Banding your horse’s mane is often a problem. Nonetheless you don’t must resign your self to a messily banded mane or having to pay one different explicit particular person to do the job. Jess Duffy, assistant coach at Aaron Moses Present Horses in Pilot Stage, Texas, shares tricks to make your horse’s banded mane look neat and uniform. With some adjust to, chances are high you may make your horse’s mane look professionally banded—and presumably even current your suppliers to completely completely different riders for further money.
Why Band a Mane?
Most horses displaying in western judged occasions step into the pen with an expertly banded mane. Just a few reiners correct now are sporting bands with their extended manes. Duffy says this helps the mane keep put and flatters the horse’s neck.
“A wonderful banding job presents a completed look, considerably whenever you’ve received white bands they usually’re all in a delightful line,” says Duffy. “It merely presents an edge over your rivals.”
Duffy says halter horses are usually banded with rubber bands that match the mane. As of late, white bands are king contained in the completely completely different occasions.
Getting Began with Mane Banding
Before you begin, wash your horse’s mane and permit it to dry; no conditioner wanted. Your horse’s mane ought to ideally be about 4 to five inches extended. You’ll be trimming it to about 2 inches extended after you band, so don’t fear about making it the proper measurement merely nonetheless. Duffy doesn’t skinny the mane.
Then assemble your gadgets. Duffy makes use of Giant Band white bands, a small comb, baby oil gel, a extraordinarily sharp pair of scissors and a pair of pantyhose.
The Strategy of Mane Banding
Duffy begins on the underside of the neck on the withers, fairly than by the pinnacle. “Often if the horse is a bit delicate all through the ears, by the aim I stand up there they’re used to it,” she says.
Duffy discovered how one can band from her mother, Vicky Gough, who furthermore used pantyhose as a secret gadget. She ties the pantyhose all through the horse’s neck to assist hold as soon as extra the mane she’s not working with whereas she bands. “Pantyhose retains the hair out of the easiest way throughout which bigger than a hairclip would,” she explains.
Sectioning off about an inch-wide piece of mane collectively collectively along with her comb—guaranteeing the half is completely perpendicular to the underside, and every half is equal dimension on account of the one beforehand banded—she’ll dab a bit bit bit of child oil gel on the hair to guard her arms from the friction of the band.
She’s going to then start twisting the band spherical from the underside of the place she desires it to positioned on the hair to one of the best, ending closest to the mane after about 12 wraps. As she wraps, she retains her arms near the horse’s neck to drag the half down and avoid it sticking up.
“Even when the band isn’t terribly tight, it’s extra important to have them in a straight line whenever you’re carried out fairly than have all of them nice tight in opposition to the neck,” says Duffy. “As you’re working, step as soon as extra repeatedly and assure it’s even.”
For many who’re all carried out banding, return alongside alongside along with your scissors and trim the ends of the mane in order that they’re completely even. Ensure you face as soon as extra and test your progress, and reduce the hair beneath as accurately.
The Forelock
Don’t neglect the forelock! Duffy bands down the underside of the forelock.
Beginning on the prime of the ballot, make a part so the half is a sq. of hair. Band merely as you almost certainly did with the mane.
Transferring down the forelock at equal intervals, make a part to kind a bit and band it. When you’ve reached the tip of the place the hair grows from the pinnacle, make one remaining half and band it, pulling the as soon as extra devices of hair to carry the forelock all the easiest way proper all the way down to avoid it protruding.
Troubleshooting
For a multi-colored mane, Duffy would choose one shade to band the entire mane. In case your horse has a white mane, think about using black bands for distinction.
In case your horse has a thick mane, chances are high you may make every half barely smaller. Contained in the thinner a part of the mane, avoid making sections too intensive.
“You’re bigger off holding the width of your sections the equal,” says Duffy.
Preserving Your Work
Ideally, you’ll band your horse the day you’ll be displaying, leaving little time in your horse to mess it up. Duffy sprays a banded mane with hairspray, then covers it with a slinky hood to guard the bands. A wonderful banding job can remaining a day or so if the horse doesn’t rub.
This step-by-step data on mane banding appeared contained in the June 2020 situation of Horse Illustrated journal. Click on on on correct proper right here to subscribe!