Annoying sticky plant balls!

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Grumpymoo

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My boy keeps coming in from the field with these stupid balls stuck in his mane and forelock! I can not find them in the field or along the fence line. It is so annoying.

Does anyone know what sort of plant these come from?

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Sorry the pictures aren't great but they are small round and spiky!

Thanks everyone :)
 
Burdock, the independent horse's preferred hair styling product :D. It is amazing the complex sticky up styles they can achieve. It takes time, effort and skill, you know ;)
 
I am just going to leave him like it if he keeps doing it or Hog his mane :) He also managed to catch his rug on the fence and rip it so he is naked again after one night with his rug on! Not impressed :(
 
We have thistles in our field so that the horses can eat them. Thistles have many good properties; are good for the liver, strengthens/protects/restores, has high level of linoleic acid (stuff to regulate female hormonal balance) I imagine your horse has rummaged around eating them and got the sticky bits stuck in their mane. We have a lot of funny 'hair up-do' moments at the moment on our field.
 
Grumpymoo said:
I am just going to leave him like it if he keeps doing it or Hog his mane :) He also managed to catch his rug on the fence and rip it so he is naked again after one night with his rug on! Not impressed :(
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Ooh you have one who does hair and clothes styling :D.

Mine generally does neither, but he did once take exception to a pillar box red rug, and rip it completely to shreds (it was unrepairable) the first day I put it on him. I've made sure to stick to blue and brown since.

Burdocks are normally only a problem for a few weeks after horses move to winter grazing, iME - after that, they've eaten all the plants. Never had a problem with thistles, to be honest, they eat the flower heads and the rest just dies back, nothing ever gets in mane or tail. We do have lots of those twiggy bits of dock head in the tails at the moment though.
 
After seeing posts about burdock, I thought I'd check.. I actually have no idea without going to field to analyse however looking in 'A modern horse herbal' (great little book) there are lots of beneficial benefits to burdock as well. It also is used as a cleanser, and supports liver function. Also for use as a chronic inflamatatory.. So it's helping them either way, just frustrating if having to spend ages sorting their mane out so protected from the elements, but I guess if they can self select and choose it, that's the second best thing to not having the need for it in the first place, Hannah
 
Mine is always getting thistles in her forelock it is highly annoying! I wouldn't cut them out as that would be criminal, but I run a bit of baby oil through her mane when it is free of them and they are much easier to pick out when they do occur. I normally just pick them out with my fingers, takes ages sometimes but seems to be easier when I am wearing leather gloves I have discovered! I get the comb out if it is really matted but its best to deal with them the day they turn up or it is really hard to get them out!
 
Thanks for your help everyone! I have to be careful with using oil on him as he is allergic to clipper oil so don't want to upset his skin so I'll just gave to live with them I guess xx
 
My boy gets these. It's annoying as hell! Especially as brushing them out pulls out mane, which he has very little of anyway. Even with conditioner, oils etc...

And if I cut them out he'd have no mane at all. He already has a mane sticking up like a 80s punk rocker because there's that little mane that it just stands on end...
 
I've got four horses who come in evey night with "beehives" in their forelocks, and completely stiff tails full of burrs. My sense of humour is wearing thin!!
 
Meant to add, wait until they've pulled some hay down from their hayracks, then you get the most amazing effect. I'll try to get some good pics tonight.
 
They are burdocks not thistles and are a great plant in lots of ways. Ours like eating the leaves when they are tender and I have read that they can work to reduce tumours, which is interesting as 2 horse with sarcoids when they moved to our yard had them drop off after a few months with us.

BUT the burrs are potentially dangerous if they get in the eyes, you need to be careful to get them out of the mane and cut the plants down if they persistently get in their forelocks, if the horse gets runny eyes, you could have a scratch on the eye so do be aware. Also in the Spring the leaves can cause ulcers on the lips, muzzle and tongue so be aware and don't panic.
 
Thanks for all the information! It's annoying as I cannot find the plants. They are def not in the field as none of the Shetlands have got any on them so he must be finding them when he leans over the fence (he always does that!! :().

Cundlegreen - can't wait to see the pics!
 
Grumpymoo said:
Thanks for your help everyone! I have to be careful with using oil on him as he is allergic to clipper oil so don't want to upset his skin so I'll just gave to live with them I guess xx
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Spray plenty of mane/tail conditioner onto them and then they are relatively easy to comb out.

Daughter's horse always has a tail full when he gets home from a days hinting and the conditioner seems to work.
 
Haha I am laughing at this thread because my pony had exactly that plant in her mane, forlock and tail for months :o every day I spent about an hour getting them out, only to find they return the next day!
My mum even took the shears down to the field and 'thought' she chopped them all down and removed them, when pony came in the next day covered in them again :rolleyes: They are so annoying!
I smothered baby oil over her mane and tail and even though that doesn't stop them from returning, it makes it a lot easier for you to get out as they just slide out instead of creating a knot of hair!
I've also tried mane and tail conditioner sprayed onto a sponge and rubbed onto mane as pony didn't like spray being near her face.
 
Grumpymoo said:
Thanks for all the information! It's annoying as I cannot find the plants. They are def not in the field as none of the Shetlands have got any on them so he must be finding them when he leans over the fence (he always does that!! :().

Cundlegreen - can't wait to see the pics!
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here you go...........
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