# Making a white tail white again... help plz



## brookelovesparelli (Jan 21, 2009)

Hi well, I have a palomino and at the moment her tail is.. green hehe. I have a comp at the end of this month and was wondering whats the best way to get her tail back to being white for this comp? Thanks guys 

Parelli_7


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## Gidji (Dec 19, 2008)

Keep her rugged and put a tail bag on her first of all  Tail bags are life savers.

All I can really say is give her a good wash. Wet her tail thoroughly, and out some good quality shampoo and conditioner in there. I use Australian Dressage Tea Tree Oil Shampoo and Conditioner. Really rub it in and make sure you get everything. I've found that Tea Tree Oil based stuff helps stop itchy tails. You could also use a whitening shampoo like White-Glo. Its purple  And then afterwards, brush it out, get all of the knots and tangles out and put it in a tail bag.

And not one of those rugless tail bags. I hate them and they really don't do much in my opinion.


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## Dartanion (Dec 8, 2008)

I wash D's tail with reg shampoo and then I get a bucket and put some water and blech in it. Then stick his tail in the bucket and swerl(SP) his tail around and it comes out silky and white for horse shows . I haven't gotten the brittle effect some people worry about but every horse is different. I also only have to blech his tail maybe once a month and pretty much never in summer since he has no mud to lay in lol.


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## horseluver250 (Oct 28, 2009)

Shampoo with some Quic Silver, it works great. Leave it one for about 5 min (don't leave it on too long or you will end up with a bluish-purple tail).


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## ilovestitch (Dec 22, 2006)

I swear by this stuff, I have 2 paints and i love this stuff! Scrub it in really well and let it stand for 5 mins ( i usually do 7mins  but you have to be careful for letting time get too close to over 10 mins, its powerful stuff that will turn the hair purple) I would wear gloves if you use it right before a show, it tends to dry around my finger nails and finger nails a light shape of purple. 

Farnam White 'N Brite Shampoo


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## Pidge (Sep 5, 2009)

well...I use to groom horses at the ranch i was at an my boss had three palominos...I had to constantly be washing the green out of their tails...we actually used tresseme (sp?) people shampoo an conditioner... depending on how bad it was sometimes it took me three shampooings but their tails always came out bright white and super silky...and the shampoo will only make them itch if you dont wash it out good enough...past that never had an itch issue...

Ive also seen some good results with Quick Silver shampoo though...havent had the chance to try it myself though...


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## huntergirl84 (Aug 30, 2009)

I love Quik-Silver and friends of mine with grey horses swear by using Orvis and then quik-silver. For some last minute help at the show, try dusting your horse's tail with baby powder if there is still a tinge of green, particularly at the tips of the tail where it's hard to get all of the grunge out, baby powder can cover some of the staining.


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## gypsygirl (Oct 15, 2009)

i usually just wash my horses white tail 3 times. twice with regular shampoo & once with a whitening shampoo [like quick silver] it works really well & his tail glows =] i never keep it in a bag or anything


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## PaulAlboran (Jan 9, 2010)

Be carefull with whitening shampoos because they ALL have bleach in it and if you let it stand to much time it can "burn" the tail, the hair will become weaker and break.
In my opinion the best thing can be mixing water with shampoo (making the shampoo not be so dense) and adding, not to much, of bleach. 
Then scrub untill it becomes white. If it doesnt, put a little more bleach, but be carefull seriously. Now he has a white tail, wash him more times so he doesnt get a dirty tail again and dont have to use bleach anymore!


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## brookelovesparelli (Jan 21, 2009)

Ok great thanks everyone for your helpful tips


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## My Beau (Jan 2, 2009)

I'm assuming by 'green' you mean really really really brown/yellow. Try a bluing shampoo. Here's some info on them... you can't get rid of the yellow, but you can make it go away temporarily.




> It's inevitable if you have a light colored horse you've dealt with the problem of dingy, yellowed tails. Unfortunately, ALL white tails will yellow, it's their natural color. A Lipizzaner breeder once told me that once the hair is a certain length it's actually dead at the ends and will turn yellow no matter what you do.
> 
> The cells of a white tail are are "clear" and since hair over a few inches is actually dead, the dead cells when they show light through them have a yellowish tinge.
> 
> ...


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## Domino13011 (Aug 10, 2009)

Try whites knight blueing shampoo. I think thats what its called.

Or cowboys magic yellow out white in.


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## XivoShowjumper (Oct 16, 2009)

or the laudry liquid called BLUO-- put some of it in with ur shampoo and scrub............ then put some diluted in a bucket and soak- rinse thoroughly

heaps cheaper than horse tail whitener and works on colours too


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## My Beau (Jan 2, 2009)

Just don't leave any bluing products on too long or your horse will have a blue hue to her tail


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## paint gurl 23 (Jan 26, 2009)

dish soap? and lots of conditioner to replenish the tail...worth a try if its really bad


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## charlicata (Jan 12, 2010)

I know a guy who used Whisk laundry detergent on his horses white feet and socks, and the tail and mane. He always used conditioner afterwards though. He would braid the tail, wrap it in freezer tape, then pour a mixture of baby oil and White Rain conditioner into the wrap. She always had a beautiful tail.


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## Jessabel (Mar 19, 2009)

I heard that Wisk works really well. My trainer used to use it on her Paints before shows and she said it worked so well that the pink skin would show through. She said she never had a problem with it irritating their skin, either.

Edit: What charlicata said. =)


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## Nickers2002 (Nov 25, 2009)

I use a product called Orvus and it is great! Just be careful, a little goes a long way lol. If you use more than a glob you'll be rinsing for a while! But it really does work. Here's a pic of me and Nick at a show after using Orvus.



His tail's usually a nice shade of yellow lol.

Saranna


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## qtrhrsecrazy (Aug 2, 2009)

I've tried about everything to get the yellow out of my mares white tail, including laundry blueing.. except Orvis which I'll be trying this spring. I've also been told to make a 50/50 solution of vinegar and water, soak tail in it a few minutes, then wash.

We used Whisk when I was a kid for pali's.. thanks for the reminder I may try that before I try Orvis


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## OdinsOwn (Dec 30, 2009)

Not sure how well the orvus will do on a yellowing tail as neither or my horses has a light colored tail, but it sure does make their coats super shiny and soft. I do as other people had mentioned and follow the orvus with some quic silver on their whites and they are always glowing by the end of it


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