Recommendations for human shampoo on horses?

[Huntertwo]

I'm out of my normal horse shampoo and instead of buying another expensive bottle, is there a human shampoo that would be cheaper and just as safe and effective?


Also is there a good human product for cleaning the teat/udder area on a mare? Normally use Excaliber, but I'm out of that also.

Thanks :)

[MistyBlue]

H2...Walgreens usually has Mane and Tail shampoo and conditioner on sale...buy one get one free. The huge bottles, it's a good deal and I use that on the boys at home. I use the same for cleaning the teat area gently.
There's a ranch horse show/demonstration in PPortland tonight at Quarry Town. Are you going? BBQ too...hubby and I are going to watch.

[Huntertwo]

Sounds like a lot of fun, but we were out all day and just got in.:sleepy:

I wish I knew sooner, I would have taken my *baby nap*..lol

Anything with food, especially BBQ and hubby would have been there in a minute!;)

[Guilherme]

Suave shampoo and conditioner. We've used it for years. Of course we only shampoo a horse a couple of times a year (parades, comeptions, etc.) so we're not really experts. :lol:

G.

[goeslikestink]

I'm out of my normal horse shampoo and instead of buying another expensive bottle, is there a human shampoo that would be cheaper and just as safe and effective?


Also is there a good human product for cleaning the teat/udder area on a mare? Normally use Excaliber, but I'm out of that also.

Thanks :)

go to co op and get fairy liquid washing up liquid norm here in uk works wonders lol
cheap to only need a tad in a bucket last yonks in a sponge then rinse off as in rinse the horse well

[Nibs]

Ivory dish soap is cheap and I like it better than most horse shampoos. Also, baby shampoo is great for their faces!

[toxicity]

Suave! Their conditioner is perfect for tails. It's super creamy and leaves their tails so soft. Plus it smells good!

[MistyBlue]

Gonna add a third for Suave also...I use that too when I don't have Mane and Tail. It's also cheaper and you can choose if you want your horse to smell like Fresh Rain, Coconut, Strawberry or Mountain Breeze. :D
H2...you didn't miss much at the ranch horse show. The food was cold and mediocre, the riding pretty much the same. :winkgrin: But still had some fun.

[tabula rashah]

Another vote for Suave- I use the Humectant one and the matching conditioner- works great:)

[birdsong]

Pantene Plus here....:)

[joiedevie99]

Pantene on the tail to avoid dandruff. Generic baby shampoo for everything else (except Quick Silver on socks for shows).

[rupenthal2]

Ivory for baths, head and shoulders for itchy tails and Infusium conditioner for that lovely lustre!. Can buy all in generic to save money.

[deltawave]

Given the fact that the human products are

a) far more likely to be extensively tested, and
b) meant to be used daily (whereas my horses are never shampooed that often)

I figure they're probably safer/kinder/gentler than "horse" shampoos. The one thing don't like about them is the amount of suds--a PITA for rinsing--and some of them smell pretty perfume-y. :dead: But I don't hesitate to use some if I need to, and even my sensitive TB never had a problem with human stuff.

[Amwrider]

I use Suave shampoo also. I do however use the Pantene conditioner. I dilute the conditioner in a bucket of water and use it as a leave-on rinse that I sponge on the horse.

For tails at shows, I use Palmolive dish soap and rinse very well as it is very drying to the skin itself. It cuts out the grease onthe tail and leaves the tails nice and fluffy for showing. I spray the tailbone and dock with Infusium to add moisture back in.

[thatmoody]

Suave has a new shampoo out that's similar to the Biolage one I use on my own hair, and it works really good on the andalusian and friesian manes I have to deal with. I also like the Pantene conditioners, but not so much the shampoo. I have to wash so many horses (20, plus two stallions with knee length manes) that I need something cheap and effective. I also used to groom paints, and while we used orvus then, I've used it since and felt it to be too drying, particularly on the Friesian, as he has dry skin to begin with.

[BarbB]

I use VO5 with jojoba oil on dogs and horses. It is super cheap and jojoba oil is good for skin and coat.
Human shampoos are generally supposed to strip oil off of the hair because we don't like a buildup of natual oils on our hair.
Animals, OTOH have no reason to have these oils stripped away. Use gentle shampoos or shampoos with oils added for moisturizing.

[jn4jenny]

I vote for Ivory. Suave works too, but with the Ivory, you only need an itty bitty bit of it, so it lasts darn near forever.

[Fantastic]

I recently got some of that Aussie shampoo in a purple bottle with a pump. Smells terrific, got icky tails super clean, and rinsed out easily. I also love the Pantene conditioners - the two different ones in the tube. Makes the tails slippery. I also use this on my own hair. Easy to comb out any tangles in the shower because it makes my hair slippery. Not gummy and helps keep it tangle-free.

[Androcles]

Given the fact that the human products are

a) far more likely to be extensively tested, and
b) meant to be used daily (whereas my horses are never shampooed that often)

I figure they're probably safer/kinder/gentler than "horse" shampoos. The one thing don't like about them is the amount of suds--a PITA for rinsing--and some of them smell pretty perfume-y. :dead: But I don't hesitate to use some if I need to, and even my sensitive TB never had a problem with human stuff.

Then a possibility is Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap e.g. 18-in-1 Hemp Unscented Baby Mild Pure Castile Soap. All organic oils and no detergents, so it doesn't make a lot of suds and is very easy rinsing. This one is unscented but they also have some with different essential oils that are very pleasant but mild smelling, e.g. lavender or tea tree. This is an all purpose soap and can be used for anything including household and tack cleaning. IMO the best thing is there's no detergents in it, some of which have been implicated as carcinogens.

[twofatponies]

I'm out of my normal horse shampoo and instead of buying another expensive bottle, is there a human shampoo that would be cheaper and just as safe and effective?


Also is there a good human product for cleaning the teat/udder area on a mare? Normally use Excaliber, but I'm out of that also.

Thanks :)

I never buy horse shampoo. I buy whatever's on sale at the grocery store, or cheap, that's designed for babies or sensitive skin, etc. in other words ones that are pretty mild and not overly full of fragrances and such.

I don't shampoo the horses often - maybe once a month. Mostly I just rinse them well after workouts. I have a really large pump-style shampoo dispenser leftover from some I bought for myself, and I keep that at the barn and just pour the new ones into it - it's easy to use that way.

[TikiSoo]

I've only bought horse shampoo "whiteners" for socks, mane & tails, otherwise, the body of the horse gets Suave cocoanut silk formula shampoo. (I was embarassed about it until reading this thread!)
I will also give a rinse with a weak Creolin solution to both my dog & horse. It sooths any skin irritations and definitely helps repel annoying insects. Unfortunately, it also ruins the nice coconut fragrance from the shampoo.

But I definitely see a difference when I shampoo without the Creolin rinse.

The horse gets shampooed 3-6 times per summer (supplimented by just a water rinse) and the dog monthly in the summer and semi monthly the rest of the year. You don't want to dry their skin too much.

[florida foxhunter]

I've used Pert Deep Conditioning on tails. Sounds like I need to try Suave, haha. It's cheaper, yea! I've actually always been a fan of Orvis. With pintos and Red Clay, I need a heavy duty soap to get that red out!

[Bubba Boo]

Another vote for Sauve shampoo and Pantene conditioner for the tail.:cool:

[HighFlyinBey++]

Human products are designed to go on in the morning after a shower or bath, come off the next day and then be replenished again. The same is true of the conditioners that are used for hair. They contain moisturizers that coat the hair, soften it, giving it a nice shine. However, those very moisturizers actually attract filth.

Most human products are designed for softened water systems. Most barns have hard water and leave a soapy film behind. That also attracts filth to the horse's coat.

You should also think about your choice of fragrance from the horse's POV. Fragrances serve one of two purposes in nature: To attract insects for pollination or to repel them, minimizing damage to the plant or fruit. Flowery fragrances, often found in human products, while quite pleasant, will attract insects. Leafy or woody fragrances will most likely repel insects. We put our most cherished items in a cedar chest for a reason. Fragrances that smell like horse treats can linger in the coat. This can lead to undesirable chewing of one horse on another.

What smells good to us can be part of the reason our horses head for the nearest wallow for a good roll after a bath. Perhaps they're trying to mask that coconutty scent because they know it's attracting all those bugs.

Use a shampoo that's designed for horses, or just use plain water to avoid stripping the natural oils from the coat.

[Androcles]

Most human products are designed for softened water systems. Most barns have hard water and leave a soapy film behind. That also attracts filth to the horse's coat.



What part of the process actually leaves the soapy film behind?

[Janet]

Another vote for Suave.

Most human products work fine with hard water (our well water is quite hard, and so is most people's ).

A more relevant difference is that human products are designe to work in WARM/HOT water. If you only have cold water in the barn, they may not work as well.

[Janet]

What part of the process actually leaves the soapy film behind?
Whether dealing with horses or people, hard water DOES have a tendency to leave a soap film behind, though most shampoos seem to deal with that quite well.

If it is a problem, add Calgon water softener.

[Androcles]

Whether dealing with horses or people, hard water DOES have a tendency to leave a soap film behind, though most shampoos seem to deal with that quite well.

If it is a problem, add Calgon water softener.

So it can be mitigated by the type of soap you would use, like one with no detergents wouldn't leave a soapy film behind, right?

[Androcles]

Most human products work fine with hard water (our well water is quite hard, and so is most people's ).



How would one know that?
If it's leaving a soapy film behind than they don't work fine, right?

[Janet]

So it can be mitigated by the type of soap you would use, like one with no detergents wouldn't leave a soapy film behind, right?
Yes, it can be mitigated by using something that includes a water softener.

No, plain soap with no detergents will still leave a soap film in hard water.

[BarbB]

Shampoos, detergents, many cleaning supplies have water softeners added as one the ingredients.
It is a major sales pitch for household water softening products.
That is why plain soap, real soap, leaves a residue behind on everything when used with most tap water.

[Stono Ferry]

Twice I have had kids wash horses with Suave shampoo and the next day the horse stopped sweating. No more Suave here. We stick to baby shampoo or something made for horses.

[sid]

Neutrogena "Clean" unscented or Baby Shampoo.

As Janet said, a rinse with Calgon removes any hard water soap residue.

[Foxtrot's]

Pert Plus makes the coat feel like you have used show sheen - little Pony Clubber taught me that!

[gloriginger]

I love orvus paste http://www.horse.com/Orvus-Paste-BKL10.html - I have used sauve before, but the orvus is really geat- you need so little, it doesn't smell and it washes off very nicely.

I use babyoil gel to clean the teets - and a glove...

[Lori B]

An old track vet taught my friend to use Head & Shoulders (I buy the CVS house brand of it). My horse stays clean and less dandruffy with it, and it rinses off well. I use generic baby shampoo on faces & udders & 'parts'.

People are always telling me how nice Katy's coat looks. i swear by it. Only shampoo once a month or so, unless we have a show.

Seriously. I'll never use anything else.

I use gray hair shampoo for white socks, to get the yellow out, when necessary.

[cmdrcltr]

If you're having trouble getting all the suds out (whatever shampoo you choose to use), try rinsing with water with white vinegar added. The vinegar cuts the suds.

[billiebob]

I use conditioning shampoo from the beauty supply store that smells good. I think it's $8 or $9 for a gallon or so jug. Haven't had a problem with it.

[Iride]

I like to use Head & Shoulders on them, particularly in the summer (also sometimes use Selsun Blue if there is particular fungus etc.)

A great cleanser for sheath cleaning is Dr. Bronners castile soap... they make one for "baby" so it's even more gentle. Works great and rinses clean. I never even use Excaliber anymore (all that stuff does is fall out in globs anyway!)

I use baby shampoo for washing my horses faces - no tears :)

[Androcles]

I like to use Head & Shoulders on them, particularly in the summer (also sometimes use Selsun Blue if there is particular fungus etc.)

A great cleanser for sheath cleaning is Dr. Bronners castile soap... they make one for "baby" so it's even more gentle. Works great and rinses clean. I never even use Excaliber anymore (all that stuff does is fall out in globs anyway!)

I use baby shampoo for washing my horses faces - no tears :)

OH thanks for the idea! i'm already using Dr. Bronner's as i stated earlier in this thread but i wouldn't have htought of it as a sheath cleaner.

[Irishrose261]

Whatever type of moisturizing shampoo is on sale (Suave, Pantene, VO5...) Never noticed a bug problem (of course, I spent most of my life in Florida where year-round fly-spray is a given.)

I use Johnson's Baby Shampoo (er, the generic version) for their faces :)