Sweat Itch Help!!!!!!!!!

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milliegolly

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My sisetrs pony has sweat itch, He has a mark todd, sweat itch rug on all the time, he gets cream on twice a day, insect repellant on twice a day, he is in at dawn and dusk (goes out in the day) and has naf's D-itch in his two feeds ( morning and night). He has pink skin so was wondering if that made any differance.

If you have any tips or experiences wich sweat itch sufferes, I would be very grateful for advice.

Finally his sweat itch is managed and he is looking good and has a great coat at the moment( as he has been clipped to to help the itching go down (this has worked amaazingly well!!))I just wan't to make him as happy as possible as he is an amazing pony and does not deserve to have such a terrible skin comdtion.
Thanks!:D
 
Pony in our yard had sweet itch and had a Boet rug. The owner swore by it - she was out all the time with it on and I don't think they used anything else. Don't know the difference between that and the Mark Todd one.
 
milliegolly said:
My sisetrs pony has sweat itch, He has a mark todd, sweat itch rug on all the time, he gets cream on twice a day, insect repellant on twice a day, he is in at dawn and dusk (goes out in the day) and has naf's D-itch in his two feeds ( morning and night). He has pink skin so was wondering if that made any differance.

If you have any tips or experiences wich sweat itch sufferes, I would be very grateful for advice.

Finally his sweat itch is managed and he is looking good and has a great coat at the moment( as he has been clipped to to help the itching go down (this has worked amaazingly well!!))I just wan't to make him as happy as possible as he is an amazing pony and does not deserve to have such a terrible skin comdtion.
Thanks!:D
Click to expand...

My old Section D had sweet itch and I tried loads of rugs, the olny one I can recommend is the Rambo Sweet Itch Hoodie, what a fab rug, he never scratched in that ever, he had a full mane in the summer!!!

My friends horse also has sweet itch which is much worse than this and she had the vet down to start a series of injections, they are fab, she is now growing a mane that feels nice, not the strange feeling mane you sometimes get and she has completely stopped the scratching on the face, as she is right next to the canal and dug heap I thought it was amazing for her to stop!!

A good lotion I also found was Gold Label Itchagon, it does smell a bit funky to say the least but my boy loved having it rubbed into his mane and seemed to soothe it :D

Also found the only fly spray to actually keep flies away was the NAF Deet!!

Good luck hope you get on ok with whatever you choose to use :)
 
Go onto the "National Sweet Itch Centre" website as they've got some excellent advice plus useful links.

They've also been pioneering something called the "BioEos" which you might like to have a look at. Be warned its not cheap BUT may be economic in the longer term.

With mine, I got my vet to do a "sensitivity" test, as sweet itch as such may be a combination of an allergic reaction to a variety of triggers, the most probably being the culicoides midge which basically as it sucks it injects a saliva through into the skin, and it is this which certain horses are allergic to. So it might be a first step to get this done: with my boy it came out as "mild to moderate" so at least I knew what I was tackling.

Secondly, there is no "cure" as such to sweet itch: its a variety of fixes - the most important single thing you can do is to stop the midges biting in the first place, and there are various rugs on the market; some are closer fitting and have to go on over the horse's head (an interesting experiment at the best of times :( ). I use the Rambo Sweet Itch hoody: fantastic (but expensive); also can recommend Premier Equine hoodies as being good value for money (cheaper than the Rambo). Cheap isn't necessarily cheerful as a lot of rugs (e.g. the Mark Todd) are made of fairly flimsy interlock material which just won't last IME.

Then there are topical applications such as "Killitch" (benzyl benzoate) which are good. Also Avon Skin So Soft dry oil body spray (blue label) www.avon-shop.co.uk

You could also try using cattle fly tags: one each side, fastened inside a headcollar or inside a rug -the main issue being that it must be in contact with the horse's coat in order to work.

For when you're riding, I've got a Horseware (think that's the make of it) ride-on fly sheet which I don't know how I managed without. Its navy blue and he looks like a jousting horse, but hey who cares.

Then there's the whole issue of supplements: and here you can waste a helluva lot of money IME. Mine has brewers yeast, and linseed (one scoop per feed, is fed twice daily). Also good is Clivers (the sticky stuff in hedgerows); and apparently seaweed & cider vinegar.

Also, in previous years, I've kept mine in at night, to cover the dusk to dawn period when the midges are most active. This is the first year I've ever kept him outside so will have to see how it goes. The best situation for a sweet itch is somewhere high where there's a nice breeze, or beside the sea; worst places are where there's ponds/streams or standing water, downland marshy areas, and/or forest or common land nearby. It really can make a huge difference & often just moving yards say a mile up the road can make a huge impact.

Good luck with yours anyway. Oh, and avoid garlic as it will stimulate the immune system (not what you want); also sweet things like molasses - creeps into a lot of feeds so be aware - I now feed Dengie Hi Fi Molasses free (think "sweet" itch - maybe the horsemen of old were trying to tell us something???).
 
There's a new (to this country) fly spray Tri-tech 14 by Farnam which has completely stopped the midges biting my sweet itch mare. She's out without her SI rug for them first time, e ven though the current damp, humid conditions would normally send her mad!.

You soak them in the spray first time and brush it in, then re-apply every couple of days for a week and then just once or twice a week after that. It's a bit pricey but cheaper than all the pills, potions and rugs combined!

I got it on-line.
 
I think the Mark Todd rug is a very good FLY RUG, not a sweet itch rug. Sweet Itch rugs cost more but they are worth the extra money as they work. I have a SI mare, and all I am doing with her this year is stabling her overnight in a cotton sheet, and then out during the day wearing her boett/boett type rug. No lotions or potions, or hard feed (which I think might be helping her actually). We are having a really good year with her.

Where you keep them is also important, away from good midge breeding grounds, the more open and exposed the better. No ditches or ponds close by.
 
Boett is the only thing I would ever use on any of my girls who have it worth every penny.

Every horse is different in their treatment one of mine needs steroids evert so often. The other just needs her boett. Avoid any food with sugar in it as well.
 
Thank you very much for all replys,
I am interested in the boett rug and have had it recomended many times, but all the shops and websites I have tried don't seem to have any. Just wondering if any one knows a place that sell them?
Also I have tried the rambo sweet itch hoodie and the "bug" rug. but neither have worked as well as the mark todd.
Also I have decided to try the Naf-deet. so thanks for that recomendation!
Finally I have asked I have asked my vet about the injections but have been told that they only only work on some Horses. And i have decided this is a to bigger risk to take.
Thanks again!
Oh and I have tried the kill itch on his tail and found that really halp sooth and get rid of scabs and sores!
 
Our old pony Leonie who we lost about 18 months ago at the age of 36 had chronic sweet itch for most of her life, we tried everything there was to try but nothing made any difference until I read about Kenalog a long acting steroid, there was a risk of Laminitis but if it gave her the chance to live a better life in her last few years we thought it was worth the risk. Its a long acting steroid and initially she had an injection which we were able to give her every six weeks but over time she needed it less and less often, it was lovely to see her with a full mane and tail for the first time ever, were were concerned about the Laminitis risk but our vet was great and checked her regularly and she was fine, she was a Cob x TB her mum was a cob and had Laminitis once so we did worry but it was never a problem. It transformed her life and the last 10 years or so of her life were so much better for her than the first 26 and the last year she didn't even need an injection or her fly rug, so for us finding this drug was a god send and I wish we had been able to treat her with it years before it was well worth the risk.
 
For the first time my pony has hair this year *frantically touches wood* he lives in his snuggy hood bug body, only removing it to ride or wash him. I have two one to wash and one to wear. He has a very low sugar diet with brewers yeast, apple cider vinegar and global herbs scratch added. If it's particularly 'midgy' or he's very itchy he has 20 piriton added too.

Interestingly he is super itchy after his jabs, he's a native and we decided the Lami risk was too high to try steroids. My vet suggested bute for 2 days before and 3 after as an anti inflammatory for his skin ....fingers crossed it works or at least alleviates some of the itch this year.
 
I can keep my miniature in full mane and tail with no scabs only using one product once a day - its called Biteback for sweet itch and its all he needs. His may be a mild case?
 
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