Sweet itch rugs

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dallastheo

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Boett Rug or Snuggy Hoods sweet itch rugs? i have the sweet itch hoody by rambo... but want something a bit better for my mare, pref something she will not get hot in, she is black, and usually cannot leave her hoody on in very hot weather(when flys are bad) as she just roasts! (even in stable)
i no these rugs are pricey, so any personal comments if you have used these rugs would be very helpfull!
thank you :)
 
I use boett rugs on my boy (i havent tried snuggy hoods so cant comment)....my 2 rugs have had to be patched a few times now but they are 7 years old so not doing too badly......if it gets really really hot then my horse will sweat a little in them but generally on the whole he is fine.

The only major downside to the boett rug is the cost but i would not hesitate to buy a new one if needed......
 
I would recomend the Boett Blanket very highly because they are specialists in the area. To get them, I would join the Sweet Itch Society, It's very useful as they keep records on your horse and will give you easy access to all products that help prevent sweet itch.
 
I highly recommend boett rugs, they're incredible! My boy gets very bad sweetitch but he's been wearing a boett for years now and the improvement is amazing - he manages to keep his mane and tail intact and his coat seems to be a lot shinier too. They're very durable and come with lots of spare pieces so that if you have a rug destroyer you can just repair them without having to send them off anywhere or buy a new rug (though i've not yet had to repair mine, it's lasting beautifully). Although the material seems thick, the rugs have been designed for 24/7 wear and so don't overheat the horse, i've never found mine baking in his - on the hottest of days he'll have a few sweat patches but so do the others in their standard fly rugs. The boett "people" are lovely too, very helpful and the rugs come in so many different sizes (they can recommend the one which suits best) so you know it will fit perfectly. His has lasted years and still looks great, definitely worth the money imo :)
 
I have 3 boetts for my mare, all of which I have lucky enough to pick up secondhand for comparaively peanuts. The original one is now being used for patching the other 2, so all is being recycled!. I've never tried anything else, so not in a position to comment on the other makes, but the Boett has been very good indeed.
 
I've had boett and snuggy hoods definatly prefer the snuggy hoods. Much better design fits better and as the neck seperate to the body and it is usually the neck thAt shows the wear and tear with a snuggy only the hood had to be replaced whilst with the neck piece part of the main rug with the boett the whole thing has to be replaced.
Also with boett at the top of neck mane often gets exposed where the hood works loose .
Both are quality rugs very similar material . Equal but cheaper to the boett is the demulenkamp. ( may be spelt wrong ).
 
lannerch said:
I've had boett and snuggy hoods definatly prefer the snuggy hoods. Much better design fits better and as the neck seperate to the body and it is usually the neck thAt shows the wear and tear with a snuggy only the hood had to be replaced whilst with the neck piece part of the main rug with the boett the whole thing has to be replaced.
Also with boett at the top of neck mane often gets exposed where the hood works loose .
Both are quality rugs very similar material . Equal but cheaper to the boett is the demulenkamp. ( may be spelt wrong ).
Click to expand...

This^ I love the snuggy SI rugs. We have two in them from march through to october and they are amazing. We also have one in a boett, the neck does come loose with wear, leaving some mane exposed, we also had huge problems with horses pulling off the head attachment and ripping it to shreds. Wheras the snuggy version is attached to the neack and is impossible for them to get off. Never had any problems with overheating either.
 
For horses that suffer from sweet itch I have found that by feeding NAF D-tox early before the gnats start really going, it will help to alter their immune system and alleviate the allergy.
Secondly, and this is fairly new to me but it does work, get some Neem oil, liquify this by standing it in some hot water and then mix 5 ml Neem, 3 ml of liquid shampoo and make up with 1 L of hot water and wash that all over the horse, Keep agitating the water to keep it mixed, no good in a spray as the Neem solidifies and bungs the sprayer so just apply with a sponge. It keeps all biting insects away and will last for at least a week if horse does not get to sweaty.
 
I bought a mare last year and although I was told she had 'mild' sweet itch it was anything but and last summer was a nightmare, we tried all kinds of 'remedies' to no avail but I am determined she will not suffer this year so I've been looking to get her a decent boett style rug but I too have read a great deal about Neem products and the fact that it is being developed for use in treating malaria by stopping mosi bites so I have been feeding my mare Neem leaf in with her feed each day for a couple of weeks now so that it gets into her system in time for those horrid midges, I have also been giving her linseed oil and have neem oil ready for when Spring comes.
Its going to be trial and error again to find what really works for her as all horses are different but I would recommend the neem oil as it can be used to treat wounds etc as well, its not overly expensive and a little goes a long way.
 
I have used the Horseware Sweet Itch ones, and also a Snuggy Hoods one - the former was much cooler and more comfortable for the horse (she liked it better). The latter provided better anti-midge cover, but she got a bit hot and sweaty in it.
S :D
 
wow thanks everybody :D i agree with the neem oil ..where does everybody get theres from? also heard that brewers yeast is good for them...
thanks again for your replies very usefull ! :) xx
 
I'm definately a Snuggy Hoods fanatic. I have two of the sweetitch suits for my boy. He wears them in the hottest of weather. They are comfortable, easy to put on and very durable.

Cant recommend them enough!
 
With regard to the Boett neckpiece/hood coming adrift, this issue has been resolved and the hood is now supplied with a couple of clips which you can sew on if you wish. I have just finished sewing up the last of the (supplied) patches onto my Boett in readiness for spring.

I will certainly buy another (and need to soon) and don't find that my horse is too hot in it.
 
I got my neem oil online, it was much cheaper and the lady that supplied it was really helpful and answered endlesss questions.
I got it from here: www.bitlessandbarefoot.com

There are a few online outlets but I found this one to be the cheapest, its good for cuts etc too so worth having to hand.

Thanks for all the infor on rugs, never had a horse with sweet itch before so its trial and error but she really needs protecting from midges come Spring.
 
I've got a mark Todd Ultra fly rug to try to see how bad my new boy is before buying a Boett. The MT is advertised a being a close weave, so will see how we get on.

I've been looking at eBay for neem oil, it seems that sellers who are not aware that it's good for sweeitch are selling it a lot cheaper than those for equine purpose !

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/260931468...WAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649#ht_542wt_922
 
I think I paid about £11.50 for 500 mls but that is pure neem oil which is has to be watered down for coating your horse or you can apply neat when warmed to bad areas so I'm hoping it will last a little while but as always as people become aware that more horse owners use it they will probably up the price as they assume horse owners can afford to pay any price!
 
I also use Neem Oil for my mare. Was a bit lapse in the Autumn and I paid the price in November and December!!

I've also just come across Double Base, for itchy dry skin. Tried it on myself and it's luvverly, so have got some more for hoss. Too early to say whether it's any good, yet, but worth considering, as it's marketed at psoriasis and eczema sufferers, so looks ideal for all auto-immune itchiness!
 
I was always really happy with the rambo sweetitch hoody after trying all of the others (apart from the boett)!

Some advice I would give after owning a sweet itch horse for 12 years is:

****NEVER**** bath your horse in the summer!!! (I know this may sound the opposite of what you feel you should be doing but it definitely works. By bathing them, you are stripping away the oils etc. in their skin which is their natural defence). Just brush them.

Start using your sweet itch rug in February (under winter rugs).

Have 2 sweet itch rugs if you can. One to wash and one to wear!

Keep the sweet itch rug on 24/7, apart from when riding, whether your horse is stabled or turned out.

Mane and tail conditioner is great for adding a sort of film of protection over their skin. It helps to prevent the midges' saliva from penetrating and irritating them (which causes the itching). It also helps to keep them looking nice as you're not bathing them!

I can honestly, hand on my heart, tell you that this worked for my horse.

He had 2 very bad years when I first had him (no mane or tail left and sores everywhere) and then once I was doing the above, you couldn't tell he suffered from it.

I slackened in the 8th year thinking it had gone away and he was very bad again.

I'll try to dig out some photos of good years and bad years.

Good luck, I know how awful it is.
 
I found that my horses sweetitch completely disappeared when he was fed a low sugar (ie. soaked hay, no processed food eg. ready made nuts/mixes) and when I had his forage analysed so I now feed minerals balanced to his specific diet. He only get minerals mixed with linseed.

No sweetitch for 2 years now.
 
Ditto the previous two posts basically.

The other thing people on here have recommended is Avon Skin So Soft Original Dry Oil Spray (the blue one); you can sometimes get them on offer or two for one on the Avon website. Intended for humans, but brill for horses too, and if you brush it through manes & tailes its amazing!

I use a Rambo Sweet itch hoody and have found it very serviceable and effective. Also I've had a Pessoa Sweet itch hoody and its given incredibly good wear - they're hard to come by though.

Have never used Boett or Snuggy Hoods, BUT did buy a Pagony rug which is supposed to be the "cheapy" version of the Boett. Don't do it! The quality left a lot to be desired IME; particularly the stitching on some of the seams which was only single-stitched and I basically had to get out my sewing machine and sort it myself!

The other thing that I don't know how I managed without is a ride-on fly rug; Horseware is the one I got - absolutely fantastic; a MUST HAVE item IME.
 
Thanks for all the advice, its always good to have as much info as possible.

I did try double base cream on Suzi last Summer but it wasn't all that effective BUT she was in a pretty bad way by that time.Same with Avon skin so soft. This year I am determined to be one step ahead and keep her as free from sweet itch as I can.
It certainly makes sense not to bath my horse considering the oils that will be lost through washing her in shampoo, I think I will just try coating the areas she tends to really rub with the neat neem oil and see how she is and I will definitely get the best rug I can afford and one for when I'm riding.
 
The boett rugs has always had tags you sew on to keep the hood in place still did not work as the stitching came out.
Pagony are not the same as boett definatly inferior quality.
Demulenkamp is.
Have not tried rambo look good quality but do not offer quite as much protection but probably great for mild cases.
 
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