Help on preventing Sweet-Itch

[dsophiea]

its getting towards that time of year again where my highland mare needs preventing from sweet-itch, i was wondering if anybody has any ideas or ways of preventing the disease as each winter she ends up with no mane and it feels like i have tried everything! thanks sophie x

 

[spaniel]

Boett rugs. Buy one now and get it on straight away. Dont worry that its only january, you need to prevent that very first midge bite. Leave it on until next winter apart from grooming time.

 

[Llwyncwn]

Absolutely! Boett is the best. There are much cheaper rugs out there but they dont last, i have tried most of them. Boett may cost more, but in the long run you will save money as you wont need to buy lotions and potions.

 

[dsophiea]

she has got the rambo sweet-itch hoody, my local riding school has tried the boett on one of the ponies and it ripped it straight away, which worries me as dounie gives it a good going at! i will have a look into them though, anything to help her, its so depressing!

 

[JustKickOn]

one of the horses had a beot last year and he didnt rip it and hes one who loves a good scrath anyway, had the same one this year but with a new neck cover and he was fie in it, did go out until about 8pm but one of the other horses pepsi (livery) has sweet itch too so was kept in
pepsi doesnt have a fly rug shes just given a goot coating of fly repellent, garlic in her food 9as does the above pony) and a face thingy.

 

[Law]

Boetts all the way i'm afraid. Derbyhouse do a good version of it for a fraction of the price (79)
Nettex Itch stop salve complete is another wonder product.
Homeopathic drops are good too. PM me if you want more details- phone number etc of where to get them. They are around £20 for a whole season.

 

[wizzi901]

echo the boett rug!!! look ugly I know but who cares if your horse is comfy, keep in at the first sign of midges, duck and dawn etc.

Start putting lotions and potions on now!! Its mild for this time of year (watch it snow now I've said that!!).

The secret is to get stuff on BEFORE they get bitten, once they have been bitten and you get ANY kind of a reaction you have on a losing battle for the rest of the year!

My boy has to have mane and tail hogged (fortunately it suits him) he suffers very badly and the only way to apply potions etc that do any good is to hog him so it goes directly onto his skin in his mane and tail.

I also find washing the mane and tail weekly in the summer with tea tree is very soothing for them.

 

[ThomasTank]

If you have a homeopath you could get sulphur200 ( or ask whats best) and start giving him one tablet daily. no side effects and it will stop the inflammation. good luck

 

[siennamum]

I had a snuggy hoods sweetitch rug on my old pony and you wouldn't have known he had sweetitch at all. Found the creams just made a real mess of him.
He was pretty hard on rugs but this lasted about 5 years, they do a repair service as well in case it gets a rip.

 

[sojeph]

The only way to prevent the onslaught of sweetitch is to get the rug on now 24/7. Boett is best IMO but you need to keep your horse away from anything sharp but that goes for any fly rug. Normal grooming/play etc should be fine. Have it on under a turnout rug if necessary or Boett do ( or used to) a Boett turnout. Look at where your horse is kept too. If stabled, is it near the muckheap or lots of trees or a stream..same for the field. All these will make it more midgey. The trick is to not let your horse start itching in the first place cos once they start its really hard to stop although they will after a while with a Boett on. Regular washing helps too and Net Tex Sweet Itch Complete is great for around the sheath/teats and inside the legs and on the face. The beauty of the Boett is that you can ride in it (minus the belly flap) so that your horse doesn't get bitten out riding but if you can't bear to do that then just make sure when you do ride that you horse is really well sprayed up because that hour or so that you're out riding can set off the reaction again.
I really sympathise with anyone with a sweet itch horse - so good luck to you all out there!
just to add: I moved my cobbie to a great field high up on the valley overlooking the sea. Its been his lifesaver. He no longer wears a rug and I use one tub of Net Tex all year. Before I moved I was on the verge of putting him out of his misery so just bear in mind that location is a big part of it!!
Sorry for prattling on...seemed to have gone off on one

 

[_jetset_]

Someone on my yard uses maggot oil that is used on sheep... she finds it works really well, and is planning on doing it again along with the D-Itch by NAF in his feed. He did not have any scabs or hair loss at all last summer!

 

[hussar]

I hate Boett - my Arab came with one and it was ripped to bits in no time, the elastic stretched unbelievably and he sweated up underneath. The last two years he's been in a Rambo Sweet-itch hoody and it's been just wonderful. Plus lots of diluted Avon Skin So Soft. Good luck!

 

[moon_drop]

My mums highland Sandy use to have really bad sweat itch, we tryed rugs the lot and then we came across stop itch slave, he is a different pony now he goes out all summer and everything!!!

we start puting on the itchy areas around feb and use it right through to nov!!!
One other thing we found helped him was upped cream!!!!

HE Now has a mane and a tail

 

[Law]

Hi there- i tried to PM you back but it said you were not accepting PM's so i'm posting it here and i'll try again later...

Hiya
I used it for the first time last season. You get two small plastic bottles of drops and you put 2 drops of each on the gum. It sounds difficult but if one person holds the horse and the other opens its mouth as though putting the bit in, then you can shoot a few squirts in quickly. After a few days I could do it all on my own. You start with one bottle every day for eight days and then the other for 8 and then both together once a week for the whole season. They explain this all when you get the drops. It costs about £25 and i've got lots left.
The website is www.allergy.org.uk tel no Tel: 01974 241376 email info@allergy.org.uk
if you explain that you want drops for a horse with sweet itch they know exactly what to give.

Good luck
Lau

 

[dsophiea]

hiya Lau, thanks for the info, don't know why i cant recieve pms! the drops sound good, i will give them a ring and give them a go! thanks for your help, sophie x

 

[Kezza]

Feed Brewers Yeast (by gold label in powder form) and garlic. Don't let the horse get too hot between now and Spring as that sets mine off as well. Mark off all trees in the paddock. Ideally, use electric tape inside your fence boundries and then your horse will have nothing to itch on and your rug won't get ripped. Also put it on as early as possible like everyone else says, you can also put it beneath a lightweight turnout in Feb which helps. Sudocreme is fab and cheap to use on sore areas or areas of rubbing such as base of mane and top of tail. Good luck!

 

[ticobay831]

Hi ive tried the boet blanket and josh ahs trashed one a year but he is young and he really anoys my old boy so wouldnt be surprised if the old one has ripped it from his back telling him off!!
Anyway the boet is fantastic my mate pony suffers as well shes tried all sorts of fly sheets and they just dont help.


Ive found a rug very similar to the boet, the elastic seems better, it sags with the boet after time, this rug is allot cheaper, here is the link if you want to take a look, they are worth thier money, honest. Havent found anything else that really works and trust me ive tried everything

http://www.solva-icelandics.co.uk/sweet1.htm

Debs x