sweet itch

jensheff26

jensheff26

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hi my 18yr old pony has bad sweet itch hes always had it iv had him 6 months but my daughter wants to show him this yr at the min its looking fine and mane growing back lovely he was previously hogged does anyone have any ideas on how to keep it at bay thro the spring/summer any homemade recipe ideas he has a full neck fly rug but makes no difference still rubs raw
 
If you are serious about the showing:

- Keep the pony inside during daylight - midges don't fly after dark, but does require getting up early to bring them in

- invest in proper sweet itch rug - P-J type with full belly coverage. Boett is the original, but plenty of affordable variations. Make sure its a sweet itch rug and not a fly rug

- Lotions and potions - Nettex Itch Stop is very good, buy the best fly repellant and use sudocreme from sores. Last summer Absorbine fly repellant (for 'rooms' woth permethrin and citronella) was the most effective for me.

-Feed Brewers yeast - the B vitamins makes the horse less attractive to midges.
 
I have a gypsy cob that is shown and you would never know he has SI - albeit it is mildish, but that may be due to my routine. Ditto our clydesdale mare who when we got her had a lot of sores and rubs but is now free from any sign of SI.

I feed brewers yeast, linseed and most importantly, clivers from mid March to mid September in their feeds twice a day.

They live out 24 x 7 from start of May to end of October with electric tape round the fences. They can groom each other if they get itchy. There are no trees etc for them to rub on. Our field is not near water and whilst hedges are around, they are not too midgy as they are not overhung by trees.

Both wear a snuggy SI body (plus sheath/udder cover) all the time when out - I don't use a hood, as I have found the snuggy SI hood will rub if left on all the time. They do wear one for the month of April as they still come in. Once living out, I apply a mixture I make of essential oils which include bog myrtle and citronella, dettol and plenty of avon skin so soft and fresh bath oil twice a day. I also every few days put some benzyl benzoate on to keep the roots of the hair oily and sooth anything.

Should they have to stay in overnight, they wear a snuggy SI hood and a premier equine thick cotton tailguard on. I also put on a body suit.

This routine works very well for them and both have full manes and tails with no signs of rubs. However, if I leave them in without protection when in the stable, or tied up near a post, they will given half the chance rub out manes, tails and forelocks.
 
I'm not suggesting this for a serious case, but benzyl benzoate seems to be very out of fashion these days. It's very cheap, £7 a half litre from eBay. Water it down with another two parts water, so you have a litre and a half, and spray it on the mane and tail every day. I've had three mildly affected horses and they all stopped rubbing completely using it. Possibly people don't like it because it's greasy, but watering it down makes it disappear into the coat. You can use it full strength every 3 days instead, but I find it much easier to remember to do something every day than every 3 days.
 
My old pony suffered with it badly when we first had her ... we were told to use a recipe and it sounds horribe but worked wonders!!

1/2 pint of (very) warm water and make the other half of the pint up with baby oil and TCP. Give it a good shake and apply to the area immediately... do this once a day until it shows signs of clearing...
 
Hi
I live in an area where we are surrounded by trees and wet land, millions of midges all last year and all day, my poor horse was tortured, i got him a pagony rug, excellent, it really helped him when he was out and didnt rub anywhere. i used fly sprays with deet, which were effective. the avon skin-so-soft is good too.
 
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