Best sweet itch rug??

C

Charlie-Brown

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Hiya,

Unfortunately my new boy who I bought in June seems to have mild sweet itch :( Not apparent when I bought him but he was only turned out a few hours a day and is now out 24/7 so wonder whether that might have mad it worse for him.

Anyway, as title says, which rug is the best in your opinion please? Had a shetland with bad sweet itch and the Boett blanket worked wonders, but just wondered whether there were cheaper but still effective rugs available as my boy appears only to have it very mildly. I thought the Rambo hoody looked quite good?? :)
 
If you look in the Archive on here there should be a lot about this topic as it does come up fairly frequently!

Yes, Rambo Hoody sweet itch rug is a good choice, the best in fact, but not cheap. Also (if you can get one) a Pessoa hoody. Brilliant quality & lasts.

Re. rugs like the Boett: I tried the Pagony which is supposed to be a cheaper version - very disappointed at quality. Finish of the seams was hopeless and I had to repair it constantly; plus somehow or other my boy managed to get himself tied up by a hind leg to the bit that hitches the hood to the rest of the rug; basically it was a piece of elastic and he'd got his hind foot into that gap. After that he just wasn't gonna have the thing on him, no way - and as it has to go over the horse's head, I don't blame him, so we switched to the hoody after that.

Often with sweet itch, it will develop after the horse has moved location due to the factors like still water around like lakes or ditches, or muckheaps in the vicinity - all of which midges (which cause sweet itch) love! So if you can you might want to think about where your horse is kept, best place would be as high up as possible to catch the breeze. Worst places are valleys where there's a lot of trees or water around.

Try the National Sweet Itch Centre - they've got a website if you google it, it should come up.

Also try to reduce sugar/mollasses in the diet (think "sweet" itch) - mine has two feeds daily of Dengie Hi Fi/Lite mollasses free plus some Euro-beet (no mollasses); in these feeds he has supplements of linseed & brewers yeast (one scoop); and occasionally seaweed, & also Cider Vinegar. Plus Clivers every other day or so as this is supposed to be good for SI (its the sticky stuff you find in hedges). I saw some Flax Oil for sale in the tack shop the other day and it said it was good for "itchy" skin, so might try that. But personally I tend to avoid proprietory brands for sweet itch as they're mega expensive and do precious little good IME.

Oh and avoid garlic; good for keeping flies away maybe but NOT for horses with sweet itch coz it stimulates the immune system which is already into overdrive with SI horses, so you don't want it!
 
Wow, thanks for the info! Unfortunately where we are currently we are near water/trees etc and does seem particularly midgey at the minute. Just seen the Pagony on ebay and wasn't convinced - loved the Boett and did a brilliant job with the shetland but just wondered about a more economical option! Will do a search, thanks for suggesting that :)
 
I have two for my mare with mild sweetitch.

Rambo....very tough fabric. Now in it's 6th summer. Not brilliant cover for the tummy area. Covers the poll although on one occasion it came off her ears and fell over her face redering her blind. In panic she ran through some fencing.

Pagony.....pain to put on although my mare is very laid back about it. Doesn't cover the poll unless you have the face mask that goes with it. Normal fly mask would leave a gap between end of neck cover and beginning of fly mask. Covers the tummy well. Plastic buckly clip things keep getting trodden on and breaking have had to replace them a few times. Rug slips round on a regular basis leaving her uncovered on her side.

Of the two unless you need the extra tummy cover I prefer the Rambo. It could be adapted very easily to cover the tummy area better if needed.
 
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