Marmite

I was never quite sure if you were supposed to FEED it to the ned or smear it all OVER the ned???? Call me a sceptic but I can't see how feeding marmite would stop a horse's allergic response to midge saliva. If it truly worked, vets would be prescribing it left, right and centre and shares in Marmite would now be worth a fortune, despite the collapse in the stock market!
 
Wow! I read this in one of the horsey mags a while ago but didn't believe it. I did look into it and it said that it makes the horse emit something that the midges don't like ??? I might give it a go, though!
 
Its not marmite per se - its the B vitamins that produce an odour to make the horse less attractive to midges

I feed brewers yeast powder for this reason and it does seem to help my boy, it that he has less blood and bites on his sheath when fed brewers yeast.

At the moment he is on 50g per day, but I will reduce this to 25g after the frosts and when the midges are less evident.

Few bits from a telegraph article:
"When they've identified a food source, midges emit pheromones to call others to join them - hence the swarming. This means that victims are seldom bitten just once."

"some people swear by yeast tablets or Marmite, as the insects apparently dislike the scent of vitamin B in the blood"

"The cosmetic company's Skin So Soft range does more than guarantee velvety-soft upper arms after a bath: it's also a powerful midge-repellent. The Soft & Fresh Dry Oil Body Spray (£2; avonshop.co.uk) provides an oily protective layer so effective that the soldiers buy it in bulk."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/main.j...08/ixhmain.html
 
Seemed to work on a pony at my old yard. It had a sandwich (about a table spoon on half a slice of bread) morning and evening.

I x Capful of dettol diluted in a bucket of water and rubbed well into mane and tail and wiped over the rest of the body is supposed to work too. Time consumming as needs to be done am/pm and after exercise, but cheap and effective. Another friend has had good results with this method.
 
I found feeding brewers yeast, along with global herbs Skratch has helped with the bites and SI.

I can't wait for a working vaccine - I spent god know how much on herbs, supplements, skin so soft, sudocream and rugs to keep my two with full manes and tails.
 
Since I started feeding it to my horse his symptoms definately improved. I was sceptical but thought it was worth a try! He gets a squirt in his tea every evening. Good job he doesn't hate the taste.
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I don't know if it helps sweet itch, but horses seem to love it! It certainly helps keep midges at bay, so it makes sense that it would help. It works the same in humans, too. Toffee used to have some on bread every day, now she has a carrot dipped in it. Vitamin B is also reputed to have a calming effect, so an all round winner - and cheap!
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Toffee has about a teaspoonful I suppose, and she is 13.3hh. I would think the same would be fine for a Shetland.
 
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