Horse Hair loss

Question

Tail   2 year old mare Appaloosa X shire has lost her tail hair from the follicle. She has been wormed deloused. She is not rubbing or scratching. looking withdrawn, weight loss, but happy to eat her hay and nibble the grass. Will not touch the hard feed. Still passing motion. Please can you HELP!

Answer
Hi Bev,

Thanks for your question...and I feel your pain.  Your vet may be a great resource here, but horses can develop a fungus in their manes and tails that causes the hair to fall out from the roots.  It usually occurs all at once, and isn't often accompanied by itching, flaking or any other signs of pending tail depopulation!!  You then have to get rid of the fungus to get the hair to start growing back, as the fungus doesn't seem to go away as quickly as it appeared.  Again, your vet can provide a fungicide to help or Sharpley's MTG (available OTC) works quite well.  I had the same issue...walked into the barn one day and my stallion was minus an entire mane!

I hope that helps.

Thanks, Corlena