# Dry flaky skin, resulting in dandruff all over horse



## SpiritedLittleCopperSpots

Is it warm enough there that you can body clip, and/or bath him?
If you can I would suggest that for your more immediate "remedy".

Seems like with minis' thick, long winter coats, some just tend to have more skin issues. No matter how much you brush during winter, you just can't keep them clean enough. Irritants just seem to hang out down underneath all that fuzz...:?


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## Prayingcowgirl

I can't clip or bath him, It's not warm here yet. Maybe if we get a warm day i can. Thanks so much. 
I will bath him before i try anything else, but Quick Question. 
Have you ever tried olive oil in grain for this problem??? 
I've heard some use it, but i don't want to try something new without knowing a more about it. I will try the bath first, thanks. I won't be able to clip him until may. Thanks SO much


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## SpiritedLittleCopperSpots

Well you are in the same boat as me then weather wise. I won't be able to clip or bathe for another month or two here either. We have not even made it out of the 40's yet. :-(

I have heard of people using supplements in feed, and Vegetable Oil, to help skin and coat condition, but I have no experience with that side of it at all, sorry!
Maybe some one else on here will chime in with some good advise about that....


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## Prayingcowgirl

Thanks so much. Not to be a pain, but I've been recommended Head and shoulders for him.. Is that Okay??? 
So sorry to bother you, 
Thanks,


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## jyuukai

I agree that you can rarely keep a mini clean all winter. We used to curry the heck out of our mare and then.. vacuum her! With a shop vac! She loooooved it and it got alot of the dirt and dandruff off her skin.


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## Prayingcowgirl

That's awesome


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## SpiritedLittleCopperSpots

jyuukai, the shop vac is a great idea, never thought of that! :thumbsup:
You'd be able to get quite a bit of that deep down dirt out of their coat.

Prayingcowgirl, has the person who recommended the Head and Shoulders ever used it on a horse?
I have never used it, I would be *very* careful about getting it in their eyes and around the mucus membranes if you do try it.
I used Farnam Vetrolin® Bath Ultra-Hydrating Conditioning Horse Shampoo, very happy with it. 


Rich, thick lather washes away dirt and dandruff
Protects skin and coat with protein-enriched conditioners, vitamin E and PABA sunscreen
Rinses out quickly and easily
Leaves coat shiny and manageable


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## Prayingcowgirl

Yes, the person did use it on her horse. I'll look in to both. Thanks, so so much.


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## jyuukai

Vetrolin is great stuff, and so is their shine spray. It's a conditioner and not just a shine-maker. Still, our mini had such thick hair in the winter that we couldnt get all the way down to her skin most days! lol she's such a piggy. 
And I have to give credit where credit is due. I got the shop-vac idea off of a miniature horse forum that I frequent


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## SpiritedLittleCopperSpots

Hey jyuukai, do you know off hand if Vetrolin's shine spray has silicone in it?
I have had to quit using ShoSheen, as much as I loved it, because of the silicone. Some of my horses have issues with it....


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## Midnight Angel

I dont know about the shine spay but I do use the shampoo - conditioner and the detangler. My horses are black and I get the dandruff looking issues as well - Vetrolin is the best I have come across yet for keeping it clear !


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## jyuukai

SpiritedLittleCopperSpots said:


> Hey jyuukai, do you know off hand if Vetrolin's shine spray has silicone in it?
> I have had to quit using ShoSheen, as much as I loved it, because of the silicone. Some of my horses have issues with it....


Equine Solutions: Vetrolin Shine by Farnam 
This website says there is none in it, and I would agree. I don't get that slick handed feeling after applying it, and it always partly wears off in a day or two. It leaves my horses coat super clean and soft though! It has a ton of coat conditioners in it, and it has a sunscreen too to keep their coat from fading as much 
It's my favorite of all the shine products so far! And it smells like heaven!


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## SpiritedLittleCopperSpots

Thanks Midnight Angel and jyuukai! 
I have a couple black horses as well, one of which is my "dandruff" king...
I have only tried the shampoo, as I all ready commented, and was really pleased with it.
So I think I am going to have to pick up some of the conditioner as well now.


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## jyuukai

Haha my mare is kinda black  She was born black, then she turned bay, and now she's black with very very heavy roaning. She gets the dandruff too and yeah it's a huge pain. I love how the shine spray is working for her though. The next time I get shampoo I plan to get the vetrolin stuff, as well!


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## SpiritedLittleCopperSpots

Hmmm, just did some googling and found this....

*Vetrolin® Shine* 
_Ready-To-Use Spray Puts A Brilliant Shine On Coats, Manes and Tails_


Contains salon-quality silicone, conditioners, Vitamin B5, and PABA sunscreen
Protects coat from stains, dust and weather
Detangles manes and tails
Won't make hair brittle and minimizes breakage
Available in 32 oz. with sprayer and 64 oz. sizes
Guess I'll have to skip that one, bummer!
Thought I'd post it though in case any one else has to stay away from silicone. :wink:


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## jyuukai

Oh man, I'm a little bummed now. I'm glad you googled it before you got it. My quick google search apparently didn't work.
Maybe try googling Cowboy Magic Shine and see if that has silicon? I know people who use that religiously and it's quite nice.


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## SpiritedLittleCopperSpots

Thanks, I looked into that one before as well.
It has Cyclomethicone and Dimethicone, which are both silicone derivatives...

That seems to be my biggest problem with finding a *really good* Detangler, they all use silicone because it obviously works really well. :?
I have resorted to making my own detangle spray by just mixing 1 part water to 5 parts conditioner. Works good actually, but not nearly as well as those other products.
I know some people recommend baby oil, but you have to wash it out, so you really can only try that when it is warm enough to bath your horse.


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## SpiritedLittleCopperSpots

My apologies for kind of "hi jacking" your thread Prayingcowgirl ....

But actually, I think a lot of the dandruff issues are caused by use of silicone based products, so it still applies to the original topic in a round about way?:wink:


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## Nina

Hi my horse had this and it drived me crazy, people were telling me to buy products some of which were over £30 pounds, in the end I bought some veggie oil from the supermarket and in a week or two the dandruff started to come off the skin, when most of it had loosened from his skin I gave him a bath and it has never come back...safe to say i give him a good glob in one of his meals per day, but a big bottle is only 2 to 3 pounds so it deffinatly is money friendly


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## Prayingcowgirl

Actually, it's great to know about the silicone!! 
I'm really happy that so many people posted!! Thanks to all.


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## SpiritedLittleCopperSpots

Welcome. Hope you found something to help you out!
Let us know what ends up working for you. :wink:


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