Sweet itch?

[ponycat76]

Hello,

I'm currently looking to buy a horse. I have found one that I like the sound of but she has sweet itch. Would anyone consider buying a horse with this or should I keep looking?

 

[grandmaweloveyou]

go for it, manageable and not a major prob if you prepare, honestly, mine contracted sweet itch a few weeks ago, jumped on it and no worse. its just rugs and creams. good luck!

 

[Guinness]

keep looking there are plenty of good horses out there without sweet itch, and sweet itch can be a pain to keep under control depending how bad they have it
mine has sweet itch and it means only going out at night, having a fly sheet, loads of fly spray and anti itch lotion and he doesnt even have it that bad!

 

[grandmaweloveyou]

the only thing i would say as well is mine didnt have sweet itch, but contracted it due to the weather and increased midges about. you could buy another horse that does not have the qualities this one youve seen has and still end up with sweet itch in a matter of weeks? maybe ask their vet how serious it is and bare in mind, its the height of sweet itch season now so hopefully you are seeing at its worse.

 

[Cahill]

no,pass over.
mine has it.(wouldn`t swap her though)
cannot put her in because rub on any wall.she is got a fly sheet on and has lotion applied twice a day and is surrounded with electric fence.
it is under control and no rubbed bits at the mo but hard work and constant vigilance.
even just tying her up to tack up i have to watch she don`t rub.

 

[grandmaweloveyou]

blimey i must be really really lucky with my boy and his then thank god, so i guess it does depend on degree of it. i know a couple at yard that struggle more with it.

 

[Jackie_L]

I have a horse with really severe sweet itch and would never knowingly buy one with it. He is seven now i have had him 3 years and was ridden for the first 6 months now he's rugged up 24/7 and lotioned up to the eyeballs. Move on i know its hard but believe me its not worth the trouble.

 

[ponycat76]

Thank you all. I posted my question just before going to see the horse yesterday. I saw her in the stable, and she had a full mane and tail with no evidence of rubbing. I also ran my fingers through her mane and did little scratches to see if she would react but got no response. When she was led outside to be tacked up she was fine, but when I was riding her she was quite bothered by the flies. Having said that I have never seen so many horse flies in one go, horrid things. She wears a boett rug while she is out in the field. She was a very nice animal but she is being sold for £3000. I'm inclined to say that she is over priced (as are many horses these days it seems), she hasn't really done much apart from a few small riding club things.

 

[Honeypots]

the wonderhorse.... horses/ponies don't contract sweet itch and get over it. Its life long and there is no cure. What your horse had may have been a reaction to lots of midges or very mild sweet itch but it can't be cured, just managed.
As someone with a severe sweet itch cob I would say don't go there unless you are prepared to work hard to keep your horse comfortable and if you are expecting sell on at any point you will likely lose money as most people won't touch them with a bargepole.. There are lots of things on the market now but none of them are groundbreaking IMO.

 

[Spot_the_Risk]

Both of mine have it, my boy when at a livery yard where a meandering brook ran through the field, used a Boett and since then (6 years ago) it hasn't returned, he has no rugs or creams applied and lives out 24/7. The mare was terrible with it when we bought her in January, Boett does work, also Net-tex Itch Stop salve is fabulous.

I've been using Think Fly for the last two months, and it has definitely made a difference, flies just don't land on my gelding, or if hey do they take off again straight away. He used to have a totally black face with flies, now he has no problems, doesn't even get the little pin pricks of blood on his sheath from midge bites like he used to. The mare is better now, in Augustm than she was in January 06 when we bought her, she is still bad, but the Think Fly is definitely working for them both. And no I don't work for them!

 

[Honeypots]

I'm pretty sure then that your lad didn't have sweet itch but just a bad reaction to the midges. Have you moved from that yard? Is that why he no longer shows signs of it? My lad has severe sweet itch in the wrong environment. Where I have him now he shows very few signs of it but he still has it. If he's moved from this environment he'll go back to square one.
Sweet Itch deosn't go away as far as I'm aware but can be avoided with good management. I think maybe reactions to flies and midges are incorrectly called sweet itch Sweet itch which is as yet incurable.

I agree that IME a Boett and Net Tex Salve is the best combo..along with an elctric fenced paddock/field to preserve the rug, well away from any water source, muckheap and trees.

http://www.sweet-itch.co.uk/management.html

 

[samp]

I bought my mare knowing she had mild sweet itch. Last year I used my Boett and the stop itch salve and she had a full mane and tail. This year I changed her management and she rubbed quite a bit of her mane. So I have gone back to what previously worked. For the same horse without it I think i'd have to pay more. On a downside it is not advisable to breed from them and selling on may be a pain

 

[Em_charlie]

Hi, If you think the horse is right for you then i think you should go for it. Sweet itch is maintainable providing the right treatments are taken. (A really good thing to but is parasite repel which really helps control it.) but it depends on how bad the horse haa got it. If its the right horse for you though i wouldnt let it stop you