[Circle C]

Originally Posted by Heavenly Jumper

MTG is meant to be used at the roots to encourage growth? Not put through the whole mane...

I put it on all the tail and mane at least once a week. It's god stuff.

[Equine747]

Coconut oil

[MissCriss]

I also agree....coconut oil !

And you can leave in mild conditioners into the tail too.

Most importantly, get a good, correct diet! Things with the right amino acids, and of course the right vitamins, minerals, and fibers. Roughage is most important. Grain is pretty much unnecessary. Ration balancers are good for your vitamins/minerals, and rice bran, black oil sunflower seeds, and flax seed are excellent sources to go to to add omega 6's and 3's to your horse's diet, which will aid in beautiful, shiny, soft coats. I personally love flax seed. I don't feed black oil sunflower seeds unless I have a hard keeper, since, I THINK, the fat content is higher.

[Cara]

diet is first, make sure he's getting proper nutrients...

my last horse had a fine diet, but his tail was always sort of dry and wiery. I'm a huge cowboy magic fan, loved it and helped with the wiery-ness and the dryness.

tried mtg, honestly don't remember if it made much of a difference, it was a couple years ago, lol.

[countryacres]

Flax seed is good.

[shyxpony]

Originally Posted by Cara

I'm a huge cowboy magic fan, loved it and helped with the wiery-ness and the dryness.

Cowboy Magic has silicone in it, so it is very drying, actually. It just creates a fake sheen and softness, for horse shows and such, but is not good when used on a regular basis.

[Gypsy Rose]

Originally Posted by countryacres

Flax seed is good.

Yep! I agree. It's great for skin, coat, mane, tail, AND hooves!

Full of Omega 3 fatty acids.

[2spotslast]

Has anyone mentioned coconut oil? Sorry. I just had to do it.

[Cara]

Originally Posted by shyxpony

Cowboy Magic has silicone in it, so it is very drying, actually. It just creates a fake sheen and softness, for horse shows and such, but is not good when used on a regular basis.

I'm aware of the whole silicone thing... This is just a personal preference thing. Like I hate show sheen... but love cowboy magic. They both have silicone, I've used them very long term on certain horses, their hair may have a fake sheen, but they don't mind, I don't mind, and they look and feel great.

I however did not use silicone based products on my appy for that reason. But again, it's really just personal preference, but it's good to be educated to make an educated choice on what products you use.

[MissCriss]

Originally Posted by Circle C

I put it on all the tail and mane at least once a week. It's god stuff.

I agree. I haven't used it, but my GUESS would be that since it is used for stimulating growth, the same things in it that stimulate growth are also good conditioners on the rest of the hair. I believe on the bottle it says to put on the horse's roots and apply throughout the hair to keep it strong.

I also agree that I would never use silicone products accept for shows, just to be safe and make sure I was not changing the hair chemically or providing long term damage. Just my choice though. It is ONLY my OPINION that things with silicone provide a fake sense of the horse's tail being healthy. Although I agree that silicone isn't a DIRE thing, I feel that using products WITHOUT silicone are BETTER, and not necessarily "bad". And, I always feel the quality of the product is relflexed in the quality of th hair. Plus, some products contain silicone, but also contain products that are very good for the hair, so it kind of balances it out, although I would rather have something that was very good without silicone. I do agree though, Magic Cowboy is an AMAZING product. It's a great detangler and shiner, although I feel it gives an oily feel more than a soft one. I always use it when I show.