Keep reading while we look at ingredients, cost, volume, and more to help you make an educated decision.
A Quick Comparison of Our Favorites
| Image | Product | Details | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Best Overall
 |
 |
DermaBenSs Horse Shampoo |
|
Check Price |
Best Value
 |
|
Mane ‘n Tail Pet Shampoo |
|
Check Price |
Premium Choice
 |
 |
TrizCHLOR 4 Shampoo |
|
Check Price |
 |
Farnam Vetrolin White N' Brite |
|
Check Price | |
 |
Fiebing’s Blue Frost Whitening Horse Shampoo |
|
Check Price |
The 10 Best Horse Shampoos – Reviews 2023
1. DermaBenSs Horse Shampoo – Best Overall
DermaBenSs Horse Shampoo is our pick as the best overall horse shampoo. It comes in a 12-ounce bottle and uses a safe formula for cats, dogs, and horses, so you can use it on your pets if you have some leftover. We found that it worked very well at getting rid of mud and odor, and it does not leave a sulfur odor behind like many other horse shampoos. It contains ceramides that will help moisturize and restore dead skin and comedolytic, which helps clear hair follicles.
We enjoyed using DermaBenSs and have very few complaints after using it several times. The only problem we had was that it could be difficult to rinse off and occasionally leaves behind a film.
2. Mane ‘n Tail Pet Shampoo – Best Value
Mane’ n Tail Pet Shampoo is our pick as the best horse shampoo for the money. This brand comes in a 32-ounce bottle and features gentle ingredients. It’s non-toxic and safe to use on horses, cats, dogs, and even human hair. It creates a rich lather that you can work into the fur to remove dirt better. It’s pH-balanced so it won’t dry out the skin, and it doesn’t leave behind a bad odor.
The only problem we had with Mane’ n Tail was that even though the bottle is fairly large, we ended up using it pretty quickly. It took a little more than other brands to create the thick lather.
3. TrizCHLOR 4 ShampooTrizCHLOR 4 Shampoo – Premium Choice
TrizCHLOR 4 Shampoo is our premium choice shampoo because it works well and contains medicine to help soothe damaged and irritated skin. The water-based formula will not leave a residue behind, nor will it irritate cuts and scrapes. It’s antimicrobial so it can help reduce the risk of infections and is especially helpful for clearing up Staphylococcal infections. Like the other shampoos we’ve looked at already, his brand is safe for dogs and cats, but you need to make sure you don’t get it in the eyes.
You can tell as soon as you apply it that TrizCHLOR 4 is a fantastic shampoo, especially if it has skin problems, but the tiny 8-ounce bottle will not get you too far. It also produces a strong odor that some users might not like.
4. Farnam Vetrolin White N’ Brite Horse Shampoo
Farnam Vetrolin White N’ Brite Horse Shampoo comes in a large 32-ounce bottle and features a unique concentrated formula that will allow you to wash up to 16 horses before requiring a refill. It cleans the fur, especially the mane and tail, and brings out the natural highlights in darker-colored horses. The deep cleaning formula penetrates the hair so it can moisturize the skin.
We liked the way Farnam Vetrolin cleaned our horses, but it doesn’t produce much lather, and we felt that it wasn’t as concentrated as they claim, and we weren’t able to reach 16 horses per bottle.
5. Fiebing’s Blue Frost Whitening Horse Shampoo
Fiebing’s Blue Frost Whitening Horse Shampoo, as the name suggests, features a formula that safely brightens the color of your white horse. The brightening agents help remove urine and grass stains and help remove the build-up of detanglers, insect repellents, and other air pollutants that might be in your horse’s fur, preventing It from reaching its brightest color. The formula is highly concentrated, and the 16-ounce bottle will go a long way. It contains aloe, so it will help moisturize the skin as it cleans.
We didn’t like the strong odor that Fiebing’s Blue Frost created, and it’s primarily suited for white horses, and while it is safe to use on other colors, you don’t get the whitening properties is partly the reason for the higher cost.
6. EQyss Grooming Products Natural Botanical Horse Shampoo
EQyss Grooming Products Natural Botanical Horse Shampoo has a fresh smelling tropical scent that is a nice departure from many other brands. It’s also available in multiple sizes, so you can get enough for one horse or an entire stable. The formula intensifies coat color so your horse will look better than ever, and it’s pH-balanced so it won’t irritate or dry out the skin. It creates a thick lather that you can work into the fur, and it rinses away clean without leaving any residue behind.
We really liked using EQyss, and our only problem with it was that it’s not as concentrated as some of the other brands and takes quite a bit of product to create a good lather. We found ourselves purchasing additional bottles frequently.
7. Strawfield Pets Chlorhexidine Medicated Horse Shampoo
Strawfield Pets Chlorhexidine Medicated Horse Shampoo is a great choice if you have a horse suffering from itchy and irritated skin. This formula contains medication that will soothe the skin while moisturizing it. It can help relieve yeast infections, dermatitis, acne, and more, helping your horse feel better while looking cleaner. It’s also pain-free and won’t sting scratches or cuts. It’s made in the USA and is also safe for dogs and cats.
Strawfield Pets Chlorhexidine Medicated Horse Shampoo is a strong contender if your horse is suffering from a skin disorder, but we found this brand is a pain to use for regular maintenance. It’s very thick and hard to apply to your horse and work into a lather, which often uses more than you need. Once you get it lathered up, it’s too thick to rinse off cleanly, and it took us several attempts each time we used it. If your horse is anxious to get on with it, it can be challenging to get the horse completely rinsed.
8. Vetericyn FoamCare Medicated Horse Shampoo
Vetericyn FoamCare Medicated Horse Shampoo is a unique brand that comes with an easy-to-use spray applicator that takes all of the work out of creating a lather. It comes out as foam, so you can instantly work it into the fur to remove dirt and soothe the skin. It’s medicated to provide relief from fungal disorders, like ringworm, yeast, and rain rot. It comes in a 32-ounce container and is also safe to use on dogs and cats.
What we didn’t like about Vetericyn is that since it comes out of the can as a foam, you can use it up very quickly, and we used an entire can before we learned how to manage it better, but it still goes rather quickly and can get expensive if you need to wash several horses. We also didn’t feel our horse was much cleaner after using it and were more impressed with other brands.
9. E3 Elite Antibacterial/Antifungal Shampoo
E3 Elite Antibacterial/Antifungal Shampoo, as the name suggests, contains ingredients that can help destroy the mold as well as bacteria living on the skin of your horses. Bacteria and mold can cause inflamed, itchy, and painful skin, and this shampoo also contains vitamins that can soothe the skin to provide your horse relief. It comes in a 32-ounce bottle that is enough to wash several horses.
The biggest problem we had with E3 Elite is that it contains triclosan, which some studies have shown to cause the thyroid gland to malfunction. We also didn’t like the smell of this brand.
10. Horse Health 2-in-1 Shampoo
Horse Health 2-in-1 Shampoo is a shampoo plus conditioner that will leave your horse’s hair shiny and soft. It’s pH-balanced, so it won’t irritate your horse’s skin, and it comes in a gallon container that should be enough for up to 15 washes. We also appreciated that it doesn’t leave behind a bad smell, and it wasn’t hard to rinse away.
Unfortunately, while we were using Horse Health, the bottle continuously made a mess where we had it stored. While it did leave the fur feeling softer, it didn’t create much lather and didn’t seem to work well to remove dirt and urine stains.
Buyer’s Guide
Let’s look at a few things you should consider before purchasing a horse shampoo.
Medication
While it might not be the first thing you might look for when choosing a horse shampoo, it’s a good place to start. If your horse is suffering from itchy skin due to an allergic reaction, flea or fly bites, ringworm, yeast, or other causes, a medicated shampoo can help ease the symptoms to provide your horse with relief. You might need to reapply for this shampoo several times in a short time to clear up the problem, and they can be quite expensive. It might be tempting to purchase a medicated shampoo as a preventative measure, which is fine if you have the budget, but is unnecessary if your horse shows no signs of a skin disorder. A less expensive standard shampoo is a perfect choice for horses with healthy skin.
Size
It can be tempting to choose your horse shampoo based on the bottle’s size, but many shampoos are highly concentrated, and others might be weak, requiring more product to create a good lather that you can use. We recommend reading over the package closely to get an idea of how many horses you can wash per bottle. We tried to list the bottle size in our reviews and which brands ran out quickly.
Moisturizers
Even if your horse’s skin is healthy, frequent baths can dry it out, causing dandruff and itching. We recommend using a shampoo that contains moisturizers that can help lock in moisture to reduce the risk of a flare up. We tried to mention which brands contain moisturizers in our reviews.
Scent
Scent can go either way with horse shampoos. Either they smell great, smell terrible, or have no scent at all. If you plan on using these products on your dog or cat, you probably want one that smells good. It doesn’t seem to matter as much for horses, but we mentioned any brands that were especially pleasing or terrible in our reviews.
Lather
For some reason, many horse shampoos don’t make a good lather that you can work into the fur to lift dirt. It’s also helpful for knowing what areas you missed. We recommend using a shampoo that creates a lather, and we tried to mention those that didn’t in our reviews.
Residue
One more thing you will want to check for when selecting a horse shampoo is that it rinses away completely. Some brands cling tight and leave a residue behind, which can cause the fur to attract dirt. It can also make the horse feel sticky or oily. Most of the brands on our list rinsed easily, and we mentioned the ones that didn’t.
Conclusion
When choosing your next horse shampoo, we recommend a brand that doesn’t contain any harsh chemicals. Our top choice, DermaBenSs Horse Shampoo, is a perfect example. It’s a concentrated formula that cleans quite well and will leave your horse noticeably shinier with a manageable mane and tail. It moisturizes the skin and has no odor. Mane ‘n Tail Pet Shampoo is another smart choice and is our best value. This brand is extremely popular, so you can find it in many pet stores. It’s pH-balanced and creates a thick lather that you can work into the fur to produce a shiny coat. It works just as well as our top pick, but you go through a lot of it, and it may not be a great choice if you have several horses. If your horse is showing signs of a skin infection, we recommend you go with our premium choice. TrizCHLOR 4 Shampoo has antimicrobial ingredients and will help soothe the skin to help your horse feel better.
We hope you have enjoyed reading over these reviews and found a few brands you’d like to try out. If we helped make your search a little easier, please share this guide to the best horse shampoo on Facebook and Twitter.
Looking for more horse care items? Take a look at:
- 5 Best Horse Liniments in 2021 – Reviews & Top Picks
- 7 Best Whitening Shampoos for Horses 2021 – Reviews & Top Picks
- 7 Best Horse Brushes 2021- Reviews & Top Picks
Featured Image Credit By: christels, pixabay
