How to Buy a Horse Shampoo

Long gone are days when horse shampoos had one purpose--to get your horse clean. Now horse shampoos offer many of the same health and cosmetic benefits as human shampoos. Not only do they remove grime, but depending on the ingredients, they can enhance coat color, treat skin problems and ease sore muscles and ligaments. The following information will help you choose the perfect shampoo for your horse.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Evaluate your horse's skin and coat closely. Look for any skin or coat problems you want the shampoo to treat, such as dandruff, fungus or hives. Also make note of any cosmetic, rather than therapeutic, effects you would like your shampoo to have, like a coat lightener or darkener.
2. Contact different manufacturers of equine shampoos and ask if they will send you samples. This is a great way to try several different products and to see if they suit your horse at little to no cost; many companies will send you a free sample along with coupons and product info.
3. Select a tack store, website or catalog to purchase your horse's shampoo from. Buying from a tack store has many advantages over a website or catalog when you are trying a new product. At a store you can speak with an experienced salesperson; they can give you firsthand information about a product and help you select a shampoo. You can also check labels and smell the different shampoos. Once you have found a product you like and are comfortable using it regularly on your horse, you can always search online and through catalogs to find a better deal.
4. Read all the ingredients and check the product label carefully. Many horses have sensitive skin, and alcohol and other artificial ingredients can dry out or irritate your horse's skin. There are many all-natural, herbal products available; aloe-based products are a particularly good choice for thin-skinned horses.
5. Ask about the company's return policy. If your horse has a bad reaction to the shampoo or it doesn't work as well as you would like, you don't want to get saddled with a shampoo you can't use.
6. Test the shampoo first on a small patch of coat if you're worried about your horse's reaction to a new product.

Tips & Warnings

• No matter how strong or efficient your shampoo is, additional scrubbing may be necessary to remove stubborn stains on light-colored horses or white parts of your horse's body. Try using a textured mitt, a currycomb or your fingers on extremely dirty areas.
• Persistently dry and flaky skin can be a sign that you're giving your horse too many baths, or that you're not rinsing him thoroughly enough and shampoo is drying in his coat. His skin and coat should naturally replenish oils if you stop bathing him for a week or 2.