Dressage Mane

[Zip_n_Prin]

I have a Paint gelding with an awesome mane! Its long, thick, and just plain awesome! I havent really done any dressage comp. but ive been to a couple of shows where they offered Intro Level through Grand Prix. SO i know his mane has to be plaited? (i dont know what they call it:rolleyes: ) does anyone have any suggestions as to how i can do this without cutting his mane? and pictures would help also:D
thanks!

[Tootsie4U]

can't plait (braid) with a long mane. you'll have huge masses of braided hair on top of the neck :D

You'll have to french braid it or something similar.

[IrisSilverMoon]

don't cut it! don't ever cut a mane.

Like tootsie said, french braid it, it will look really nice and you won't have to pull it short.

[horse_crazy4eva]

if his mane is fairly long and natural (not pulled) then you could do this dimond braid thingy. sorry i dont know what its called. or like totsie said you sould french braid it. or you could scallop it as well. I will try to find some pics because I have no idea how to explain it lol

[horse_crazy4eva]

heres a link to a pic of a continental braid

http://www.sayhowdy.com/select-card.cgi?card_id=134&category=17

this web site tells you how to do a running braid and a continental braid

www.raspberryridge.com/ Kids-Mane%20Care.htm


To do a scalloped mane you:
1) braid the mane into individual braids, using sections about 1 to 1 1/2 inches wide, with matching color yarn or thread braided in.
2) the first baid of the neck is passed behind the second and pulled up underneath the base of the third braid. this can be done with a baid puller or using thread and a braiding needle. the ends are seperated, crossed underneath the third braid and tied in a square knot on the top, about 1/4 inch down on the side of the braid. the ends are trimmed short.
3) the next braid is passed underneath the one next to it and pulled up and tied off under the next braid. this is continued down the neck. the scallops will look best if the braid is given a slight twist so that it turns and lies flat.
4) at the end of the neck, the last braid is looped under and fastend as a regular mane braid. the last two braids are fastend underneath this braid.

[IrisSilverMoon]

Originally posted by horse_crazy4eva
heres a link to a pic of a continental braid

http://www.sayhowdy.com/select-card.cgi?card_id=134&category=17




that's called a lattice braid

[horse_crazy4eva]

I'm sure theres like 10 different names for it. I've heard being called a continental braid, a dimond braid, a dimond weave so confuzing

[Nikita88]

I dont know how they do it in your level, in my level we do not have to braid the horses mane or anything but the full arabs are the only ones that are allowed to have long manes. Since mine is a T'bred and arab cross, we have to cut it shorter....here is a picture to show what it looks like when we got her. we just recently cut it (we layerd it to match mine!!! LOL) but you could consider trimming it up like my mares, i know it is excepted in dressage 'cause i've never been told other wise.

Here is a picture of her, its the best shot i had of her mane.
hopefully you can see her mane alright.

[carrie160]

Nikita, when you say cut do you mean with a pair of scissors?If so does it look unatural? I've always been taught to pull a mane

[horse_crazy4eva]

DONT CUT!!!! lol sorry I've been taught to never cut a mane as well. It looks terrible! one of the school horses mane was cut and i was going to cry it looked so bad. if you must trim a mane pull it or you can also do feather it... im not really sure how to explain it so i wont lol. so yeah just pull

[charlotte+jill!]

i show my pony (just local) and she has to b plaited and to b plaited like all durin the season and if it was pulled she wld have no mane!!! i cut hers for that reason and i was told to by a show person. also when i did pull it once i had to pull it so much cos its so thick it bled :( :(. pic below i dont think her mane looks horrible
:) but hey everyone has there own way of doing things :)

[Luv 2 Trot]

Hi,

I've heard that the lattice braid or diamond braid should only be worne on an Arabian horse. I asked my instructor if i could do that on my horse and he said no because they judges frown apon that braid if yer horse isn't and Arabian. Sorry. I cut my horses maine after i band it in the little ponytails that u usually see on western horses. It looks fine if u do it right.

[Torie]

I have cut Molly's mane before as it's very thick and becomes impossible to plait. I just lay the mane flat using a water brush and then cut using a big pair of scissors vertically upwards into the mane. Using this method I lose a lot of the thickness of Molly's mane and makes it far easier to plait :)

[LouiseEdwards]

I used to have a highland x dales pony, we used to love dressage, we did affiliated to novice level. The mane was a pain, but there was no way it could go as I used to show him a lot in native classes!!! We used to do a 'crest plait' - basically you start a plait behind their ear, but then take another section and add it into the plait, and keep going along, keeping the plait up near their crest. That worked for me. I'm not sure that the other plaits here are like, if they are the ones i'm thinking of they are for western horses or arabs, but as long as the horses mane and tail permit enough view of the horses hocks, neck bend etc I suppose anything is ok....

[SwiftSnowmane]

I'm another one who intensely dislikes cut manes. Maybe its because I see so many quarter horses with ugly (in my opinion) SHORT straight cut mane and tails. Ick. :(
I LOVE looong flowing manes....admittedly these look best on Arabs or Friesians or some such, and since I rode Arabs for years I am of course biased!
But then again, I hate it when humans cut their hair as well, so I think I just have a long hair fetish in general. (Especially on men...mmmm, don't get me started!;) ) I myself have long hair....down past my waist!:o

[sonnylugano129]

You should never ever cut a horses mane! just french braid it, it works much better!

[JOJOBA]

To be honest you could probably manage to ball plait it if you wanted. How good at plaiting are you?
My horse has a fairly long, incredibly thick, unruly mane (see pic) - it's like wire!:
http://homepages.force9.net/shibby/Jo/hecsie.JPG
And we got his mane up like this:
http://homepages.force9.net/shibby/Jo/Hec%20and%20Jo%20Stylish.jpg
And my friends old horse - a draught cross, with a mane down to his shoulders, we got looking like this, which is quite acceptable:
http://homepages.force9.net/shibby/Jo/Kallum.jpg
Note that it took two of us, but it is possible!
I think if you can put plaits in tightly enough and roll them well enough it's perfectly possible to plait any horse acceptably. Just takes a fair bit of work!
Do you have a picture of your horse? :D
xxx

[Lgd]

Tavia has a full mane - it is correct for Orlovs.

Her mane is usually lattice braided for competition

http://groups.msn.com/upsaddle2/lgd.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=8449

[cvb]

LOL - Jojoba that second horse looks like he ought to have a scraf over his mane so he could do a Nora Batty impression !

(sorry but it just tickled me - especially given he's in yorkshire...)