I am cutting or pulling my horses mane, please help??

Question

okay, when i canter my horse in the right direction, i cant really see his shoulder and it is hard to tell if i am on the correct lead!!! so i have decided to cut it or pull it or whatever its called. his mane is thin so i dont have to thin it but i know that i just dont cut it down the neck and i know to cut it about the width of my hand. but how do i cut it??? i dont want to mess his mane up, and i ride english and he is a paint...i know it is confusing but just tell me how to acually cut the mane short...

Answer 1

I had same problem with mine ive been riding years, what i did was spend ages one day going round feeling what she was like on the right leg then again going off on the wrong leg and just feel the difference sometimes there isn't that much of a big change but if you just take ur time to feel it out you will, don't go about cutting his mane if you have never done it before you will make it a right mess- and if you do, get someone who knows how to pull them don't use scissors.

Answer 2

Dont cut it with scissors.  You want a horses mane to look naturally short the way you want it, not like you went to the barbor shop and hacked it off.  You can use a pulling blade which allows you to kind of razor the hair off at a certain length without pulling the hair out and making it super thin. And without looking like you cut it with scissors. Just go to any horse tack site and they have different options for pulling combs and blades.  You can also use a pulling comb, but have someone show you have to pull it to the right length. there are ways of using the comb without pulling out alot of hair.  

Answer 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goydD5Gea...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_fwCOfz4...

hopefully these help

Edit: at the end of the first video it tells you how to cut the mane

Answer 4

what??

Answer 5

Don't use scissors as they make it look choppy. Buy some thinning shears. You can get them at a tack store for less than $10 and they prevent that rough choppy look. Start out by trimming it long then going back and getting it to the right length. If you try to get it the right length on the first try you'll probably go shorter than you really want. I usually start out at the withers and work my way up. As far as length goes it just depends on you. Since your wanting it shorter out of necessity you don't have to go as short as someone who needs to braid. For you I would start out with the length of your hand instead of the width and see how you like it. And remember to not stress about it too much. I've butchered plenty a mane in my day and it always grows back.

Answer 6

my horse HATES getting his mane pulled so i just trim it.

have a sharp  pair of scissors (with dull points) and just trim piece by piece. make sure you step back and look at it to see if its even. comb it and keep trimming until its the length you like. remember a horses neck goes at an angle so you arent exactly cutting straight across..but more downward.

hope i helped!

if its too thick i would get thinning shears and use them from underneath the mane. but i just leave mine so my horses' mane doesnt look ratty.

good luck!

Answer 7

http://www.wikihow.com/Pull-a-Horse's-Ma...  

Scroll down a bit and it gives you a step-by-step.

Answer 8

saddlery shops sell a pair of scissors that actually cut the mane but make it looked like its been pulled i use them all the time on my horses they are also great for thinning just go in and ask the shop assistent abou them there a god send

Answer 9

I'm going to try and put this nicely. But the issue isn't the mane, sounds like you just need a few more hours on the back of the horse to learn how he moves. Have a trainer or friend stand near by and while you are cantering have them tell you if you are on the correct lead or not. Most horses have a lead that they move more comfortably at, it could be his right or his left, but once you learn the horse you're riding it will be easy to tell if he's moving correctly or not.

EDIT- Hun I've been riding since I was 4. I'm now in my Mid 50's. I train and compete reining and reined cowhorse. Since you aren't open to advice from someone older with more experience, then that's your deal. But a good rider would know what lead they are on without having to look at the shoulder.