 8 inches :eek:) you'd be believers as well!

[Bluey]

I love Vetrolin detangler! If you guys had seen the tail I detangled last week (it was a huge mat from the bottom of the tailbone and when untangled, it dragged on the ground by about 8 inches :eek:) you'd be believers as well!

Yes, that is my favorite with pasture kept horses, that can be hard on their tails.

Some human products are flavored so that may make other horses chew tails, so watch for that.