# Shall I hog my gypsy cob and take off his feather?



## [59668] (26 March 2011)

Hi

I have a gypsy cob, and while I love his hairy look, he just looks a total mess after the winter.  His feather is yellow, and his mane is just all different lengths and is yellow too.  He's had trouble with feather mites a few times over the winter too.

I'm tempted to clip it all off and start again.  I'm also pretty sure he would look awesome as a show cob.

his mane does get in the way when I'm riding too, and I can never get him to look neat!

Anyone have any pics of their cobs before and after clipping out to help me decide?


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## kateknights (26 March 2011)

Nooop keep him hairy! I have a gypsy cob he is black and I love  his hairy fluffy bits. On a serious note why not post a piccy of him and we can let you know 
Kate x


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## [59668] (26 March 2011)

Oh good idea!

here he is:













But he looks a lot messier at the moment!


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## Sanolly (26 March 2011)

Having seen him I actually don't know. One one hand he hasn't got "full" feathers so I would take them off, on the other however he doesn't seem to have that much bone?


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## kateknights (26 March 2011)

What a stunning boy! I personally wouldn't hog etc! But then again it could well suit him, as harry hill says theres only one way to find out, tee hee. And look at it this way it will always grow back. Let us know what you decide
Kate x


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## Shysmum (26 March 2011)

He's gorgeous 

I would get some whitening shampoo, give it a few lathers, and see how he comes out at the end of it.....but I have to admit I like em hairy 

Pig oil and sulphur prevents the yellowing and gets things growing really fast too (after the shampoo). 

sm x


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## beeswax (26 March 2011)

2nd pic bit looks too high in his mouth, looks uncomfortable.


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## [59668] (26 March 2011)

I really don't know what to do. I think I might go for it.   Like you say it'll grow back, and it'll be more confortable for him for the summer I guess....

And cos you're all so nice about my lovely boy, here are some more pics...


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## Depp_by_Chocolate (26 March 2011)

He would suit being hogged and featherless and he would be easier to maintain.  Keeping all that hair in good condition, especially over winter, can be hard work!  If you didn't like it though it will take quite a while for it all to grow back.


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## narkymare (26 March 2011)

i hogged my gypsy cob last year when his field mate took a very unhelthy liking ot his beautiful long mane and chewed most of it off.
I loved it - he looked georgeous and he was so much easier to cool down and keep clean


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## City Mare (26 March 2011)

He's gorgeous.  I heart hairy ones!


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## seeingdouble (26 March 2011)

It will always grown back if you decide you hate it  

Slightly different but one of my D's was once hogged, mainly as former owner wanted to and she looked well, very butch but it grew back, sadly it now falls on the 'wrong side' of her neck but its not the end of the world.

I have known a few others try it and love it so much they have kept them hogged full time.


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## PoppyAnderson (26 March 2011)

He is super gorgeous. The last pic of him lying down is just too cute! I like a mane to grip on to but if you don't need that, then hog him I'd say.


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## Spins (26 March 2011)

hog hog hog! he'd look very smart


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## Queenbee (26 March 2011)

photo's of my old GC neked:






















I am a low maintainence person, up till we had annie I hated hogged horse, now I love them.


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## only_me (26 March 2011)

Hog! He would look much smarter


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## Sparkles (26 March 2011)

Clip him all out


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## tasteofchristmaschaos (26 March 2011)

If I were you I would keep it - his mane would look beautiful about a foot longer - it wil get there!
If you take it off and dont like it, it will take AGES to grow back. My Shire had his feathers clipped off before I got him, and it took about 2 years to grow them back to their full glory!


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## jhoward (26 March 2011)

QB,.... i just relised who you were! what ever happened to the coloured you had??


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## Sparkles (26 March 2011)

Our various cobs:

Dukey. When we got him he was like the before....not much hair really and also suffered from mites and itchys quite badly. So we clipped him to this:






Didn't like it much as a show cob though so he's now all grown out and 'au natural'. Though from how little feather and hair he had before, he is utterly ridiculous now. I've never seen so much hair on him ever!! Obviously turning him out with gypsy coblets has 'changed him' haha!!!
Dukey about 7 months grown out:





He even has facial hair!






Bless him. For my personal preference, I prefer the clipped look on him...so much easier lol.


Hairy however, I'd never clip out and would murder anyone who did!!!


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## Queenbee (26 March 2011)

jhoward said:



			QB,.... i just relised who you were! what ever happened to the coloured you had??
		
Click to expand...

which... This one?








Couldn't bear to part with him, he is doing very well, he was measured last month at 21 months at 15hh his bum has since reached for the skies... AGAIN!  At the moment he is being a big baby but hoping to do a little bit of longreining in a month or so, and he has stopped biting, which is great because I wasn't born to be a horse chew!  I found his sire for sale (google marengo jack) he is up for £6.5k just broken!  So I am even more happy with my little skewbald xmas pressie.  OH did one thing right.

The cob (don't own her now) was also coloured, she is actually piebald pigmentation but comes out grey / blue & white, but she was ever changing and I haven't seen her for a while.


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## Queenbee (26 March 2011)

OP sorry, I seem to have hijacked your post LOL!

Shall we set the timer to see how long it takes before TFC bumps us to picture gallery?!


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## indiat (26 March 2011)

I think he's gorgeous and I wouldn't clip him out, sorry!


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## Fairynuff (26 March 2011)

will be gone by tomorrow, someone is bound to wake him up to grass on you both...hehehe!
Anyway, back to op. Yep get it all off, there is a gorgeous cob waiting to be discovered underneath the fluff


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## QUICKFIRE (26 March 2011)

I vote hog and clip to within an inch of his life, and a good 4 to 6 inches off his tail, he will look a compleatly different horse, and he is a lovely looking boy. after pics please.


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## Queenbee (26 March 2011)

Fairynuff said:



			will be gone by tomorrow, someone is bound to wake him up to grass on you both...hehehe!
Anyway, back to op. Yep get it all off, there is a gorgeous cob waiting to be discovered underneath the fluff 

Click to expand...

Ha Ha!  *trundles off to the naughty corner clutching a glass of wine*

what can I say... I am a rebel!

OP do it, do it, DO IT!  Then you can post before and after pics (all under the radar and covert like) in NL! 

'hic'


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## Skippys Mum (26 March 2011)

I was in the same boat as you so at the start of winter (when I knew he didnt have much of a social life planned) I bit the bullet and hogged my cob.  He looked fab and it was really easy to keep him tidy but he didnt really look like my Arnie so I left it to grow back.  That was at the end of October and his mane has just finally started flopping over again.

I'm glad I did it - now I'm going for the totally untouched look to see if I like that.  My favourite is trimmed and pulled but he hates it so I am trying other options


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## piebaldsparkle (26 March 2011)

I love them hogged, but my mare now has a mane (legs kept clipped) as it was a pain in the summer as her neck burnt when she was hogged unless I was really, really careful. 

Hairy (ish) mane still growing back







Hairless


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## JoBird (26 March 2011)

right I really did think long and hard on this one cos he is a bit "in betweeny" but at the end of the day I have voted HOG.  Plus feathers off and definitely shorten his tail with a banged flat end.  He will suddenly have "presence" and people will make remarks on how smart he looks.  You can do some showing too .....  I used to have a show cob (shown at County Level) and in the spring he had his hair all off and suddenly it was like having a totally NEW horse.
Do buy a flyfringe (they do ones that just go round ears and throat so you dont need a headcollar) as he wont have a forelock. 
We want to see the before and after shots please!!


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## muffinino (26 March 2011)

Another vote for HOG!

I have a trad piebald and it has been hard work keeping his feathers, mane and tail looking ok over winter, especially when you go hunting and have to plait a mane and tail covered in pig oil&sulpher! That's the only way forward, really, for keeping them looking smart in the mud - it looks disgusting but by jove, it works!

Having said that, I think yours would look smashing hogged and clipped out, tail banged and all. He'll look a different horse but I think it will suit him. Pics of the aftermath. please


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## underdog (26 March 2011)

That's a toughie - he is lovely in your pics, but it is definitely easier to keep white gypsie cob types looking smart with no mane to keep clean and tidy all the time!

But then if he gets mites in his feather and rubbed mane after winter rugs maybe give it a try (although he has such a lovely mane...!)
Maybe lose the feather and just straighten the mane up a bit?!

I have a very lightweight cob and didn't think he'd suit being hogged, but he rubs his mane off to half way up his neck so i tried it anyways and he looks pretty cool as a wannabe cob! 

I still can't bring myself to take his fringe off too tho lol so i get frowned at by proper hogging people lol


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## ester (26 March 2011)

I'm a hog and clip him vote.


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