Spanish horses - why clip manes & tails

[MagicMelon]

Why do they clip the manes and tails off young Andalusian (and sometimes Luso (Portuguese)) horses??

 

[brighteyes]

I had no idea they did such a thing!

 

[MagicMelon]

They dont all do it but some seem to:

http://www.spanishhorsequest.com/index.p...ype=4&pid=9

3rd and 4th photo down on the 2nd page for example.

 

[Bossanova]

I know they often do the mares- presumably for easy upkeep?

 

[lucemoose]

I thought it was just tradition?

 

[RachelB]

It's so when they sell them, the buyer can see the conformation of the horse properly without the huge mass of mane and tail getting in the way. It also encourages the mane and tail to grow back thicker (a bit like pruning a hedge I suppose!)

 

[Tierra]

I can see why it helps to show the horse itself in photos, as opposed to a mass of hair.

I have to be honest though; It would put me off if i was looking for one.

 

[Haniki]

I think it is only the mares who have their manes hogged.

 

[zozo]

yeah it is only the mares that have it done and normally only young or brood mares

 

[JCWHITE]

I have a young horse near me, and the tail has been shaven, its looks horrible and I think its unfair, given the amount of flies we get. hope its done to encourage thickness of growth.

 

[Partoow]

hey clip the tails and manes in a different way depending on age, so when they are running in a herd out on the plains or in the hill when they round them up they can work out ages[ this is how it was explained to me] Also by keeping the mares tail shorter it helps keep them 'clean' duing covering as the hair can be taken 'in' when the stallion jumps on. This can lead to dirt entering the mare and the associated problems that brings.Long hair is also very hot and can get filled with burrs and twigs etc so although the flies thing can be seen as an issue it is far outweighed by the other issues.
It has little to do with vanity as the manes for PRE does not have to be 'thick' it is supposed to be long and silky.