30/07/2025
🐴 Horse Coat-Shedding Season: It’s Not Just Itchy – It’s Stressful Too!
As spring approaches and daylight hours lengthen, your horse begins shedding its dense winter coat — but did you know this transition involves real physiological stress, not just a bit of itching?
Here’s why the winter-to-summer molt matters:
---
🧬 What’s Driving the Shedding?
It’s not temperature, but increasing daylight that triggers changes in the brain — specifically, reduced melatonin and increased prolactin via the pineal and pituitary glands — initiating the shedding process .
The hair cycles through stages (anagen→catagen→telogen→exogen) before old hairs drop and summer hair regrows .
---
⚠️ Why It’s Stressful for Horses
Shedding is an energy-intensive physiological event: replacing a full coat requires metabolic energy and places demands on the immune system and skin health — particularly in older or susceptible horses .
Many horses may appear lethargic, develop flaky skin, or rub excessively as they become itchy during the molt phase — signs of a taxing transition .
Conditions like PPID (Equine Cushing’s Disease) can disrupt the normal shedding cycle, leading to delayed shedding or patchy coat—but also signaling elevated cortisol, the stress hormone, which itself burdens the body .
---
🌀 How Shedding Affects the Body
To shed that thick winter coat, the horse must release sebum (the oily layer around hair follicles), which loosens old hairs and facilitates their release .
If neglected, clogged pores or poor grooming can contribute to irritation and slow the shedding — increasing discomfort and physiologic strain .
---
✅ Tips to Support Your Horse Through the Shedding Transition
Groom daily using rubber curry combs, shedding blades, or massage brushes to remove loose hair, increase circulation, and ease itchiness .
Provide balanced nutrition, including zinc, biotin, omega‑3 fatty acids, and amino acids, to support skin and coat renewal .
Avoid additional stress—minimize major changes like stall moves or feed regime shifts during this period; the coat change already taxes their system .
For senior horses or those with suspected PPID, consult your vet proactively, as early treatment can ease both skin issues and systemic stress .
---
📘 In Summary
Shedding the winter coat is more than a cosmetic challenge — it’s a stressful, energy-demanding process that impacts a horse’s metabolism, skin, immune system, and overall comfort. Daily grooming, proper nutrition, and sensitive handling are essential to support them through this seasonal transition.
🐴 Shedding Season = Stress Season. Let's Talk About It.
As the seasons shift and the days grow longer, your horse begins the intense physiological task of shedding its winter coat. While we often focus on the fluff and the itch, what’s happening under the surface is far more complex — and bodywork can play a vital role in supporting your horse through this time.
---
🌱 Shedding Is More Than Hair Loss – It’s a Full-Body Stress Response
The shift in daylight triggers hormonal changes — particularly a drop in melatonin and a rise in prolactin — which kickstarts the shedding process.
Shedding requires metabolic energy, draws on nutrient reserves, and challenges the immune and integumentary (skin) systems.
Many horses experience increased itchiness, restlessness, or lethargy, and may even develop minor skin irritations or dullness if not well supported.
---
🔧 So Where Does Bodywork Fit In?
Equine bodywork during coat-shedding season offers several key benefits:
✅ Stimulates Circulation
Gentle soft tissue work increases blood flow to the skin, helping move lymphatic fluid and carry away cellular waste, which supports hair release and promotes healthy skin turnover.
✅ Relieves Muscular Tension from Itch-Induced Movement
Horses often shift, roll, scratch, and contort themselves in an effort to relieve the itchy, crawling sensation of shedding. This can cause secondary tension or compensation patterns — bodywork can identify and release these issues early.
✅ Aids Nervous System Regulation
Shedding adds another layer of physiological stress, especially in horses already managing workload, feed changes, or travel. Bodywork promotes parasympathetic nervous system activity, helping the horse rest, digest, and repair.
✅ Supports Skin and Hair Follicle Health
Myofascial release and targeted massage improve tissue hydration and sebum flow, which can support the shedding of dead hair and unclogging of follicles.
✅ Provides Relief in Hard-to-Groom Areas
Some areas — like the base of the neck, girth line, or hindquarters — can become itchy or irritated but are harder for horses to groom themselves. Skilled hands can safely address these tension zones without causing skin trauma.
---
💡 Bodywork Isn’t Just for Performance Horses
It’s a support tool for every horse — young, old, retired, paddocked, or show-ready. If your horse is grumpy, restless, rubbing excessively, or just not quite themselves during this shedding period, it could be time to book a session.
---
Let’s support our horses from the inside out this season.
Helping them release that winter coat isn’t just about looks — it’s about comfort, well-being, and whole-body health.
📅 Book your bodywork session today and help your horse feel their best as they step into spring.
🌿 [Elite Equine Bodywork]
