I have a box of tail hair that I’ve been holding onto since 2012. 2012 is when we lost our pony, Levi. Prior to Levi, we had only ever lost one other pony. We put Little Star down and never even thought of saving her tail hair. But after we had buried Little Star, I found out that there were so many really great ways to save a piece of your most treasured friend and lots of them required mane or tail hair.
Levi was not a pony we searched out. We got Levi in on trade and at the time I thought he was kind of an asshole. A cute asshole - but an asshole nonetheless. We let him be cute all winter and then in the spring took him to the barn to tune him up to be my show pony. He pulled an attitude one time and got what we lovingly refer to an “iron injection”. From that point on he remembered that he was a good broke pony. And boy, did he surprise us. He was literally the biggest, sweetest, calmest hunk of pony we had. When Giggles got hurt that spring, Levi quickly went from being my show pony, to Sophie’s show pony. And she couldn’t be beat, one of her competitors called her the “Unbeatable Sophie Onsager”. That pony could jog a hole in the ground and never stopped a foot wrong or spooked at anything. There were even times I would hop on, just for the fun of showing him English. He was the pony that safely took Sophie through some of her first canter classes. Always got his leads, never spooked about anything (except the time that the turkey flew up under his nose) and was darn cute doing it all. And then we lost him to a stupid rock in the pasture.
When the vet clinic called us to let us know that we couldn’t save Levi, we made the trek to say our goodbyes. I’m not going to lie, cutting that tail hair off was one of the hardest things I have ever done. It is such a final crushing door closing. It’s hard to describe, but even though we knew we were there to say goodbye to him and that we couldn’t fix him or make him better, cutting off that tail was the absolute point of no turning back.
For all these years I haven’t know what to do with my treasured tail hair. I’ve seen loads of great ideas, but I only have so much hair. When it is gone, it’s gone. I want something that will last and that I can have for years and years to come. A couple of years ago I did buy a locket. I took a small small portion of Levi’s tail and braided it into a coil. That coil I put into the locket with a horse charm. It’s a start. But what to do with the rest?
I’ve seen so many people with great keepsakes. This summer a good friend showed me a saddle decoration that she had made from a lost hooved family member. I was pretty sure that was what I wanted. But I was too chicken to take that final step. I’ve seen hat bands, key chains, vases (a personal favorite but too expensive for me), necklaces, bracelets, rings, and so much more. Just today a friend shared beautiful necklaces and keychains that she had made with her pony’s hair. It was an inspiration again for me to make a final decision of what I want to do with Levi’s hair.
So here I go. What should I do with Levi’s hair? Can I make a final decision yet? Only time will tell. These are some of my favorites that I have saved...
I love the idea of a saddle charm… this page comes highly recommended: http://www.charminghorsehairjewelry.com/
There is always the option of that horsehair pottery. Mostly sharing for others that may be trying to decide. This is out of my price range. But if you youtube how it is done, it was super cool to watch. http://www.myhorseart.com/
Speaking of out of my price range, but oh my goodness I wish! Check out the rings on this website. I have my favorite all picked out. https://www.houseofsalmi.com/
Not out of my price range and one I keep coming back to, I love these necklaces and other ideas she has for sharing your horsehair memorial with a resin pendant. I especially love the horsehair cross set in the rectangle resin. Love that! https://www.facebook.com/ResinReflections/
Here is the one my friend used for her special pony. I love some of the ideas on this page, including the rustic charms. I also love the rings that this person designs further down the page. https://www.facebook.com/EquineKeepsakeDesigns/
Too many choices! And I know that I would love any or all of them. So now the choice needs to be made. What to do with Levi’s tail? Or, do you have other favorite suggestions than those listed here? Anyone who has owned horses for any length of time knows the pain of losing their companion, their partner in crime, their therapy animal, their buddy. And deciding what the best way is to remember them forever is something I don’t want to mess up. So help!
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