Really bad sweet itch - help!

[boxcarhorse]

I have been given a pony as a companion, she's only four but has REALLY bad sweet itch. I've only had her three weeks and thought at this time of year she wouldn't be too bad. But she is still rubbing and itching continuously. She destroyed her brand new fly rug within a week, by itching so vigorously it is ripped to shreds. And she is constantly, itching and scratching herself - not just her mane and tail but her whole body. She's got sores on her shoulders where she has rubbed them and is constantly using her hind legs to scratch her belly.

I hadn't anticipated this and could really do with advice from those who've experienced really bad allergies/sweet itch, as to what do to try. I've just started her on a Global Herbs supplement which is designed to stop itching, but she's not keen on eating it. I've also been advised to feed garlic, so will try that.

She is a Welsh Section A and lives out 24/7. I don't have the option of bringing her in at certain times of day etc.

Any ideas would me very welcome.

Thanks.

 

[NellRosk]

Hi, first of all please don't feed garlic. The very helpful lady from the Sweet Itch Center said whilst it can deter some flies it actually attracts midges which is what bite and cause the allergic reaction. Also not great for their tummies.

It's probably too late in the season to do much this year, you will just have to bear it til it drops cold and she stops itching. Could try smother her with sudocrem to help soothe the sores and try repairing her rug and keep putting it back on her. If her skin is very greasy and scurfy give her a bath with a very mild hypoallergenic shampoo.

Start feeding brewers yeast and linseed, both good for coat and skin. If you are in a field with barbed wire there is no way you can stop her rug getting destroyed. If you don't have barbed wire I would save up this winter and get a Boett, they're fab and if you get them on early enough next spring you will prevent her getting bitten and then hopefully she won't get into the state she is now.

Also source some benzyl benzoate online, it really helps with the itching. You won't be able to put it on now as it can't go on broken skin but you'll be able to use it next season.

I doubt she'll be getting a feed but if she is make sure it's not got any molasses or sugar in it. And try to feed her soaked hay/ make sure she's not on rich grazing. There is a school of thought that believes they sweat the sugar out and this is what attracts midges.

So yes, to conclude you won't be able to sort it this year but hopefully next year with correct management she'll not be half as bad.

 

[FfionWinnie]

She needs electric fenced so she cannot rub. Is it definitely sweetitch, not lice/something else

 

[flintfootfilly]

Ask the vet to come and take a look. Sweet itch usually goes for mane and tail (and sometimes midline of belly) as the main focal areas, so the fact you say she's itchy all over makes me wonder if it's something different.

If it's lice or something like that, it may be you need to give her some chemical treatments, but really I would ask the vet to take a look..... unless you can find any pesky blighters yourself to aid in diagnosis.

If it is sweet itch, then I'd opt for a tough sweet itch rug like the boett. I like the rambo si hoodies too, but they don't have a belly cover, and while they cover up a gelding's small belly ok, they don't come anywhere near covering up either of my mare's wider bellies.

And as others have said, make sure she doesn't have anything that she can scratch on to cause too much injury/damage.

I keep my sweet itch mare boetted from Valentine's Day to Bonfire Night. It means she's covered up from before the midges start to when they've finished, so doing this you avoid them becoming itchy before being rugged.

I'm hopeful it's just a pesky parasite and that she'll soon be more comfortable if the vet can recommend some chemical treatment.

Sarah

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

Ditto all advice given esp re. avoiding garlic. Apparently garlic causes an immune system response which isn't what you want to happen with a Sweet Itch as basically because they're reacting to the saliva of the cullicoides midge-bite, their system is already over-reacting, and garlic will only make it worse. So avoid it like the plague.

You may need to consider stabling yours during the worst midgey periods, i.e. dawn and dusk as this is when the midges are most active.

As a quick-fix for a really itchy pony IME the best you can do is hose them down and/or add some Lavendar Wash to the bucket if washing down manually as this really seems to sooth my boy - he goes all gooey eyed for it - plus the Lavendar will help keep away nasties.

Personally I'm very sceptical of the latest must-have Sweet Itch remedies; mine has Brewers Yeast, Clivers (sticky stuff), micronised Linseed and Cider Vinegar in his feed.

Thankfully we should be over the worst of the season now - the recent muggy weather tho' has been awful, which is why I suspect yours OP is so bad at the moment. But you need to be pro-active and start feeding supplements BEFORE the season starts next year. Plus get your rugs ready to put on! I usually aim to start feeding any supplements round about the start of February/schools half term break time, ish, and don't relax until about the October school half-term now approaching at the end of this month. That's a rough guide, but really you can't relax all year round and you need to keep a watch for midges at any time of the year; I remember one Christmas morning when I was out faffing around with a SI rug with stilettos and posh frock You may have to keep a rug on yours all year round, mine wears his underneath any turnout rugs - its just that extra reassurance and protection in case there ARE any flippin midges around anywhere.

Consider also WHERE yours is turned out: if you can look for somewhere away from valleys/standing water/ponds or woodland. Best is the highest field you can find to catch the breeze - so some exposed field on the side of a mountain somewhere would be ideal for your SI!!! Location location location is all-important with SI's, when mine went on loan they were on a high piece of land BUT they didn't cover him up with his SI rug and within one weekend he'd rubbed himself raw and bleeding, so it really is vital to make sure you've got a rug on and in place well before the SI season starts and possibly throughout the year too.

You could consider also getting the vet to take some bloods as you would firstly know exactly what degree of SI yours has got AND you would also have an idea of if there were any more allergens involved as well as midge bites. You CAN get stuff which is given by oral administration (see the National Sweet Itch Centre - called "Bio Eos") but TBH I'm a tad cynical as the results aren't that amazing to be spending that much money IMO. But you may wish to give it a try and see how it goes.

SI IS manageable; so don't be too despondent. Its just you have to get your head around it. My boy looks fantastic and has a full mane and tail, you'd never ever believe he has SI, but that's just down to careful management - a regime I also extend to my loan mare as she gets bitten dreadfully by horseflies in the summer. So its basically for a SI: cover up with a hoody rug or Boett in the field, appropriate diet (no mollasses or sugar), topical applications of Killitch/benzyl benzoate OR Sudocrem if raw skin, and suitable turn-out plus stabling at "dawn to dusk" periods. But you have to think forward all the time, and think "cover up" - mine wears a light fly rug in the stable even just to guard against any stray midges - and now he "asks" for his rug to go on!!! He's got it sussed Clever boy.

Good luck with yours anyway.

 

[JillA]

My itcher is particularly bad just now (his is related to grass, not flying insects) - although he is electric fenced all round he sits and rubs his bum on the ground. He never ever is stabled during his itchy period (June to October - normally!) because if he was he would rub himself on walls and door frames. He rubbed his neck on something a couple of days ago (suspect neighbouring pony's teeth!) and came up in nettlerash style lumps. I have never seen him this bad, I'm considering seeing what the vet can suggest. What is the prescription product I have seen mentioned on here, anyone?

 

[_HP_]

I have had my cob with severe sweet itch for 15 years and have just taken on a miniature shetland with it too (for my sins) !!!
My cob is managed witha Rambo Sweet Itch hoody and either Coopers Fly Repellent Plus or Stop Itch Salve and electric fencing.
The electric fencing is a MUST especially if you have barbed wire or any protruding objects in your field. I have tried almost every rug available and IMO rugs such as Boett's don't last as long as the Rambo's or the Snuggyhoods although obviously it depends on your fencing. A regular fly rug is definitely not enough...it needs to be a sweet itch one.
I would start off with a good wash with a mild, soothing shampoo and check for lice and other nasties while you're at it
Invest in some electric fencing and a good rug and it will save you a fortune in supplements and cream and lotions.
Also consider where she is kept. Is her field well away form the muckheap and water sources and too many trees. It will make a huge difference. My cob went from desperate and unridable, to easily managed just with a field change.

Hope these help:
http://www.snuggyhoods.com/products.asp?categoryID=22


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rambo-Swe...quipment&var=540248043518&hash=item4d13269c89

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Brand-New...676?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item43c07091dc

 

[boxcarhorse]

Dear all

Many thanks for all your replies and suggestions. She is currently in a well drained paddock, on a hill with no water or muck etc near by. She is surrounded by electric fencing on three sides and post & rail fencing on the other (still managed to destroy rug on this!). She is very adept at using her hind legs to itch... she's very flexible?!? and then rubs mane & tail on the post & rail. I will definitely invest in a good quality sweet itch rug. One of the challenges at the moment, is she's relatively unhandled and HATES having any fly repellent sprayed or event sponged on her... which is a short-term problem, but doesn't help.

I've also been advised to try herbal supplements like Global Herbs Skratch. Has anyone had any success with these at all?

Thanks again for all the advice.

 

[stargirl88]

Are you 100% sure it is sweet itch? May be worth getting a vet to confirm it if it seems to be getting worse since you bought and moved her.... may be feed or something else triggering it

 

[JillA]

Are you 100% sure it is sweet itch? May be worth getting a vet to confirm it if it seems to be getting worse since you bought and moved her.... may be feed or something else triggering it

Echo this - mine isn't related to flying insects. I put a really good double layer fly rug on him in February one year, he still started itching in June, and I knew one horse who was allergic to Timothy (grass or hay). Might need a dermatologist to do a skin test though, and then, if you do find out the allergen, you have to find a way not to come into contact with it. The horse who was allergic to Timothy ended up being PTS, there was no way to avoid it long term and he was rubbing himself until he bled.

 

[dollyanna]

You could try using pure neem oil (or dilute it in a carrier oil) which can be put directly on the sores as well as rubbed into the mane and tail and wiped anywhere else. It works in so many different ways, but has really helped my itchy pony recently, and healed up some cuts and sores in no time (from various causes). It will soothe the sores, keep the midges off and actually alter them hormonally so stop them from breeding. Do a patch test first though as some horses can be sensitive to it, like any topical treatment.

 

[Gloi]

You'll certainly have to electric fence off the post and rail as both the pony and the fence will end up wrecked.
This past couple of weeks have been particularly itch round us.

 

[4x4]

Just a tip, if you can't afford to spend shedloads of money on boetts/all-in-ones I bought a Masta hood from equestrian clearance, it goes all the way down to the bottom of the neck but rides up if not clipped to the rug, I bought a large carabiner type clip from the DIY shop and sewed it onto the back of the rug, then clipped the hood on to that (hood comes with a long line to allow for grazing). Job done. I was warned off the body stocking types. Good luck!

 

[_HP_]

I would run electric along the post and rail. They can still relieve the itch by rolling and scartching themselves but often, if they have been allowed to scratch freely, they will get in a horrid itch, scratch cycle. It will take a week or so after they are covered up to stop the itch. IMO, covering up is really the best way to help them but if you can't them you really need to fence off where they do the most damage to themselves.
Micronised linseed and brewers yeast are meant to help.
If she hates being sprayed then all the more reason to get a good rug...if it fits well and is tough (and you have fenced off everything) then you should be able to get away with very little, if no spraying. I just have to put cream on my cob's sheath .

Once you have it under control things should get easier and a little less stressful for all involved.

Just remember, sweet itch season is long...it can go on a while yet with the mild temperatures. The important thing to get right next year is to get the rug on early...well before the midges appear

Good luck

 

[putasocinit]

I would still worm with ivermectin to kill anything the other flies have laid on her during summer which have burrowed their way into her body.