plaiting a cob mane :(

[ponies4ever]

hi so i have a dressage competition coming up and i HATE having awful plaits (its not entirely my plaiting skills My situation is i have a cob mare with the thickest mane i have ever seen it is reliatively long (2 hand widths at the top does however go down to one in middle) and sticks straight up. she refuses to let me pull it and is not a fan of the thinning rake either. in the past i have just done about 21 (yes 21) large plaits to fit it all in. I was wondering if anyone knows of any good sprays to get some grip on it or if specific plaiting methods work better for taming thick manes!

thanks x

 

[silv]

Not conventional but I have seen horses with plaits on both sides of the neck, it looked OK. You can get plaiting sprays at any tack shop, they are a help, I used to use hair gel but found it quite slippery.

 

[dollymix]

How about a running plait? Looks very smart on those with long manes...

 

[Darkly_Dreaming_Dex]

HOG IT

*i'll get my coat*

 

[L&M]

As above - it is a cob after all!!! But then I hog everything as can't be bothered to plait for hunting….!

 

[Sukistokes2]

with my traditional cob I go El Natural, flowing locks. With my other cob the same but neat, although I have used a running plait which can look really good. If you do not like the plaiting, hogging can be a good option for some cobs and does look really smart, depending on the horse. My traditional gypsy cob would look really really bad hogged.

With my native x shire I thinned his mane with a rack, I then would wet it the night before and plait it all on one side with a long plaits. I would then undo them at the show and comb them through. It would then stay there( if wind low) for at least my tests before reverting back to being two sided.

 

[ponies4ever]

I would LOVE to hog her but she might not be chunky enough (is a very dainty cob ) and she is for sale at the moment so not sure how it would effect her sale... Will see if I can get hold of some plaiting spray though, any particular brands?

 

[JDH01]

I am another fan of hogging but if you don't think it would suit go au natural

 

[Firefly9410]

I have a dainty cob that is hogged it still looks good. Unless the horse looks scrawny and weedy or if there is a huge bulge of muscle under the neck and no topline, it will be fine to hog.

 

[PStarfish]

I would do a running plait instead. They are really easy and look lovely.

 

[OldNag]

I would do a running plait instead. They are really easy and look lovely.

Yes to this!

Personally I detest hogging.

Running plaits really suit big manes and can look very smart.

 

[minesadouble]

I'm another who would hog, however if you would rather not then Supreme Products Easy Plait is a product I swear by.

 

[holeymoley]

Thin it out like there's n o tomorrow and keep it short. Then you won't get golf balls however if it's long just do a running plait, no point battling with lots of hair that's impossible to ball up.