This whitening shampoo looked very smart with the dark plastic covering over its bottle – apologies for the fact I ripped it in removing the top part of the plastic before I took the photo above!
Alfie was ready for a bath on the day I used this, as he had had a few weeks without a proper clean up. I used it to give him a wash on a hot morning after he’d done a sweaty jumping session.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
The bottle has a flip top which is easy to open with one hand and the shampoo squeezes out easily, but without being so runny it pours out too easily. The shampoo doesn’t have a strong smell and is virtually colourless.
The instructions say to wet the horse and then either apply a small amount directly to the coat or dilute it in lukewarm water and apply with a sponge. I chose to go for the latter but as the temperature was around 23ºC and our stable doesn’t have running hot water, I admit I used the water at the temperature it came out of the tap.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
I used a pressured hose gun to add the water after I’d squeezed a blob of the Cavalor Bianco Wash into a bucket and it bubbled up beautifully. You don’t need much shampoo to create a really good lather (I put too much in the bucket the first time, in the photo above), which means that although this shampoo is at the more expensive end of the market (£23.50 for 500ml), it doesn’t represent bad value for money as a bottle should last a long time.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
Having wetted Alfie, I used a LeMieux Hippo Scrubber (a sort of combined sponge and curry comb) to apply the diluted shampoo. The dirt was coming out of his coat in rivers!
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
I didn’t use the shampoo on Alfie’s face as we prefer to use baby shampoo near his eyes.
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I used the shampoo neat on his mane and again it lathered up really nicely and went on well. Had this been a show wash, I would have gone over the lower half of his legs again with a blob of neat shampoo, but I’m not sure they really needed it – they looked pretty clean after the diluted wash.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
Alfie became a little impatient with his beauty routine once I’d finished washing him – and when Alfie is impatient, he makes sure everyone knows about it. So I decided to pop his fly rug on and let him out in his field to finish drying, then catch him again for a final “after” photo once he was dry.
Unfortunately I forgot one of the fundamental truths of grey horses – that they will always roll straight after a bath – and he chucked himself in the dust as soon as I freed him, so there is no final dry “after” photo. Sorry, readers…
Verdict
I really liked this shampoo – diluting a shampoo is my preferred way of bathing a horse and that tied in with the instructions for this one. I loved how much lather was created from a small amount of shampoo and Alfie’s coat looked and felt clean afterwards. It’s not cheap, but you don’t need a great deal so a bottle should last a good while.
Who tested this shampoo?
Pippa Roome is Horse & Hound’s magazine editor and eventing editor. She has worked for the brand since 2003. Pippa shares a Connemara, Alfie, with her mother and takes part in grassroots eventing, while Alfie also does dressage with her mother. Alfie lives out full-time, with access to a stable which he can go in or not as he chooses.
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Pippa is a true eventing geek and has been H&H’s eventing editor since 2005. She has first-hand experience of competing up to British Eventing intermediate and international CCI2*-L level, and has worked in the industry on a top event yard. Pippa enjoys nothing more than immersing herself in the sport at the highest level, reporting from the five-stars and international championships, including the Olympics.
