This is a tanned horse tail.
Tanned horse tails have been de-boned, scraped, washed and tanned.
The first 6" or so at the base of the tail where it attached to the body is quite hard and stiff. On the tanned horse tails, this part is a little softer and more flexible than on the dried horse tails.
Native Americans use them as hair on their False Face Masks. They are also used on carousel horses and Halloween costumes.
Please note that although the tails have been deboned, there may be small pieces of bone buried deep inside the tail.
Do NOT comb when just removed from hot water or the hair may fall out.
Horses are not an endangered species. No horses are killed just for the tails. They are not subject to CITES or USFWS controls