feather mites

[fiestyfee]

hi has anyone any advice on feather mites? my dales gets them behind his knees on his front legs and in his white socks on his hind - have tried picking off etc but seem to be getting worse any ideas? Cant clip the feathers off as i show him

 

[suestowford]

You could try Frontline, although I find it difficult to get the stuff right down to skin on a heavily-feathered leg. There is also an injection you can get but it's not licensed for horses as there have been some horrible allergic reactions to it. You can get some shampoo from your vet which will get rid of them, it's really for dogs but works on horses too. I have found that once they are gone, you can discourage them from returning by putting pig oil on the feathers once a week. You could add some Flowers of Sulphur to the pig oil, but I have found the pig oil alone is just as effective.
good luck!

 

[josephinebutter2]

Sound advice Jacksprat.

Obviously, best practice is to clip the legs off, but failing that, really try to get the frontline on the skin, not just in the feathers or it won't work.

Also, our vet said don't bed on Straw, and make sure all the horses on your yard with this problem are treated at the same time, or yours will just get them again when they come in contact with each other - bit like kids with nits!

 

[Theresa_F]

Firstly you should not need to clip the legs unless you have lots of infected scabs/sores. Avoid bedding on straw if possible.

I have very hairy horses (clydie and gypsy cob) and my initial treatment was to apply frontline on the legs, rubbing it well into the skin and then again in 10 days. This should kill off any lurkers.

To prevent mites go and purchase pig oil and sulphur - 10 litres of oil and 2 kgs of sulphur will last you ages - if you have problems getting it, use Heavy Horse Supplies - Tom Brewster is very helpful.

http://www.heavyhorsesupplies.co.uk/

Mix to look like a thick milkshake, paint from knee/hock to floor and again rub well in. Keeps hair in great condition, legs free from grease and mites. Can also use on mane and tail to keep it free from tangles and mud. Used by a lot of people who have feathered horses and is an old, inexpensive and very effective remedy.

In the summer I prefer to wet the legs and rub in sulphur. I oil up from September to April.

If you do this every couple of weeks you should be fine.

Just remember to take off white gold - yellow is fine, your hands will be lovely and soft, but white gold goes black as I found out the hard way.

Finally if you show, a dash of pig oil in the final rinse water really gives a lovely shine to the coat and mane/tail.