So Soft Shady Question

[HelloGoodbye]

As a general rule, how sturdy (for lack of a better word) is Shady's flocking?  I have a rather nice, but in need of a little TLC, Shady.  Her flocking looks pretty good, I think (well, she is my first So Soft, so I'm guessing, but it looks good to me).  There are rubs where you would expect (tips of ears, nose, etc.), but other than that, it is nice and thick and soft.  I wasn't going to wash her (just her mane and tail), until I looked at her under a light and saw that she is looking a bit dingy.  I have heard that some So Softs have really fragile flocking, and others have their flocking essentially super glued on.  Where on this spectrum does Shady usually fall? 

If she is known for fragile flocking, I probably won't wash her.  I was just going to use dish soap, is that okay? Thanks in advance!

[cricket]

Washing a SS is generally ok.  I have accidentally deflocked a couple by using water that was too warm.  My advice would be to use lukewarm water and give her a gentle washing.  Be careful using dish soap.  It won't damage her body but in my opinion it dries out the hair.  I use cheap Suave shampoo and conditioner and it works really well. 

[HelloGoodbye]

Cool, thanks for the advice!

[hathorcat]

The problem is you can't be as specific as whether one particular pony is always prone to better flocking than another. It all comes down to how much the glue holding the flocking on has broken down. So one Shady could have had a great few decades and no break down when another may have its glue broken down completely.

I agree with cricket tepid water and something soft for suds and you should be fine; if you are worried at all, first wash underneath a couple of her hooves to make sure everything is ok and the flocking stays in place.

[HelloGoodbye]

Washing under her hooves first is a good idea; I'll be sure to do that when I was her.  Her flocking seems pretty solid, but I have this vision of starting to wash her and having it all flake off.  I'm such a worry wart