Shedding out issues...

[LB27]

Both of my mini yearlings had a very thick winter coat and are shedding out horribly! By that I mean they are shedding like crazy but don't seem any closer to being rid of their winter coat. Also, they keep getting mats in their hair. I brush them daily sometimes multiple times/day. I'm already thinking ahead to next winter...debating about blanketing them to prevent this next spring. Or clipping them ever spring. I don't really like either idea. Any opinions? Anyone struggle with this as well?

 

[wingnut]

I definitely would avoid blanketing if possible. I really like that my horses grown their own coats so well that I rarely find it necessary to blanket them (I have blankets but the don't get much use). For me, clipping is what works. It's a lot of work. This year, I'm showing 3 horses and getting them all clipped nearly killed me! LOL! But now that they're clipped, keeping them neat for our shows is so much easier.

In our first year of ownership, I had no clue about clipping so that wasn't an option. I bought a shedding blade and used it often. By late June the horses were shed out out without clipping. I even hired someone to clip our 3rd horse after she came as a weanling. She still had her full fuzzy foal coat and it was mid-August when she arrived. She was miserable! We were four months into our horse ownership adventure and I had learned about clipping but wasn't prepared to do any myself.

Maybe do something of a compromise. Clip those places that are getting matted (the "armpits" of their front legs are the worst on my horses) and get a shedding blade for the rest of their body.

 

[bevann]

In my past 20+ years having Minis there is a difference in the coats of some horses.I too, have had some yearlings that would not shed out winter woolies. I had to do a rough clip on 1 because he had terrible mats and was sweating under all that wool.I just gave him a very rough(and I mean rough)clip job with the blade going the way the hair grows.He looked terrible but was much more comfortable.Some adult Minis have a very heavy coat,others not so much.You kind of have to go with the weather and do what you can to make the animal able to withstand the temperature. I'm not a big fan of blanketing unless it is for show purposes.My horses are not blanketed at all in winter and are out in the rain and snow if they choose to be(they each have a run in shed in their pasture) their choice-in or out.

 

[chandab]

Not all, but many mini yearlings don't shed their winter coat very well. I often clip the yearlings, and then after that, they usually shed normally after winter is over.

 

[Minimor]

What Chanda said! I think you will find that next year your horses will not have this shedding issue. It is often a yearling thing. I have had a few get the matted coat like that as yearlings but then the next year they were normal.

 

[Carolyn R]

Sometimes a thorough bath does the trick. It seems to somehow loosen the bond with the hair that is shedding and allow it to fall out with ease. I find minis tend to shed out after their full size counterparts.

 

[MyMiniGal]

Should most mini's, if the weather has warmed up, be completely shed out by now? Halo has lost over 3/4 of her winter fuzzies, but is still hanging onto some...well, she is still shedding up a storm. Since I am not going to show her or anything, I really don't want to clip her, but I will if it means she is more comfortable. She is brushed several times a week, with a deshedder comb/blade. Just wondering when it will be for sure, that she won't shed anymore, and needs to be clipped. I was told, that she sheds out completely on her own, but I don't know when that was, as in was it May or June? Right now we are having a heatwave, that is making us feel like August. Usually, at this time of year, we are in the 70's with rain...we hit 90 today and was very humid. It felt yuck, to say the least, but I was with Halo and she wasn't acting too bad and didn't feel sweaty to me, but I didn't do much with her, as in moving around a lot, due to it was so hot.

 

[LB27]

Thanks for the info. My large horse's have all shed out completely on their own already. If they don't start shedding out more then I might try to clip them. I've never clipped before though. I don't even know what kind of clippers to buy! Hopefully next year they won't have issues. Whats the cheapest kind of clippers I could buy that are still decent? Thanks!

 

[wingnut]

LB27: I have Oster A5 clippers. They do the job but do heat up with extended use (which you end up doing with that first clip). Here's a link:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_8?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=a5%20oster%20clippers&sprefix=a5+oster%2Caps%2C531

I hope to upgrade to a heavier duty set next year for the big first clip of the season. The A5's will work fine when I'm just doing bridle paths and cleanup clipping (face, legs, etc.)

Lisa: A lot depends on your weather. Some minis are shed out by now but many are not. I know my horses wouldn't be shed out by now.

 

[eagles ring farm]

I also find that foals and yearlings often do not shed out very well by 2 yrs old they normally start to much better

 

[chandab]

Our saddle horses (3) are pretty much shed out with just a few guard hairs and loose hair left to go. The minis (16 - ranging from yearlings to 20) are in various stages of shedding; a few are mostly shed out, a few have quite a bit of hair left, the yearlings all look different (one had dreadlocks, two are just fuzzy), and the Cushing's gelding is in need of a clipping. I have already clipped the senior stallion, he stays so woolie and gets so itchy, that I just clip him when it seems fairly warm (he has a stall and 2 blankets, so I don't worry if the temps dip after clipping).

 

[MyMiniGal]

Well, that is just it...our weather has been weird. We had a couple weeks of warmer, nicer weather in April, at the beginning. It then went back to a cold, but out nights had stayed cold. Then we got this heatwave about 2-3 wks. ago, and it just keeps climbing, with the daily temps. Halo has been shedding something awful and because I can't see her everyday, I've been paying to have her brushed. And they definitely are doing it, I can tell, and everytime I go and see her, there are piles of fur outside her paddock, where they tie her to groom her. But it is only May, and we usually have cooler weather and lots of rain. So we could go back to that. We've had that happen before too. Right now, it feels like we have skipped Spring completely. I don't want to clip her, if I don't have to. I have the clippers to do so...I have Andis with several different blades. I have two 10's and two 7's, with a few even closer than that. I just would rather have her shed out on her own. May be I should give her a bath and see if that will loosen the rest? I just don't have a blanket, for if we would happen to get our normal weather for this time of year.

 

[chandab]

A bath will probably help. If you don't have any sort of a blanket, then just grab one of those little travel sized fleece blankets that are usually around $10-15 and use it as a cooler while she dries after her bath (to prevent drafts, even on warmer days, they can sometimes get chilled after a bath). Once she's dry, she'll be fine in her natural coat.

 

[muffntuf]

It has been a long hard winter for many. Mine are still shedding out and I expect to see lingering hairs until June this year. Only one yearling who needs more nutrition (and is getting it) has a bad winter coat left. Now that she is getting some more protein, she is shedding like crazy.

You can rough clip as the others suggest.

 

[MyMiniGal]

I board her, so I am not there to blanket her. I could pay extra for it, but I am already paying extra for the grooming. So, I think I will just leave her as is, at least until June, then see what happens. If we drop back down into the 70's, that means, it will most likely go back down into the 40's for nights. With what she still has, she would be fine. If I take that off now, then yes, I would have to get her a blanket. I just can't afford to pay anymore extra, at this time. I was with her yesterday, and it was around 90 and very humid. She wasn't sweating and acted comfortable, under her cover, in the paddock. So as long as I don't play with her too much, then, she should be fine, until she sheds. We usually aren't that humid. We usually have a pretty dry heat. Very weird weather this year. It felt like the middle of August, yesterday.