Shapley’s Goes Way Back, But Shapley’s Products Are Always on the Forefront of Horse Care

BY SARAH EAKIN

Shapley’s, a trusted name in equine grooming products for over 86 years, has always rolled with the times by taking their lead from those on the frontline of horse care. 

“I go to shows all the time,” said Sally Stith Burdette, Shapley’s marketing director. “I go to the barns and just hang out and talk to the grooms and see what they are doing and what products they like to use.” 

At the end of the day, the welfare of the horse’s skin and hair, and the owners and grooms who provide it, are Shapley’s focus. The grooms especially dictate the market of equestrian products, and in 2013, Shapley’s were able to reward their input when they came up with the original idea of a grooms’ class at the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, Florida.

Shapley’s Grooms’ Classes

“There had been grooms’ classes back in the 70s and 80s,” said Burdette. “But they were judging grooms while riding – rather than showing off what they do. We came up with the idea of a grooms’ class that would reflect their skill in horse turnout. I wrote out the list of rules – everything that [Shapley’s and WEF] could think of. It grew slowly, but now there are grooms’ classes at shows all over the world, and we are kind of proud of that.”

Shapley’s MTG

Shapley’s original product launched at the same time as the company itself: “Mane Tail Groom,” commonly called MTG. It is still a mainstay of their grooming products today as an oil-based solution that provides skin healing and hair growth. But while this product is timeless, Shapley’s is always on the lookout for innovative ideas. To ensure they are on the cutting edge of the industry, Shapley’s sponsors and works closely with leading riders such as top hunter rider Scott Stewart. 

Hunter Classes in the U.S. and Canada

Although not relevant outside North America, hunters are a cornerstone of horse shows in the U.S. and Canada. 

“Modern hunter classes were designed to test the qualities and attributes of a successful hunt horse,” described the United States Hunter Jumper Association [USHJA] on its website. “These classes are subjectively judged based on the horse’s performance over fences as well as its quality of movement under saddle on the flat.”

The Horse’s Coat Needs To Be Spotless

Though not explicit in this outline, the turnout of the horse and rider set the stage in the hunters. Money is spent on skilled braiders working overnight to produce the perfect mane, while the horse’s coat needs to be spotless. 

“I work very closely with Scott’s grooms and his right-hand woman,” said Burdette. “And I think that’s very important because they suggest things that make their life easier. His horses are renowned for looking great, and he was the first person, when I got hired, that I went to. He was one of the first ones using the show touch-ups, and I didn’t even know it.”

Grooms’ Kitchens

Those relationships with high-profile riders extend throughout the disciplines — from hunters to jumpers to the Western world. Shapley’s also sponsors grooms’ kitchens at many shows and continues to support grooms’ classes and special grooms’ awards, ensuring that recognition and prizes are plentiful. 

“Shapley’s Best Turned Out” Horse Award

The company is renowned for “Shapley’s Best Turned Out” Horse Award at major classes in hunters, jumpers, eventing, reining, dressage and breeding in-hand classes, for example. These awards go to the horse that is deemed by judges to be the best turned out in the class — not necessarily the winner of the class. This is something that only Shapley’s does and that Shapley’s started.

Get A Product Into The Barn

“For the grooms’ classes, we would give money, and then I always made sure that the winning groom got something silver and engraved because I feel like all of the riders and the trainers get all these great big silver trophies at these big shows, and the grooms don’t get anything,” Burdette said. “We also give the winner a big bucket of our products. And that’s a way to get it into the barn. And there they figure out if they can use a product, and then they realize: ‘Oh, I like this.’ ” 

All Ingredients Are Healthy, Legal and FEI/USEF-Safe

Coming up with new ideas for products is the start of the process, with all production and bottling done in the U.S. Next comes ensuring that all the ingredients are healthy — and, equally important, legal and will not cause a horse to fail testing by USEF or the FEI.

“We’re very cognizant about that,” said Burdette. “It’s very important. It’s the attention; the detail. And the owner of the company also owns a holistic healing center so the ingredients are important, and it needs to be a pure product. We don’t add alcohol or other additives to something just to stretch the batch.” 

“Nothing Will Test”

Just before the Paris Olympics, Burdette received texts from a groom on the Canadian team, wanting reassurance that none of the Shapley’s products she was using would produce a positive test. Burdette wrote back, “I can honestly say, nothing will test.”

Shapley’s is the only company to offer oils to ensure that the horse’s hair and skin are deeply conditioned and healthier. “The oils have special vitamins and nutrients, and they just make the horse’s coat healthier and help produce that real shine,” Burdette said. “It’s the utmost thing to make a healthy coat.”

Purple Shampoo Makes the Hair More Brittle

Not all products are created equal, and a short-term fix might not lead to long-term gain. Purple shampoo, warns Burdette, is an example of that. 

“Purple shampoo strips that stain out of the hair, and you get instant gratification. But over time, it makes the hair more brittle, and therefore more porous, and therefore more likely to have future stains. That’s what turns those white horses kind of yellowish-looking.

Special Conditioners

“We added special conditioners to our color-enhancing shampoos that will protect each hair and ward off future stains,” she said. “And if you use the oils all the time, even on a white horse, the coat is better, so stains can’t stick. You can just wipe off the stain if they roll in something, and you never have to worry about the hair turning yellow.”

Shapley’s Show Touch-Up Sprays

Shapley’s innovative ideas over the years also include the already mentioned Show Touch Up sprays, introduced to the equestrian market by Cindy Carfore, owner and president of Shapley’s, whose ownership of a holistic healing center ties in with Shapley’s emphasis on healthy products.

“And that came out of just talking with people,” said Burdette. “And realizing that maybe spraying some color spray that puts the white on the horses’ legs instead of using baby powder. It doesn’t come off. With baby powder, they walk three steps, and it’s off. This is waterproof, so at the end of the round, those white socks are just as white as when they first started.”

The revolutionary notion of color spray is Shapley’s Show Touch Up – a product that is used worldwide in many different disciplines and found popular in different breed competitions globally. Many jumpers, eventers and dressage competitors – especially for FEI jogs – use them regularly. 

Some Grooms Are Artists with the Color Sprays

In the American market, where the world of hunters brings a turnout challenge for the grooms, first impressions and appearance are everything as the horse enters the ring and the judge starts their critique. Shapley’s has evolved the color sprays into a range of eight colors and these are especially popular with grooms prior to conformation judging in hunters classes. 

“They’ll spray the black on the legs, if the leg is black, because it makes it just pop,” said Burdette. “And if they have any kind of scars or spur marks, you can quickly cover them up. You can also mix and match the color because we don’t have a chestnut spray to match every chestnut out there, so you might have to mix medium brown with it or another shade. Some of those grooms – they’re artists. They’re creative, and they can mix it better than I can.”

Shapley’s Products Make the Horse’s Hair Healthier

Trust in the products is at the core of Shapley’s mission. 

“There is so much thought put into our products, and we have so many different products that nobody else in the country makes,” explained Burdette. “Grooms can trust that our products do no harm and make hair healthier over time by using them. Whether they’re a professional groom or just taking care of their own horses, it is making their job easier because the horse is always going to look better.”

Go to Shapley’s website to find your local retailer and to learn more about their products.

Featured photo courtesy of Sportfot.