Shortening a long thick mane without pulling

[MuddyMonster]

Is it possible and if so, how... ?!

My boy currently has a long mane (past his neck) but it is beginning to look scraggly and I'm considering shortening it to a more traditional length.

I personally won't pull a mane, so am thinking of cutting it longer than I want it to be & solo combing it to it's final length. I'm slightly worried the thickness of his mane, won't make it look very neat though.

Any tips for making it look natural and avoid looking like he's been involved in an unfortunate incident with a hedge trimmer?

 

[Shay]

If you cut it then it will stand up like a bush. Why don't you want to pull it? Because it is thick you need to take some weight out of it before you trim it - otherwise all that bulk will simply make it stand upwards. There really is no option but to pull it. I'm not sure what your objection is? Is it that you are not sure how to do it correctly? It doesn't hurt the horse.

 

[TandD]

My mare had mane down to her knees :O! But was going showing and had to look correct so it had to be shortened. Personally hate pulling - ripping hair from roots does hurt, and my horses will tell you!

When i tidy makes to the correct length I put it all on the opposite side it normally lies, cut a straight line with scissors then flip it back to the side it likes to lie. From here i tidy up with scissors or solo comb depending on thickness. With a solo comb you can back comb and remove some weight from underneath, leaving the heavier hair on top.
I've found this works quite well for thick manes- mine dont stand up!

 

[MuddyMonster]

I know how to pull but am not convinced it doesn't hurt the horse. So simply prefer not to/won't pull my horse's mane

 

[AdorableAlice]

Get him good and hot, it will come out easily. Some horses do find the process irritating, my young mare hates it, but if she is worked hard enough to sweat well I can pull her mane without her getting upset.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

If you cut it then it will stand up like a bush. Why don't you want to pull it? Because it is thick you need to take some weight out of it before you trim it - otherwise all that bulk will simply make it stand upwards. There really is no option but to pull it. I'm not sure what your objection is? Is it that you are not sure how to do it correctly? It doesn't hurt the horse.

Some horses object strongly. I can't think of any evidence that it doesn't hurt the horse.

OP why not just trim the straggly ends and then let it continue to grow as it is doing? Many owners of natives/traditional cobs do that.

 

[SEL]

I use scissors on the draft & then feather the ends so it doesn't look so blunt.

 

[OldNag]

I use scissors on the draft & then feather the ends so it doesn't look so blunt.

Me too... A thinning comb helps with the ends

 

[Ceifer]

Cutting it will be fine. I’ve worked for showjumpers who only cut manes. I recommend if you cut it still keep it relatively long for the first time then solo comb. If you do solo Comb/cut you need to keep on top of it. I used a pair of hairdressing scissors (boots do them) cut the bulk of the length horizontally and then cut into vertically to get a less “done” look.

I used to work for a woman who was obsessed with her horses manes. I had to maintain them weekly and I used a hairdressers razor but I don’t recommend this unless you are very confident

 

[Jo1987]

I can’t be certain that mane pulling doesn’t hurt, and common sense tells me that it must. It won’t stick up unless you go very short, I’d cut with scissors to a couple of inches longer than you want to finish at, then chop into it/solocomb to soften the blunt edges and take off the extra length.
I’ve used this method on fairly thick manes before with perfectly acceptable results.

 

[crabbymare]

I am not sure exactly how to explain it, but a friend does hers with scissors and they look really good. She starts as if she is going to pull it but cutting the mane instead of pulling it out. Its worth a try if you want a more natural look than normal cutting

 

[Abi90]

I have a solocomb now. I know some people think they are the work of the devil but my shoulder will not stand up to pulling now, plus it really irritates my mare. As long as you take it from underneath, like pulling, and cut as close to the neck as possible then it doesn’t make it stand up. My mare’s mane has not gone spikes at all.

 

[Nudibranch]

I don't like solocombs and I dont like pulling. What works, and works well, is to cut off the majority of the length in one go then cut into the ends. You hold the scissors vertically and use small snipping movements to create a natural look. Then use a Smart rake to remove the extra weight and finish off the natural look. Honestly, Smart rakes are fab and so much easier to use than a solocomb. Use mainly underneath then a quick run over the top. No more pulling and no chopped off hair for regrowth. I've done it this way for years now and can do a whole mane in about 10 minutes. You wouldn't know the difference from pulling.

 

[Bernster]

I use scissors on the draft & then feather the ends so it doesn't look so blunt.

Me too. Works fine. I like the thickness but if I need to thin it I'd try nudibranch's tip with the rake. I know some people don't like it but really it's just hair and grows out quickly enough. It doesn't look that straight when you feather it and I think most people wouldn't know it's done with scissors. I find it quicker and easier on my hands and it doesn't bother him.

 

[Auslander]

Urggh. I've got to tackle Alf's today, as he is looking way more feral than I can deal with. His mane is very very thick, and can't make it's mind up what side it wants to lie on. I can get a lovely neat effect with a comb, scissors and a rake, for about three seconds - then he shakes his head, and it all goes to pot. I've been threatening to hog him for years!

 

[scats]

Solo comb and a rake. Solo comb to get required length, flip mane over and gently rake underside to get rid of a bit of the thickness that pulling would normally get rid of, then flip back over and comb through.

Then get a pair of scissors and lightly chop at an angle into the mane to get a more natural looking bluntness (if that makes sense).

Devised this plan when I had a horse who absolutely would not tolerate pulling. I use this method with P too as she's a sensitive soul.

 

[JillA]

These work really well - they have a craft knife blade at the base of the comb so it thins and cuts without looking as though you have used scissors, I use mine all the time when I have one that has gone too far to just pull a few each time I groom. You really can't tell, but for a long thick mane use them a bit at a time, combing and razoring from underneath

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Main-Com...hash=item2122f45c25:m:mJHUew0RTRlpk3qER5BG0Dg

Much better (and cheaper!) than a solo comb IMO

 

[gunnergundog]

Get him good and hot, it will come out easily. Some horses do find the process irritating, my young mare hates it, but if she is worked hard enough to sweat well I can pull her mane without her getting upset.

As above but also get a bottle of cloves and dab in the root line all down the mane - it kills any pain, exactly as it does if you use it yourself when you have toothache.

 

[Auslander]

Rake and scissors have been deployed!

 

[Abi90]

Rake and scissors have been deployed!

Wow! What a difference! I’m tempted to do that with mine. Should I also give up on trying to get her mane on the right when it falls so neatly on the left? I don’t intend to show her so would only be plaiting for dressage

 

[Auslander]

Wow! What a difference! I’m tempted to do that with mine. Should I also give up on trying to get her mane on the right when it falls so neatly on the left? I don’t intend to show her so would only be plaiting for dressage

It looked that neat for about 5 seconds! I don't bother trying to persuade his mane to lie on a particular side - it has a mind of it's own, and lies whichever side it feels like, so I just do it on whatever side it has opted to be on on a given day!!

I quite like manes that lie left, as you can get more height on hooded plaits by bringing a leftie over to the right to plait it!

 

[Dreckly]

I have a half heavy with a thick mane that grows so quickly. He also objects very strongly to pulling.

I comb the mane over to his wrong side then use a thinning rake with the little blades from the base of the mane to thin it and take the weight out. Then brush it over to the correct side and use hairdressers scissors to cut up into the mane ends to achieve the desired length, which does not give that cut along look. Works perfectly well and he stands like an angel while I do it instead of fighting me when I try and pull it.

Appearance is not worth causing him pain which it obviously does

 

[ihatework]

I darent admit how I have just tackled my new horses carthorse mane.
I don’t tend to pull these days unless the horse really doesn’t seem to mind.
I think AA might faint if she sees what I have done .....

 

[Fiona]

Last winter I used a rake on the underneath of our loan ponys mane, never did too much at one time or shortened too much.

It looked fantastic when newly done, but the spiky regrowth was horrendous, never again 😣😣

Hence our current chestnut Welsh cross is turned out like a M&M because he is headshy so I can't pull it 😣

Fiona

 

[Dreckly]

Last winter I used a rake on the underneath of our loan ponys mane, never did too much at one time or shortened too much.

It looked fantastic when newly done, but the spiky regrowth was horrendous, never again ����

Hence our current chestnut Welsh cross is turned out like a M&M because he is headshy so I can't pull it ��

Fiona

It must have something to do with the thickness of the hair as I was worried about the regrowth being spikey but for some reason his mane is fine. I do use the thinning rake on his tail also and I have to do this regularly or it gets spikey but that is fine.

 

[Theocat]

Pulling depends entirely on the horse- last one hated it; current one goes into a blissful doze. I would try it before you write it off, but unlike others I would thin with a rake THEN shorten with scissors!

 

[SallyBatty]

My mare grows a very long, thick mane. I brush the mane over to the left first and thin with a rake what will be the underside when I brush it back over to the right. I then shorten with scissors first going across and then upwards to get a more natural look.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

Hog it!

I hate scissor cut manes! Well the show jumper dead straight ones look ok when a bit longer but I am an all out au natural or pulled properly type of gal! Neither of my big horses mind it, the welsh cob is ok with it too. A few of the horses at work hate it so they get chopped but the rest are pulled properly. If I ever see a solo comb on the yard I confiscate it! |They can look ok when done properly but no one seems to bbe able to do it properly. And then they try using clipper blades and that's when I totally lose the plot at them!

If you are pulling get the horse hot and sweaty and pull from the underneath to get rid of some of the thickness.

 

[spotty_pony]

Use a rake. Smart Grooming do a very good one. Flip his mane onto the wrong side and rake the underside to avoid the wispy bits standing up on top of the mane, then use a solo comb to neaten up the ends.