Boett Blankets

[MagicMelon]

Are they REALLY that good? I have to do something else this year for my Welshie. He tears half his mane out every year (doesnt touch his tail though weirdly enough).

Will this rug work? Im worried he's going to trash it! Problem I have is I cant easily keep him away from buildings to rub on - in the summer sun, the shelters are his only shade. He is a hot horse (Ive never seen him cold ever!!) so would he over-heat in it?

Anyway, do people purely use the boett? Or do you spray special fly repellent over the sheet as well? wash the horse with anything regularily etc.? Feed anything which works??

Am looking for your opinions as to what really works and what really doesnt!

 

[Jazz1]

I had one on a 30 year old pony I had on loan (companion) & can honestly say it was brilliant.
I could go away at the weekends in the summer & not have to worry about her itching. So long as you put it on before the itching starts then it works, they dont get too hot (mare had a major thick coat even in summer) & mine survived some itching on a prickly hedge!! They come with extra material for any repairs so its not too bad. I can honestly say she looked relieved when she had the rug on & would voluntarily stand there whilst i put it on over her head (goes on like a sleeve) as she knew it was helping her.
All her life she'd had no mane from the itching but it was really long after a summer with the rug on.

 

[valm]

I've tried both Boett and snuggy Hoods ones. I prefer the Boett style and last year found a cheaper version via
www.solva-icelandics.co.uk it's been excellent and similar quality to Boett.
This year I'm taking part in the Sweet Itch Vaccine Trial - expensive but it will be worth it if it makes my mare feel more comfortable this summer.

 

[Law]

This would be my mastermind chosen specialist subject!! lol Sorry for the huge reply!

Boett blanket- does it work... Yes! Definitely
Might cob trash it, yes it might! I bought my horse from an auction and it was not disclosed so I got him home and had no idea he had si. After a day or so it was clear he had SI so i borrowed a fly sheet and this was no use. I then bought him a boett but by then it was a bit too late. He did rip it regularly so I bought a second german one (half rug) for 40 quid or so and also bought a sewing machine! I spent too many hours in the dark tackroom with a needle and plaiting thread trying to fix it, as long as he had no rug on whilst i was repairing it, he was trashing his skin and mane and tail

it came off and he had his turnout on from about october onwards and the following feb/march I got the rug on him immediately. This combined with spraying the rug with fly stuff, bathing him with tea tree shampoo, feeding him marmite and slapping on nettex itch stop salve were the few things that worked.

Last Jan I moved him to a new yard which is on a slight hill, side of a valley, with a breeze, no trees, no water courses and nothing for him to rub on and you would never know he has SI! The boetts are in bits and he now just wears a amigo bug rug and has homeopathic drops as well as marmite.
Last season he looked fab and lots of people commented on how he looked like a different horse.

 

[hussar]

I seem always to be in a minority on this topic but I hate Boett! My youngster came with one and it didn't last a full summer - torn both on wire and branches and in play. He sweated up in it, the belly band didn't reach the important thin-skinned bits, I found it hellish fiddly to put on and the elastic straps very over-stretchy.

For the past 2 years he's been very happy in a Rambo Sweet-Itch Hoody. Cool, excellent coverage, tough and quick-drying, easy to put on/take off.

 

[spaniel]

Id go for the Boett as well but whatever you decide on get it on NOW dont wait till you see a midge or the itching starts. One bite is all it takes.

 

[NWponyrider]

I've got a 22 yr old dales who came to me with no mane, no tail and 2 bald patches on his bum as big as dinner plates. The girl who owned him said..'oh I bought some lotion but he didn't like me putting it on!!!!!'

I bought him a boett and have never looked back. Put Boett on early in season and you wont need anything else..no sprays, lotions or potions. As long as you get it on early enough, they don't really have rubbing or itching issues. Sometimes if he gets a bit greasy I will bath him and give him a massage with pig oil in his mane and tail.
You would never know he has SI now.

 

[MagicMelon]

"One bite is all it takes" - this is my main worry! How on earth can I ride him / take him to shows etc. surely at some point a midge may bite him?? Does that then mean even a Boett will have no effect?

I know I have to buy a Boett at least to try it... they're so damn expensive though! hussar - I had him in a Rambo SI Hoody all last year, it seemed to work for a good long while then at the very end of the summer he tore his mane out again......

 

[spaniel]

The Boett is the barrier, as soon as you take it off your horse is going to be at risk but there are a number of decent repellents on the market now (Im sure someone with an SI horse can advise on that). You should be able to load up on repellent before a show class but I would advise hacking out with the Boet on. I know several people who do this and yes, they do feel a bit silly at first, but its got to be worth it. Most people I know with Boetts leave them on well into the depths of winter, at least end of Nov and put them back on mid Jan under nz's.

 

[MagicMelon]

And the rugs dont rub at all? Like rub their shoulders or mane etc.? (dont want to put one on only to find it itself rubs his mane out!!).

So you can actually ride with the boett on? He wouldnt get too hot?

 

[spaniel]

Nope, they breathe well IME and are thin enough to put a saddle over the top (although I think some people do remove the belly part).

If correctly measured and fitted they really shouldnt rub or move.

 

[Llwyncwn]

Barney, my big boy was given to me and he has terrible SI. The Boett is IMO the only way to go. You can ride quite comfortably in it (sniggers from passers by). I tried a cheaper version last year but it didnt survive his favourite branch in the corner of the field. He looks rather like a terrorist in it, but it does the job. It is also important to electric fence any fav trees, posts and bushes and to turn out in highest, windiest pasture! However, just read post above and will contact Solva tomorrow to see what they have to say about their rugs - about £100 cheaper for me.

 

[MagicMelon]

Yeah - am interested in the Icelandic ones too, they do look pretty much the same??

Otherwise is the only place I can get Boetts from the national Sweet Itch place online? Have found the occasional one on Ebay but bidding is pretty hot!

 

[Llwyncwn]

Yes the Solva rugs in their pics are almost exactly the same. If you decide to go for the Boett, contact the Sweet-Itch Society by phone, they are very helpful and really friendly. I have one of Barneys old Boetts here which needs lots of sewing, but its a size 8 (when he was only 17.2hh) so I dont think it would be of any use to you. I do have a friend who was trying to find a new home for her 6ft Boett about 12 months ago, can you pm me to remind me to phone her and if she still has it - its yours.

 

[sojeph]

I've been using Boetts for years. IMO they are the best out there. My big fat hairy cobbie has never overheated in it and it had never rubbed him except the face hood which I could never get him to keep on anyway. He had a rather wide nose and it just never fitted right. TBH, since the last time I bought one they have improved the design again so may be better but he doesn't need one anymore.

 

[Magicmillbrook]

My girl has mild SI and had a boett on all last spring summer autum. It is the only rug I could find that did not rub her withers & shoulder. They are completely different fit to conventional rugs so dont rub in the same places. She got a little sore on her inside leg, however within a fortnight the skin had toughened up, or you can make a neoprene of sheepskin pad. My friend has an icelandic version. She says this is equaly as good, however the sizes are a little less generous. My horse usualy stays in her field shelter in hot sun, with her rug on she was happy to stand out in the full midday sun!

The rug is still in excellent condition and I have not had to use the spare material to patch up yet. They are very robust but I don't think they would withstand barbed wire in any case if you have barbed wire then shame on you!

 

[MagicMelon]

Llwyncwn - Have PM'd you!

Would I need the face section as well?

No, we dont have barbed wire so thats not a problem. Just the fact that my boy favourite itching places are his field shelters.....!!

 

[Llwyncwn]

Thanks MM. Have pm'd you back!