Problem with Dreamers mane but not his tail?!

[PatriotsDreamer]

So i have a slight problem with Dreamers mane. If and when he doesnt rip HUGE chunks out of it.... it is starting to get long. The ends are really dry and brittle(sunbleached too). I trimmed off the REALLLY damaged part but i hate to take off any of his mane because i want it to get long and BEAUTIFUL. I hardly every brush it because when i do( and when i dont) he always has lots of "loose hairs" falling out of the mane like he is shedding. Its more than normal too. Im thinking maybe it could be a mineral diff. but im not sure which one he would be lacking for that, maybe peggy sue could answer that? What product would work best to put on his mane now to protect, moisturize and revitalize the hair that is there and dry? This is the weird twist/kicker too... His tail doesnt" shed" like his mane does and iis realy strong/ tough! I am soooo confused?

[Gypsy Rose]

Minerals- same as for hooves- they both run together.

Zinc and copper-3 to one ratio. Methionine and lysine(amino acids). Flax, biotin.

Those are the main ones of the top of my head- I'll see if I can get PeggySue over here for details.

The biggest thing is a balanced diet- hopefully, she can help you figure out what's missing.

Btw, first thing you'll get asked...

What are you feeding? Deworming schedule?

[Peggy Sue]

are you still feeding my favorite feed and at what levels??

I wonder if I can get a better Analysis from Purina... hmm I will email them and try

[HeartofSteel]

I had to trim an inch or so off of Niko's mane, as much as it killed me... If the ends are split and fried then the rest of the hair doesn't seem to grow. Niko's ends were all twisted and weird so I trimmed them up and now is mane looks really healthy and is growing. Do you braid his mane at all?

[mandisue]

My old barrel geldings mane had a spot where the hair decided to grow REALLY slow and kept breaking off. After a LOT of baby oil treatments and massaging the spot it's growing again. Sometimes if you look close in situations like this if there's a dandruffy spot he may have a fungus too. It may not be a deficiency especially if his tails not doing it.

[cyb]

I started using MTG on my horses tail, it seems to help regrow hair he has rubbed off.

[Peggy Sue]

MTG will help with regrowth but won't fix the problem if it is truely falling out not being rubbed ....

I have emailed Purina for a more complete analysis on the feed I think you are feeding ... waiting to hear from them now... not holding my breathe at all they are terrible to get info out of

[Sparrk]

My horse's mane is past his shoulder.

I also trimmed the ends because they were very sun bleached and dry. I'm so glad I did because his man looks so much fuller. I use Show Sheen Moisturizing Detangler and I love it. It leaves the man soft and tangle free for days.

I was using normal leave in conditioner but it got too dirty and gross.

I recommend using the show sheen detangler.

[Gypsy Rose]

Patriots, PeggySue asked me to let you know that she's still waiting on an answer from Purina.

[PatriotsDreamer]

Sorry it took me soo long to get back to you guys... i have some other things going on. Dreamer is still on strategy he is wormed every 7-8 weeks. Their hair and hooves coorespond with each other, and his hooves are very healthy and grow fast( according to my shoer). His tail doesnt shed like his mane so MAYBE he is rubbing it? Honestly, i never even thought of that.

[mandisue]

IF he had a dandruff issue or fungus he would rub it.

[Peggy Sue]

How much is he getting???

[PatriotsDreamer]

sorry peggy.... just under 5lbs a day plus free choice grass hay and some alfalfa.

[Gypsy Rose]

I just wanted to jump in and say that nutrition is always the first place to look at. Just because the tail and coat are fine, doesn't mean the weakest link might not be getting enough nutrients. Gypsy, for instance, has great hooves, and a decent coat, mane and tail, but her forelock has actually been falling out, and she's been going bald on her forehead every summer.

PeggySue worked with me to come up with a good feed program for Gypsy, and I'm already seeing a major improvement.

[Peggy Sue]

OK Let me work numbers here in bit and I will come back ... still haven't heard back from Purina they are terrible about this....

[PatriotsDreamer]

I agree nutrition is important. Dreamer has been raised on strategy, and this just started recently which leads me to believe its not the feed, but hey, i could be wrong!

[pandorasmom]

I had loose minerals I bought for Pandora and she'd never touch them. If I buy the Loose mineral blocks she'll pig out on them. She likes to lick the mineral hard blocks, but can't obviously bite it. Our goats are completely opposite, they love loose minerals and love the loose mineral blocks. However, it's not recommended to have the hard blocks for them because they have to bite off so much to get just a little of the amount they really need. We started with those and ended up with a mineral def., until we put them on loose minerals and they are fine now. Anyways, they prefer loose minerals whereas Pandora doesn't. Funny things they are.

[Peggy Sue]

I agree nutrition is important. Dreamer has been raised on strategy, and this just started recently which leads me to believe its not the feed, but hey, i could be wrong!


the only thing I am seeing from what I have is the vitamin A levels could be better and of course sugars and starches could be lower....

does he NEED the five lbs to keep his weight up??

[Peggy Sue]

keep in mind also that you also just got a new load of hay not long ago that is THIS years cuttings or possibly just different cuttings from what you had before....

[Peggy Sue]

also keep in mind taht many defiencies and toxcities can take YEARS to build / unbuild

[Peggy Sue]

The only thing I can SEE that may be causing the problem is the Se in the feed and possibly the Vitamin A

Both are known to cause hair loss when toxic or def and his levels are boarder line toxic not counting any in his hay ....

for one month TRY 1lb Enrich32 I think you can get it up that area and 2lbs of beet pulp or alfalfa pellets to replace the calories ... it should SAVE you money ... and thur the one bag you should see a difference but with this time of year who knows they are so hairy it is tough...

I still think he is probably rubbing it somewhere

[Peggy Sue]

http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=26

Selenium Toxicity
In certain areas of the country where soil is rich in the mineral selenium, some plants accumulate too much selenium in their leaves, and horses grazing on these plants or horses fed hay that has been grown in selenium-rich soils might suffer from toxicity. Classic signs begin as a thinning of the mane and tail hairs, with eventual hair loss on the mane and tail. In more advanced cases, horizontal cracks will appear in the hooves, with a potential to slough the entire hoof capsule.
Hair, serum, or feed can be analyzed for selenium content. If selenium toxicity is a suspected problem, affected horses should be removed immediately from the offending pasture, or the hay should be substituted with low-selenium hay from a reliable source.

[PatriotsDreamer]

I found the culprit!!! He left the evidence! its where he sticks his head through the slats on the fence to get grass and nose on the other side! Hes too big and barely fits through there!

[Gypsy Rose]

Well what a piglet! Gypsy tries to do the same thing, lol!