Trimming feathers

[Scribbles]

Bog pony has feathers! I only noticed today they're about 6inches long, from the fetlock almost touching the floor!

How is best to trim them? I blunted a pair of scissors last time, although to be fair they were pretty blunt already.

 

[My_chestnut_mare]

What about a thinning comb?

 

[Ranyhyn]

Trimmers if its think enough, clippers if its not, takes seconds.

 

[Ali2]

Scissors again - gives a much nicer finish IMO.

 

[baleofhay]

I have not tried it but someone told me that those mane and tail rake things with the wooden handle do a really neat job??

 

[Theresa_F]

Leave them - they will wear off naturally as they touch the floor - cut with sissors looks awful.

Either clip the legs out completely or leave them naturally feathered - anything else does not look right - shortened feather is just like a mane cut with sissors - wrong.

If they are very thick and you want to thin them - one of the thinning combs from clippersharp works very well if you do it slowly and take a tiny bit off at a time.

Some people would kill for hair like you describe

 

[Moggy in Manolos]

Strangely i just got home from the yard, and i think i was possessed for a monent as i have just trimmed my girls very very long feathers with scissors!!
They don't look too bad, they were just a bit beyond in the long stakes, all on floor and could not see her feet to pick out. As long as you use the scissors correctly they can look ok, i cut down as the hairdresser would when thinning, it looks ok like i say.

 

[Scribbles]

Theresa - unfortunately i don't think my 'feathers' are as drastic as I've led you into thinking. He's only a light TB x type build, although he lives out and has 'something' in the genes, meaning it only runs down his pasterns, and has suddenly blossomed pretty thick at the back of the fetlock, so it looks a bit daft on him.

Thanks for the advice though

last time I managed to hack at them (and they were *much* thinner than they are now) they had funny 'steps' and I couldn't make it even.

The worst part is that as they're so long the ends have become sunbleached! Mind they match his mane now... Enter scruff horse.

 

[Theresa_F]

Ah, totally different. One of my TBs used to grow very nice feather, which I did leave on during winter.

In the summer, I very carefully clipped them off with a pair of little trimmers, having first taken the worst off with sissors. If you want to be really anal, after using the trimmers, blend any longer hair higher up the leg into the fetlock with the thinning comb and go over the clipped area thining it until it looks very natural.

I have to confess, earlier this year I spent an hour turning the welsh C on the yard into a SHP and the legs looked as if they never had been feathered.

For normal people, the sissors and then trimmers will do the trick perfectly.

 

[Scribbles]

How do you feel about a trip up north....