This is a call for all grey horse owners - how do you keep yours clean and gray, and not in green and yellow spots? Especially in the winter, when there is a limited possibility to wash them? I have left mine this year unclipped, and depending on the frequency of cleaning of box, he does get spotty every now and then. Then I try to be brave and wait for a warmer day and wash only those spots quickly with a whitening shampoo for dogs. Note - with only two equestrian supply shops here, in Riga, neither of them have any grooming items for grey horses. The result is not stunning but one can live with that. and also the tail... I washed it, but it still gets yellow, since he is quite light grey and with almost white tail...
What do you use? Maybe some other things apart from ready-made store products (which are also ok, but which one works best?). I am currently thinking of ordering myself this "Canter on" or what was the name - whitening spray.
I'm lucky (for now) that mine is a steel grey. But for some very strange reason she doesn't seem to stain apart from her tail which is permanently yellow
I turn her out in a rug and brush the mud off when she comes in.
You could try a 'coat shine' product which helps to repel the stains but be careful not to put it on the saddle area.
I just do the best that I can for her tail. I tend to use human shampoo for blondes, it's not fantastic but no worse than the horse shampoos (I've tried the special shampoos for greys, the lot, they don't work). I always condition it afterwards but it doesn't last for long.
I don't like washing too much in the winter so will concentrate more on getting her really clean when the weather is better.
I can't see the point in 'whitening sprays' if they're only temporary unless you're competing and need a cover up.
When it starts to get wet and muddy out, and she starts to get furry, I just give up the unequal struggle to keep her white. In Spring, then I'll start again...
Bay Mare... this is what awaits you :wicked:
__________________ Every time I learn something new it pushes some old stuff out of my brain!
Never let it worry you, junst remember all the same stains and marks ore on other folk's dark horsxes it's just that they cannot be seen. The horse don't care, aso long as he's fat and happy he won't care how grubby he is.
In winter stable and grass and mud stains are all part of being a horse.
If folk sniff at your riding a stained horse it's because they havn't got anything better to do!
It's what goes in their head that matters not the colour.
__________________
If you cannot set a good example, at least serve as a terrible warning....
Originally posted by Wally Never let it worry you, junst remember all the same stains and marks ore on other folk's dark horsxes it's just that they cannot be seen.
If folk sniff at your riding a stained horse it's because they havn't got anything better to do!
It's what goes in their head that matters not the colour.
Exactly what I thought... you can't imagine - the whole winter through half of the stable people were running around me, comstantly trying to persuade me to clip him... which I strongly opposed to, because he is not in intensive training yet so there was no need... but they just can't let it: "Look, look, how fluffy he is, and those stains.... ".
snap eeyore and i also use gallop shampoo and dung away. but i just wash merlin off whenever he comes in.
canter coat whitener is great too just spray rub in and wash offmerlin
I have the same problem. Tigger is totally white and very difficult to keep clean. That canter coat whitener mentioned earlier is good, as is the red rum one, as you just spray it on, so no need to wash the whole horse. Mighty nippy when cold, brr!
A saddler I spoke to the other day said that she sprays mane and tail de-tangler on her white horse. It prevents the stains from sticking in the first place. She also said a cheaper option is ....... wait for it........ Mr Sheen furniture spray! Apparently the same principle - won't let stains stick. I'm not very keen on that one though. I don't think I'd use it on Tigger, i'd be worried it would irritate his skin.
Add that to the fact that he would smell very odd! Don't think he would be much of a hit with the laydees!! On the subject of blue rinses, my friend used to bleach her horses tail, but you have to be careful it doesn't make it go yellow. I don't really like the idea of bleach, as it's likely to hurt their skin i think. Don't know if anyone has heard of this?
I just keep him rugged. He has a neck cover with his outdoor rug and a quilted stable rug, so only his legs belly, neck etc get really stinking. If you find a cure, I'd love to hear it!
Failing that, get some chalk. It's what they use in shows for dirty or slightly yellow patches, so I've been told.
Originally posted by chev Bay Mare... this is what awaits you :wicked:
I know That's why I wanted a dark bay! So why do I go and fall in love with a grey? Someone's idea of a cosmic joke methinks .... mind you, they ARE beautiful aren't they?
Quote:
Originally posted by Aphrodite She also said a cheaper option is ....... wait for it........ Mr Sheen furniture spray! Apparently the same principle - won't let stains stick. I'm not very keen on that one though. I don't think I'd use it on Tigger, i'd be worried it would irritate his skin.
There's a thread on that at the moment ... can't find it though! I wouldn't use furniture spray either I'd rather she was dirty.
I've tried the blue rinse shampoo and that doesn't work either
My grey gets washed in Stock Shampoo, works a treat.
For the stains we have Red Rum Whitener Spray, is fantastic stuff, so brillient, his whole head was brown when I got to him at 7.30 this morning, and had to get him ready for a show in under half and hour, and he went gleaming white!
I use a Natural Remedies Stain Remover in his tail after washing it with the shampoo, just rub it in like shampoo and rinse out, gleams afterwards!
People are always commenting on how clean he looks all the time at shows!
Trust me he dosent look like it on a daily basis! He is rugged with a neck rug now, but thats only been for the last 2/3 weeks, and he is clipped out as he competes etc, except for his head, thats why it gets horribly dirty!
The furniture polish thread was under "Tried and Tested". Anneindor contacted one of the furniture polish manufacturers - the full response is on page 2 of the linked thread, but the basic summary was "this product should not be used on animals under any circumstances".
I've cleaned up a fairly pale dappled grey before, and I've found Johnson's Baby shampoo does a pretty good job of stains on his coat. The majority of the mane and tail hair comes up beautifully white, but the roots seem to stay fairly grey, although they do improve with subsequent washes. Shall have to try the natural Remedies stuff in the spring. Over winter he just gets brushed off, but otherwise stays mucky
Originally posted by Tangle
I've cleaned up a fairly pale dappled grey before, and I've found Johnson's Baby shampoo does a pretty good job of stains on his coat.
Hmmm.. Johnson's Baby shampoo? Well, at least this one is easily available here, have to try this one...
A couple of years ago I was doing an NVQ at my local RDA centre and there is a grey connemara there called Fife. Once in the winter someone made the mistake of forgetting to put a rug on before they turned him out and the next day when we caught him he was covered from head to tail in thick mud AND he was needed for the first lesson of the day.
He only needs the rug to stop him getting mucky.
the thing is that he gets only those box-stains, from bedding, and not mud. he is not turned out so much, and when he goes out, and if it is muddy, he is so cafreful, that he does not even want to roll in it, only if the ground is dry and sandy... and then it does not stick. He rolls only on dry ground, and snow, and the latter is good, because it takes away some stains!
I shall add some pics from yesterday. mind - it's not me riding him.
Last edited by Silmarien; 24th Jan 2005 at 12:12 PM.
My grey mare is mostly yellow, sort of a light dun, especially on her neck. She was rugged (lw only) at our previous yard, by the yard staff - this wasn't a problem as she was going to be working livery all winter. However I moved and now she's not clipped, but still gets turned out in her lw rug as her coat's not too thick as it didn't have time to grow properly.
I use tesco own brand blue value shampoo and mane / tail detangler in the summer but for now she's having enough mud removed for me to get a bridler on her, as she's rugged her saddle area's always clean.
The mud on her neck helps keep her warm anyway so I don't even remove that every day - I sort of get a clean bridle shaped space on her head - the ears are always fun, then her girth area/saddle area - and I check her feet/legs for mudfever brush off any dried mud and pick her feet out - that's it, winter grooming's quite quick really.
Someone at my yard has a grey ID/warmblood x gelding who was clipped last week and had his tail washed - he's now sparkling and really shows up Z - yes I could wash her tail but don't really see the point in wintery weather, I just make sure that it's not matted every day.
I am looking foward to our first bath in spring - she'll look a different girl.
She's light grey, with some dappley bits (v light) on her bum and a darker mane and tail - the tail is currently grey and yellow. Someone asked me the other week if her mane is darker than her body ? I said yes, it's not just the dirt !
i don't! as wally says, life is too short. petal is cheerfully khaki and has been so since 2003, since she skived all the 2004 show season. her last wash was august 2003. i am not looking forward to the next one. since we show, i will have to start on her tail soonish - everything else comes up nicely with one big bath, but the tail does need about 10 weekly washes to get all the poo out.
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