Ingredients for Horse Shampoo

Horse shampoo has to be formulated differently than human hair shampoo due to the pH of the skin. Humans have skin around a 5 pH. Horses, however, have a skin pH between 7 and 7.5 pH. Most horse shampoos have a variety of different ingredients, but there is a few ingredients that tend to stay the same.

Lathering Agents

Lathering agents like diethanolamide make for a rich thick foam. It is made with natural and synthetic ingredients that have fatty acids. Cocamide DEA is a diethanolamide found in many of the ingredient lists of horse shampoos. Rubbing the mixture, especially with a water base, forms like lather.

Cleaning Solutions

There are many different cleaning solutions used to actually strip dirt and debris from the hair. Glyceride is one such item that removes dirt containing oil from hair. They are made from animal fat or vegetable oil and acts as an emulsifier to remove oil and dirt when combined with water.

Preservatives

Preservatives keep the formula fresh. It keeps mold, fungi, and bacteria from growing in the formula that can break down the properties and cause health hazards. Rosemary is a natural preservative that is used in some all-natural vegetarian horse shampoos. There are also many chemicals that can preserve horse shampoos as well.

Perfumes

There are fragrances that are added to horse shampoos to mask the natural scent of shampoo chemicals and give it a better pleasing smell. Citrus and floral scents are typical favorites for horse shampoos. Some natural horse shampoos use citric acid or lemon oil to be a fragrance.