Coat, Mane, and Dandruff Advice

Man I'd love if his coat could get that healthy looking! I'm going to try the grain/ oil idea first for a while, then try the supplement if needed. Hopefully that will work.

Okay, good lick! :)

LUCK! Not lick hahahahaha, that'd be awkward

Adding fat to their diet (oil, cool calories, rice bran) can real help the mane and coat. I have a hard keeper and this is an extra bonus.

I personally use a coat conditioner like Healthy Hair Care, it's pretty inexpensive for how long it does last. I use it all over their bodies EVERY TIME I groom. It brightens their coats and keeps them soft. As for their manes and tails I never brush them out except after a good bath and use ShowSheen most every time I groom.

As for bathing, I worked at a big show barn for years and they always told me that you can bathe everyday IF you put back what you take out. Bathing takes out a lot of the natural oils and stuff in their skin and coat and so if you use a good coat conditioner all is somewhat balanced. All the horses at the barn were bathed a lot but they all looked good and healthy. Me, personally, I only bathe a few times a summer

Thank you all for the advice! I managed to get a hold of a few photos, hopefully I uploaded them correctly. The first few were when I first got him, and looking back, I think I forgot how bad he looked. He's definitely gotten over being sun bleached, and whatever else that was going on with his coat. I think he's developed a nice muscle tone as well, though we still have a little ways to go. A nice improvement, I must say.

When I am trying to grow a mane and tail and add general condition to a horses coat, I feed seaweed meal. I got dry kelp meal on Ebay for half the price of Source and it is the same stuff. I feed about a tablespoon once a day and I have had great luck with it every time I have needed it. It is fantastic for hooves, too.

The oil is also a great idea because it sounds like he has dry skin. The TB I just got has that same dander in his mane. I have a bottle of hair oil that someone gave me, but I don't like the smell of. LOL I have been massaging that into the base of his mane when I groom him and that seems to be making a difference. I did wash his mane out really well one good time, I used a mild moisturizing body wash and mixed baking soda in since that will help take care of any possible infections or fungus that might be contributing to it. Just make sure you rinse it out really well.

I rubbed a good amount of baby oil into his mane about a week ago. I didn't really notice much of a difference. I was thinking of using head and shoulders next time, though I may add the baking soda also as a precaution. Poor baby is seriously dry, though. Even with vigorous brushing everyday he has little flakes everywhere.
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As his hair is already damaged, you want to keep the shampooing to a minimum. Good nutrition is the biggest help but also, vacuuming the area to remove dead skin ie. Dandruff. A mix of 50% Baby oil and 50% regular listerine applied weekly and rubbed into the base of the mane will help too. Try to not to brush it too much, give it a chance to grow without pulling it out. If it gets too gunky, then you can wash but use a horse shampoo, and go easy on the rubbing. Rather gently scrunch the mane with the soappy water to wash and gently rinse. Use a good mane and tail conditioner after washing.