Sweetitch - micronised linseed or Ker E03 oil (or something else)

[LKB]

I'm at my wits end with my pony's sweet itch this year.

I've owned him for three years now, and (I thought) we'd got ourselves into a manageable routine, including:
- insol injections in Feb
- rugged and masked from March - Nov
- Biteback products
- restricted turnout in the day and in at night (avoiding dusk and dawn)
- no alfafa/garlic/other known triggering foods - he gets some Top Spec joint balancer, a handful of pony nuts and 30ml KER EO3 oil
but he is really struggling this year.

The first year I had him I tried him on micronised linseed - which seemed to help although it did make him sharper/spookier than usual. A nutritionist has recommended replacing the linseed with KER EO3 oil to provide him with a better source of Omega-3. We started using the oil over the winter but I'm not convinced its really helping - has anyone else tried this oil to help with sweetitch?

The KER website gives quite a lot of technical detail on their product, but my non nutritionist brain is struggling to compare and contrast it with micronised linseed (and specifically how they help sweetitch) in simple terms. Any pointers / advice would be gratefully received!!

 

[Micky]

I read somewhere that spirulina was meant to be good for sweetitch, but I think you have to start feeding it in January, before sweetitch season begins. I’m sure someone on here will know more about it!

 

[Chianti]

I feel your pain-my pony has very bad sweet itch. I have a trunk full of lotions and potions that have been tried and seemed to have no impact. I did use Biteback and found them very good for a couple of years and then they seemed to stop being effective. You might find it helps to start rugging up earlier - this year I started in the middle of February as it was so mild. I've also found it helps to keep rugs and masks clean so I change rugs every week and masks every few days. I've used KM Ultimate Oil which has omega 3 and 6 in it and can't say it made a huge difference. Have you tried Brewers Yeast? Lots of people say that helps. This year I'm trying Hilton Herbs supplement and lotion. I'm also trying to use Goodbye Flies which has good reviews. There are a couple of Facebook pages which I've always found to be very helpful. I'm afraid it's a case of trying different things and seeing what helps as different things work for different people.

 

[shergar]

Equine neck threadworms are often mistaken for sweet itch ,there is now a group on Facebook ,worth a look ,some owners have been struggling for years but having good results now.

 

[LadyGascoyne]

Milagra struggles with itchiness. It’s taken a year but she’s so much better.

I have tried to focus on a few concepts - reduce inflammation, improve gut health, and condition the skin and coat.

We removed all sugar from her diet, added brewers yeast to support digestion and linseed for condition. She’s on meadow grass chaff with oil as a base, and I add D&H placid and my own blend of nettle, burdock and mint. She gets speedibeet in winter.

Last year, when she arrived, she’d rubbed her face raw and we battled on and off with it. It was something I considered to be compromising her welfare so much but that, when added to her other health issues, I genuinely considered that it might be best to let her go. This year she’s so much better, she’s like a different horse.