Twitches.....woudl you or wouldn't you?

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ecrozier

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I need to sort out OH's mare's mane this weekend, and would prefer to pull it rather than anything with scissors or razors etc... However, she shakes her head and pulls away from me when I pull her mane, and then in the past has pulled back, which in turn freaks her out and she then usually snaps the leadrope and b*ggers off!!
She is a slightly headshy mare anyway, but very good for clipping etc, and I truely feel that the mane pulling issue is naughtiness rather than actual fear, as she starts off fine but seems to do it once she gets bored....
So, would you in that situation twitch her? I am not a fan of twitches in general, and am really trying to build up a relationship with this mare as she is very much OH's horse....and now that she can't jump anymore it looks like I'm going to be taking her over as he has no interest in dressage/showing at all! Will twitching upset her do you think? Is she going to resent me if I do twitch her? Would I be better just to give in and solo comb her mane do you think? Problem is it is really thick and need to be able to plait in in the spring really!!
Any advice appreciated!!!
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i use a solocomb on my horse who is a nightmare. You cant twitch him to pull his mane he is that bad. He is fine with the solo comb tho.
 
If she starts off fine, why don't you do a small amount each day? I wouldn't twitch to pull a mane - the next time youcome to do it she'll be even worse imo. I'd either do a bit at a time or use a solocomb (my mare hates her mane being pulled).

The only reason I would twitch would be if it was necessary for the vet.
 
There is a much better come than a solo comb, it is a comb with a glass razor at the base - I do Donkey's mane with it as the only time I pull her mane is to make her go forwards in the showring - she will not let you pull it, and I don't really blame her as I would not like to have my hair pulled out by the roots. A twitch to clip however I have no problem with!
 
I have used the solo comb on her before, its just that her mane is SO thick (like a bog brush!) that it doesn't really give a great finish, and as I'm hoping to show her this summer, I don't know how well the plaits would come out?
 
We had one that we had to twitch as she was a pain to pull her mane , although once she had the twitch on she was fine and it took mum about 10 mins to do - she just stood there, but we have the old fashioned twitch not the new metal type ones. hope that this helps.
 
jumpthemoon, I would do a bit a day but she lives out and it takes so long to get her mane untangled etc to start pulling it... so I'd only have got to one end before I needed to start again the other! Thats kind of my thoughts on twitches too though, I'm not keen.
SSM, where do I get one of these glass combs? Sounds good!

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jumpthemoon, I would do a bit a day but she lives out and it takes so long to get her mane untangled etc to start pulling it...

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I see your problem! You can get good results with a solocomb or try one of those glass ones - they do sound good
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Hmm, yeah, think maybe I'll give pulling it a go then if she starts jumping about I'll resort to the comb...would love to try one of these glass ones though.
 
If she does have a thick mane, then you do really need to pull it rather than use a Solocomb, etc. You will probably find that if you do a good job of pulling it now you will be able to use the solocomb the next couple of times to keep it tidy, and then pull it again later on in the season. We use an old fashioned twitch on ours that need to be twitched, and if you wait for a moment once you've put it on most will start to feel the effect and go sleepy, then you can get the job done in 10 mins! Neither twitching or pulling their manes does them any harm!
 
I wouldn't hesitate to use a twitch and have found with many horses that don't like having their manes pulled that after a few times with a twitch I can then do them quite easily without.

I have never had one who was worse after using a twitch.
 
I had the vet sedate my horse when she needed her mane drastically pulling. Now I just have to give her a few ACPs and keep on top of it. She's actually getting so much better, eventually I think she'll be able to tolerate it a bit at a time without anything. Twitching would just have created a bigger battle.
 
I have twitched to pull a mane. The pony was under the influence of Sedalin gel as well at the time, but he was still putting up a fight. There is also another twitch point on the side of the neck which you can sort of pinch, grab a fingerful of skin, sounds awful but isn't so bad in practice. We got the mane pulled in the end. The next time I did it, I did it after he had had his dental and had been sedated for that. No problems whatsoever. Needless to say I went as short as I felt I could get away with, so neither of us would have to go through that again for a long time! He wouldn't cooperate for a solo combing session either, so on that basis there wasn't really an alternative route available to me apart from letting it get really long and straggly.

My personal opinion is that the solo combs don't work so well on a thick mane, but are very good on fine to average manes.
 
Vet has used a twitch on mabel and she seemed slightly annoyed afterwards as when i went in her stable she turned away in disgust lol but the next day she came over to me like normal and seems fine. =]
 
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