How To Groom Manes & Tails

There are many ways to tidy and shape the tail of your horse or pony, depending on the type of look and finish that is required as well as the class or competition that you will be entering. If you...

Tidying and shaping of tails is most often seen in show and event circles.  Traditionally this was an acceptable way of showing off the conformation and shape of the hind quarters, and a pulled tail was created to get the tidy look.

To pull traditionally or tidy humanely?  This tends to attract plenty of controversy when discussed on social media and is borne from an old tradition of neatening up manes and tails by pulling the hair away from the hair follicle to get a neat finish.

Traditionally tails were “pulled” by hand to thin out the thickness at the top and shape the sides of the tail to give definition and improve the shape of the hindquarters as well as provide a pleasing picture when the horse is ridden and “carries” the tail.

I don’t like to pull manes as I’ve found I can get the same effect quicker and easier when using curved safety scissors and a comb.

Mane Maintenance.  Making light work of manes is down to keeping them well maintained on a regular basis.  It is also down to personal preference for the overall look as well as the equestrian discipline that is being favoured.

Smart Tails can thin and tidy thick unruly tails in moments and tidy existing tails giving a smart show ring finish without causing any discomfort.  They are totally humane and guaranteed to work on the most sensitive!

Mane pulling is a controversial topic.  There are several different ways to tidy a mane, either humanely using thinning rakes, scissors, razors, old clipper blades to name a few, or the traditional way with a metal mane comb.