Lice- Help please!

[georgiegirl]

As title. Im absolutely horrified. Even mum hasnt seen lice on a horse for 30 years! Twig my 6yo tb is crawling in her mane

no other horse on the yard has them?? we did her with the dermoline insectisidal yesterday but the buggers are still crawling round today. went and bought the coopers fly stuf which also kills lice. My other horse has been treated too as they share a field and all her rugs have been taken away to be cleaned. Does anyone have any top tips for getting rid of the buggers? vet thinks its highly unusual as she is fully clipped and also think its strange there are none on any of the 20 horses on our yard. I'm well and truely gutted. my horses are always absolutely pristine and im horrified as to how this has happened - whats more embarassing is I've only been at my new yard a month

 

[Puzzled]

You can buy lice shampoo, some vets inject with dectomax but as it's not licensed for horses not all will use it but it does seem to get rid of them. Remember you'll need to treat in 2 weeks or so again as a new lot of eggs will hatch out and you'll have to break the cycle!

I wouldn't worry to much, a friend (who's a vet) said his horse seemed to get them every year for some bizzare reason!) Good luck!

 

[henryhorn]

I'm a bit puzzled why you're horrified, they are sneaky little creatures who thrive on clean skin and hair.
They multiply so quickly often the whole horse is infested before they're visible.
I get them on my retired herd most years, the eggs hang around on tree branches, walls etc and often pick on the old or young.
I use Spot On which is supposed to be licenced for cattle/sheep etc, but not horses, or spray with frontline flea spray. Check for skin sensitivity first and you can also use coopers lice powder, tho that takes several applications.

 

[Donkeymad]

Try Deosect, it is licensed for horses and very effective, and can then be used throughout the summer as an effective fly repellant.
Spot On for cattle/sheep is very effective, but also expensive, unless you keep sheep/cattle and need it for them

 

[seche]

Spot on is good - someone told me to use front line - which is what we use on our cat and dogs - so when to my horror my shetty got it we put a front line on him, clipped him - so that we could get to his skin, - and louse powder everywere - though make sure you put it on out side and arent standing down wind - its strong stuff..

I HATE THEM!

 

[Nudibranch]

Coopers is good, if you do another application it will finish off any newly hatched little buggers but it seems pretty effective even on just one go. They can pick them up anywhere really, as HH says they hang around in all sorts of places and they only have to meet one to become riddled!
Louse powder has a bad reputation but I think it does HELP to repel them, alongside other treatments, and the pyrethrin stuff is made from flowers so it's not overloading them with toxins.

 

[Spyda]

Jeepers, mine arrive home from stud every year with them

Poxy things.

A friend of mine's horse got them last year and the vet said hers must have picked them up from the cattle grazing in the adjoining field (separated only by electric fencing). Her horse never leaves her property so she was inclined to believe what the vet had said. I personally don't know if that's a cause?

I always use Deosect. It comes in a small tin and you dilute it with water and sponge it on to the horse. Allow it to dry (don't rinse off). Repeat again in about 2 weeks to catch any hatchlings that might not have been killed by the first application, and that's normally all you have to do. Any excess Deosect (and a small tin goes a VERY long way), can be diluted in small quantities as and when (as it quickly 'goes off' once it's been mixed with water) and used in a spray bottle as an effective fly repellent. It's good stuff. If your horse is wearing rugs still, I sprinkle regular louse powder inside all of mine before putting them on for a week or two - just incase. For me, this and the Deosect applications have worked really well in combination.