Itchy horse won’t stop what can i

[Mary3050]

So one of my horses has always been itchy we have every test under the sun for allergies. Vet doesn’t think its Sweet itch . My vets alway put it down to his skin being dry . They think that basically once he starts itching he won’t stop like an addiction ? . This will continue until he bleeds and he won’t stop . This year seemed worse ie non of the normal lotions are helping I usually use stinky stuff, megatex rebuilder and another cream not for sweet itch can’t for the life of me remember what it’s called .

Anyway I have booked a qualifier for showing in mid July . Thought it would be fun for a change but no the native pony is missing a massive bit of his mane and has bald patches on his bum . To top it off whilst I was away for work and it was hot last week . One of the yard staff thought it would be nice to take his fly rug and hood off . So the horse has proceeded to rub more mane, tail it looks like a bog brush, back end and face has bald spots off . Is there any magic product I am not using ? Anything I can do to keep hold of the mane & tail I have left . Help

Thanks in advance

 

[SEL]

Ever tried piriton?

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

One of mine rubs his mane in summer so I have uses a shires sweet itch rug but he gets so hot in it.

I tried some stuff called herdleader oral itch solution back in April and he has not rubbed at all and I have hardly used the rug at all and actually stopped using at all now, I do wash his mane regularly through the summer but this stuff has been quite amazing you just sprinkle the liquid on top of a feed and give straight away.

I do use wonder gel on the mane line and top of tail and when flies are bad I use barrier gel.

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

Did the vet take bloods, and if so was there any test done specifically for the saliva of the cullicoides midge? Because if the answer to these questions is "no" then I would strongly advise you get some bloods done as this sounds to me VERY much like sweet itch.

To be sure that it IS sweet itch you could put on a sweet itch specific rug (note, NOT an ordinary fly rug as this won't suffice) and see if the situation improves; if it does then you will have a very good idea that this is indeed sweet itch. For my old lad I found the Premier Equine ones were excellent and cheaper than the Rambo. I have also seen a very nice one which Weatherbeeta do. You could also try stabling at dawn and dusk which is when cullicoides midges are most virulent and see if that makes any improvement. If there is, then you'll know you're dealing with sweet itch.

Feedwise: what are you feeding? I would avoid garlic like the plague for anything that's remotely itchy (vets advice), ditto mollasses. You'd be surprised how many feeds these two things creep into!

Also you may find that Cleavers is helpful (sticky stuff, grows in hedgerows) - horses will self-medicate on it if it grows in their pasture hedgerows, or you can just pick it and chuck it down for them. Marigolds also good apparently.

There is a FB Sweet Itch Support Group which you may find a helpful place to find itchy solutions!!

 

[smolmaus]

Oof. Taking a fly rug off an itchy horse is p damn stupid, even if they haven't been "diagnosed" with sweet itch!

Interested to know why the vet doesn't think its SI? It is very common in native ponies especially and probably safer and easier to treat as if it is SI until proven otherwise. Will second MJR2BT, the Sweet Itch Support Group has been very helpful for me!

If you think it might just be dry skin, the obvious rec would be linseed, flax oil etc for omega 3 and 6 if you're not already using those. Brewers Yeast is also a pretty typical supplement for SI ponies but the B vitamins will be good for skin in general. If it is SI none of those will hurt either.

I've also heard good things about hot cloth-ing with an oil cleanser when you don't absolutely need to bath (to get rid of product build up in the mane for example). Bathing is good because product build up is itchy, but bathing too often with soap/shampoo will dry the skin as well so its a balancing act.

 

[exracehorse]

I’ve got two with sweet itch. Both fully covered with Rambo sweet itch rug. Always fly sprayed. Power Fazer etc. One kicks his belly until it bleeds. One last year rubbed his face until it was bleeding. This year …. I’ve tried something different. Bought big bottles of Benzoyl Benzonate from internet. And they are sponged with it to an inch of their lives. Especially mane and top tail. Under belly. They are now rugless during the day. And rug on at night when midges are out. Touch wood …. Amazing difference.

 

[Flowerofthefen]

I’ve got two with sweet itch. Both fully covered with Rambo sweet itch rug. Always fly sprayed. Power Fazer etc. One kicks his belly until it bleeds. One last year rubbed his face until it was bleeding. This year …. I’ve tried something different. Bought big bottles of Benzoyl Benzonate from internet. And they are sponged with it to an inch of their lives. Especially mane and top tail. Under belly. They are now rugless during the day. And rug on at night when midges are out. Touch wood …. Amazing difference.

Great stuff, but OP please do a patch test. It brought my horse out in huge sores.

 

[Nasicus]

Has the horse had the blood allergy tests, or has it had the intradermal skin testing? If no to the latter, highly recommend getting it done. Bloods said my very itchy mare was fine, intradermal skin tests revealed otherwise!

 

[Surbie]

My horse has (undiagnosed) sweetitch. He's rugged when out, unless it's very windy - I use Snuggy rugs but I know they aren't for everyone.

I've tried brewer's yeast, linseed, yeasacc, redbush tea, biteback products, wondergel - the list goes on. Some of them work for a while then stop, some of them don't make a difference. For me the best thing is keeping him rugged and keeping his skin from drying out. I hot cloth or spongebath once a week, and this year I am using Killitch on mane and tail every 2-3 days and use udder cream aound his sheath and in his forelock & ears.

There is a lot of advice on the FB groups and on here, but it seems that each horse has a very individual response to what works and what doesn't, so be prepared for a lot of trial and error.

 

[Marigold4]

My horse recently suddenly became itchy - mostly his tail. Vet has given him a steroid injection, I put steroid cream (prescribed) on his tail and have completely changed his feed. I bath him once a week with specialist shampoo. Not sure which of these treatments is working but he is much less itchy now.

 

[ycbm]

So one of my horses has always been itchy we have every test under the sun for allergies. Vet doesn’t think its Sweet itch . My vets alway put it down to his skin being dry . They think that basically once he starts itching he won’t stop like an addiction ? . This will continue until he bleeds and he won’t stop . This year seemed worse ie non of the normal lotions are helping I usually use stinky stuff, megatex rebuilder and another cream not for sweet itch can’t for the life of me remember what it’s called .

Anyway I have booked a qualifier for showing in mid July . Thought it would be fun for a change but no the native pony is missing a massive bit of his mane and has bald patches on his bum . To top it off whilst I was away for work and it was hot last week . One of the yard staff thought it would be nice to take his fly rug and hood off . So the horse has proceeded to rub more mane, tail it looks like a bog brush, back end and face has bald spots off . Is there any magic product I am not using ? Anything I can do to keep hold of the mane & tail I have left . Help

Thanks in advance

What's he fed? List everything, even single carrots and mints.
.

 

[exracehorse]

Great stuff, but OP please do a patch test. It brought my horse out in huge sores.

Been using for past two months. So ok. It’s the BB that looks like milk. So already diluted.

 

[Nasicus]

Been using for past two months. So ok. It’s the BB that looks like milk. So already diluted.

Ferns just advising that the OP do a patch test before slopping it on, a lot of horses can react quite strongly to BB, even the premixed stuff. Personally, it made mine come up bright red and sore as anything, so I'd definitely patch test anything if I ever used it again.

 

[Mary3050]

Did the vet take bloods, and if so was there any test done specifically for the saliva of the cullicoides midge? Because if the answer to these questions is "no" then I would strongly advise you get some bloods done as this sounds to me VERY much like sweet itch.

To be sure that it IS sweet itch you could put on a sweet itch specific rug (note, NOT an ordinary fly rug as this won't suffice) and see if the situation improves; if it does then you will have a very good idea that this is indeed sweet itch. For my old lad I found the Premier Equine ones were excellent and cheaper than the Rambo. I have also seen a very nice one which Weatherbeeta do. You could also try stabling at dawn and dusk which is when cullicoides midges are most virulent and see if that makes any improvement. If there is, then you'll know you're dealing with sweet itch.

Feedwise: what are you feeding? I would avoid garlic like the plague for anything that's remotely itchy (vets advice), ditto mollasses. You'd be surprised how many feeds these two things creep into!

Also you may find that Cleavers is helpful (sticky stuff, grows in hedgerows) - horses will self-medicate on it if it grows in their pasture hedgerows, or you can just pick it and chuck it down for them. Marigolds also good apparently.

There is a FB Sweet Itch Support Group which you may find a helpful place to find itchy solutions!!

Yes bloods done the sweet itch rugs don’t work just make him more hot and itchy . He will continue to itch in it ?. Thanks I will look

 

[ponynutz]

deleted

 

[Mary3050]

Oof. Taking a fly rug off an itchy horse is p damn stupid, even if they haven't been "diagnosed" with sweet itch!

Interested to know why the vet doesn't think its SI? It is very common in native ponies especially and probably safer and easier to treat as if it is SI until proven otherwise. Will second MJR2BT, the Sweet Itch Support Group has been very helpful for me!

If you think it might just be dry skin, the obvious rec would be linseed, flax oil etc for omega 3 and 6 if you're not already using those. Brewers Yeast is also a pretty typical supplement for SI ponies but the B vitamins will be good for skin in general. If it is SI none of those will hurt either.

I've also heard good things about hot cloth-ing with an oil cleanser when you don't absolutely need to bath (to get rid of product build up in the mane for example). Bathing is good because product build up is itchy, but bathing too often with soap/shampoo will dry the skin as well so its a balancing act.

I don’t know Many times I have said do no leave without a rug. I have everything you can think off (sweet inch rugs, hoods, airflow fly rugs, Aussie rugs the work I am sure something would have been cool enough . They said they did the tests and it wasn’t . I have had one with Sweet Itch in the past what I used for that one doesn’t work for this one at all ?. He has linseed currently maybe will try brewers yeast thanks

 

[Mary3050]

Has the horse had the blood allergy tests, or has it had the intradermal skin testing? If no to the latter, highly recommend getting it done. Bloods said my very itchy mare was fine, intradermal skin tests revealed otherwise!

They did both as I had bloods it I said it can’t be right the next vet said the skin test are better . only could find feed allergy which he doesn’t have any of .

 

[Mary3050]

My horse recently suddenly became itchy - mostly his tail. Vet has given him a steroid injection, I put steroid cream (prescribed) on his tail and have completely changed his feed. I bath him once a week with specialist shampoo. Not sure which of these treatments is working but he is much less itchy now.

I will see if I can get some from the vet . Sadly we can’t use steroids due to EmS and Cushing .

 

[Highmileagecob]

Ah - EMS/Cushings may be a big clue. Is he medicated for Cushings and regularly tested? Has he shed his coat fully? My cob is EMS, and picked up mites like a magnet. Selsun 2.5% shampoo as a full body bath, then shampoo legs every month or so was enough to stop the itching completely. Once his EMS was under control, this has dropped to leg shampoo three times a year.
Mine has a very scurfy mane and tail, but no sweet itch. I found a combination of pure neem oil mixed with vaseline rubbed into the hair helped a lot - discovered as neem mix was being used to stop a tail biter!