Itchy Shetland

[Leam_Carrie]

My Shetland is itching quite badly, he’s managed to rub raw patches on his bum. He’s also itching his neck. Any ideas? Seemed to start in the last week or so. (my horse with sweet itch isn’t itching at all)

Vet is out on Wednesday so i’ll talk to her then

 

[Pinkvboots]

Could he be too hot? It's so mild at the moment my unclipped horse who resembles a yak at the moment is constantly rolling in the mud and I have seen him rubbing himself on the wall, I am half tempted to clip him even though his not being ridden.

 

[ycbm]

Watching with interest as my little hairy is very itchy too.

 

[Gloi]

Treat for lice and mites , lice like nothing better than a nice thick Shetland winter coat.

 

[Leam_Carrie]

Could he be too hot? It's so mild at the moment my unclipped horse who resembles a yak at the moment is constantly rolling in the mud and I have seen him rubbing himself on the wall, I am half tempted to clip him even though his not being ridden.

I did wonder if he might be hot - it’s very mild today and he has a very thick coat. Will see what the vet thinks .

 

[Cahill]

Treat for lice and mites , lice like nothing better than a nice thick Shetland winter coat.

this /\ /\ little buggers will be finding a home for the winter

 

[Leam_Carrie]

this /\ /\ little buggers will be finding a home for the winter

That sounds sensible - what’s the best treatment?

 

[Cahill]

That sounds sensible - what’s the best treatment?

deosect.small can, seems expensive but lasts for ages.potent stuff,follow instructions.

 

[Quadro]

Lice. I treat my minis twice over the winter every year. If you look deep in the coat you can see them. Little brown things. They love shetland coats

 

[Leam_Carrie]

Will go online and order deosect.

All this talk of lice is making me feel itchy!!

Can you catch them? Do I need to treat my horse as well?

Thanks everyone

 

[Quadro]

They are species specific so you can't get them. My horses are seperate from the minis so i don't bother, but if yours are together would do no harm

 

[Leam_Carrie]

They are species specific so you can't get them. My horses are seperate from the minis so i don't bother, but if yours are together would do no harm

Thank you

 

[ameeyal]

I would say your mini is to hot

 

[Gloi]

If you are treating one for lice which is stabled, make sure that at the same time you treat the pony you remove all the bedding and give the stable a good wash down with something like Jeyes fluid so any not on the pony at the time are killed too. You should repeat the Deosect a couple of weeks later to get any that might have been eggs and not killed.

 

[Leam_Carrie]

My vet came today so asked her. She said itching could be a range of things - including lice or pinworm. She said treat with deosect and if that doesn’t solve it get back in touch. She did query how effective it would be on his thick coat - so said have a go! I said other Shetland owners has recommended it .

 

[Cahill]

i made mine up in a spray bottle and rubbed coat backwards while spraying just a couple of inches away.
wear a facemask, use gloves to rub in and be upwind.
also as mentioned,needs redoing week or two later.
you can see them die as you work along.

 

[Quadro]

I did it normally and worked fine. Like Cahill says you will know it is working as you can actually see them die and fall off

 

[Leam_Carrie]

Thanks both. Will give it a go .

 

[Annagain]

Does he have any feed? One of mine (big boy not a shettie) gets a scabby itchy rash if he has any sugar in his diet. Started spontaneously when he was about 15. Might be worth cutting everything except hay out to see if it improves.

 

[Abby-Lou]

I full clipped my shetland when I found lice and then treated. I now lower trace clip until Jan then full clip, I haven't had any further issues with lice and she seems more comfortable in autumn when temps vary so much

 

[Daughter of the Moor]

I have an 25 year old mare who suddenly started itching. It turns out she has PPID. If your pony is in its teens or older it may be worth getting a test done to see. My mare has stooped itching after starting her on Prascend.