Those with hairy cobs - feather mites: should I clip? *please help*

HappyNeds

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Hi all hairy-cob owners, please can you share your feather mite solutions. Should I clip feathers off, will that help?

Here is the history...
Our wonderful Gypsy cob, bought (from the Gypsies) back in the spring, we had him vetted, and vet said he had clearly had very bad untreated feather mites in the past but it seemed to be now just scarring as he didn't seem in any discomfort. Vet now thinks they had never treated it, but they must have given him a small Dectomax injection just before selling him to stop him chewing and stamping.

However, within a week of having him he started to chew and stamp his feet, vet came out (end of April this year) and gave Dectomax injection, within a day or so all was fine, a happy horse.

By the end of May one unhappy horse, chewing and stamping again, vet out again early June, another Dectomax injection. This time (as I had since read somewhere about having 2 injections close together to kill the adults and the eggs) I had the vet back middle of June for another injection also.

Happy horse again for another couple of months, by end of August chewing again. Had vet out in September to give Dectomax injeciton, all fine again. Chewing started again last couple of weeks, vet booked to come out next week to give further Dectomax injection.


In between all this I have tried combing through pig oil (with sulphur powder), but it seems very hard to get this anywhere near his skin (I was using a spray bottle in the end), it takes ages becuase his feathers aren't easy to comb through and he's not hugly patient! ;) I persisted over several weeks with this but it didn't seem to make much difference to be honest.

Not only are the vet's call-outs costing a lot, but we don't like the idea of constantly giving him chemicals if there's another way of solving this. We certainly plan to keep our boy for life (he's only 6 now), so would rather not have to pay call out and Dectomax injections every 2 months for the next 30 years!

We like our horses hairy and natural, so he's not clipped at all, but if clipping his feather off once to get on top of this problem means the mites won't come back when his feather grows back, then I am happy to do this. But I'd rather not clip it off if it will make no difference. He lives out 24/7.

If you've found a way to beat these mites, Please can you share this with me! Thank you :):)


A photo below just to you can see how hairy his feet are, so you can see how difficult it is to apply pig oil/treatment that consistantly reaches his skin.
(hope this pic works, it's the first time I've added a photo)

Royshairyfeet2.jpg
 
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Foxhunter49

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Get some Neem oil off the net, mix 5 ml Neem . 3 ml shampoo and make up with 1 litre of hot water and rub that into his feathers. Will last for at least two - three weeks when you might need to reapply.
 

Theresa_F

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Send me a PM with your email address and I will send you a very long and detailed note on how to care for hairy horses legs so they are healthy, hairy and in show condition.

Clipping does not get rid of them, if you have a lot of sores and scabs, then yes it is easier to deal with but try what I put in my note first - good old fashioned remedies used for years by the old boys with their heavies.

All my four have not had mites and I have now had hairies for 12 years.
 

HappyNeds

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Forgot to say we also tried shampooing his legs with Dermoline, again it seemed to give some relief but only for a few days.

Thanks for the reply Foxhunter49 - how does the neem oil work, is it just the same as pig oil in that it's supposed to stop the mites holding on?
 

HappyNeds

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Theresa_F, thanks for your reply, I will PM you now. :):):)
I feel hopeful! A way of keeping him hairy and happy would be perfect. And I so much prefer natural ways of dealing with things if at all possible.
 

Rose Folly

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My horse does not have feather mites, but another condition, flexural dermatitis, which also makes her chew and stamp.

Bearing in mind that the following is NOT something which would kill the mites, I imagine, but which does give a lot of comfort to my mare, you could try this:

I've trimmed her heather (not one quarter as luxuriant as your horse's) with scissors, so none of the hair is longer than about 2 inches. Every week, or at longer intervals when the disease is in remission, I wash her legs really, really thoroughly with coal tar shampoo - I sit on a garden seat, take about 5 minutes per leg, and really work it right into the skin. I leave it on 15 minutes, and then rinse the legs off very thoroughly. I use Polytar as that's the coal tar shamppoo the local chemist stocks. My vet told me about this as, like you, I don't want to keep packing the horse full of chemicals. It works much better than the prescriptions she was on, and it's about 1/50th of the price!!

In between I rub Johnson's Baby Oil, again very thoroughly, into the affected parts, which in her case takes the form of excrescences.

I think the benefit to you would be that neither product should harm your horse in any way, even if they proved to be no good in calming the itching.

NB I did use Pig Oil & Sulphur, but it drove her crazy (the sulphur I guess).

Hope you find something that works.
 

HappyNeds

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Thanks Rose Folly, the only problem I have with shampooing is that we don't have running water at the field to attach a hose to. (All their drinking water we bring in containers). So when I shampooed his legs before I was so paranoid about not washing it out properly I tried to use a watering can to wash the water close to his skin - but he was very scared of the can! So then I just had to laddle the water to his legs with a jug, but again without a hose it's so hard to be confident I had all the shampoo out, I spend hours doing it and he got very fed up with all my faffing! :D

I like the idea of the Johnsons baby oil giving some relief, I currently put Sudocrem on his actual sore bits. Bless him, if you search through his feather where he's been chewing there are round scabby bleeding bits that look so sore, and I put the nappy rash cream on these to try and soothe them, but I don't know if I'm really helping
 

hayinamanger

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When I first started using Dectomax, about 10 years ago, a one off injection would sort the mites for good. Recently I have found that there is some resistance to it, so I now give 3 injections at 10 day intervals (day 1, day 10, day 20) this has been very successful recently on a new arrival with a chronic mite problem.
Every few months I do my cobs feather with an Ivermectin sheep wormer, just glove up and apply a good soaking to the lower legs and rub well in. It works well and the boys love having it done, cheap too.
You can buy both of these treatments from your local agri store, they are off licence for horses, and you can inject the Dectomax yourself.
 

HappyNeds

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When I first started using Dectomax, about 10 years ago, a one off injection would sort the mites for good. Recently I have found that there is some resistance to it, so I now give 3 injections at 10 day intervals (day 1, day 10, day 20) this has been very successful recently on a new arrival with a chronic mite problem.
Every few months I do my cobs feather with an Ivermectin sheep wormer, just glove up and apply a good soaking to the lower legs and rub well in. It works well and the boys love having it done, cheap too.
You can buy both of these treatments from your local agri store, they are off licence for horses, and you can inject the Dectomax yourself.

I had heard you could buy and inject Dectomax yourself (apparently only as long as you say it's for a cow and not a horse!) but he hates the Dectomax injection, and really throws himself around while the vet gives it to him. Apparently (so the vet said) this is becuase it's such thick viscose stuff it is injected through a very thick needle, and so it hurts him. He's very good with his normal jabs, so he doesn't mind other needles. I think I would be too worried about injecting him myself in case I did it wrong and hurt him even more than it already does. I had also heard you could get Dectomax in a liquid that you pour along their backs, I asked the vet about this and the vet said he had seen this cause a skin reaction and not to use it that way for horses. I think I would be very worried about pouring such strong chemicals on his skin anyway.
 

carthorse15

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Hi

Sorry about the problems you are having. Had the same problem with my heavy cob about 10 years ago It was noted at the vetting that he had mites and vet with consent of owner gave a course of 2 injections over 2 weeks and his feathers were clipped off. The owner kept him during this time. When I picked him up I was given 'Ridet'? its the stuff they use on cattle and you pour it along their backs - same as stuff called 'Switch'?? After that he was never troubled again, and grew his feathers back in. I don't agree with washing and hosing - the mites burrow holes under the skin, so it really has to be treated from inside. Thats my opinion, for whats its worth.

Cheery
 

jeni

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Benzol benzoate... works a treat.u can get it off the net for about 12 pounds. you dont use much so will last u a long time. its also brill for sweet itch. just use it every few days untill the itching stops x
 

indie999

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Never done the injections but yes I would trim them up (obviously difficult if you want to show) I do let them grow out as well once we are on top of any mites(I do find keeping the hair just off the ground helps as well. Only trim to get the lotions and potions into the hair at the root and on the little bore holes.

But I use Benzyl Benzoate in huge jars and slather it on and get into those little bore sores. I leave it on for a couple of days and then I rinse and plaster aqueous cream in to try to stop the critters adhering and soothe the little sores. If they are hugely bad will hibiscrub the legs and then moisturise ie aqueous cream. Have heard good reviews for frontline but have never used this either.

Good luck but you might have to treat a few times etc then just keep an eye.
 

HappyNeds

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Thanks everyone for your comments.

Carthorse15, I can see your logic regarding mites burrowing under the skin and therefore needing treatment from the inside not the outside, but as our boy has already had 5 Dectomax injections in nearly as many months and the mites just keep coming back it's just not working. I need to look at another way to help him long-term.

The Benzol benzoate sounds promising - Jeni and Indi999, can you tell me is it a cream then? I've googled it and people seem to be talking about using it for sweet itch, but it will actually get rid of the mites will it? (rather than just prevention like pig oil?)

I don't show him, we just enjoy hacking about ;)
But I do like him hairy, and as he lives out 24/7 it's his winter protection, but I can't go on as we are for years, so I'd rather get his feather clipped off now and sort this out permanently, then his feather can grow back and hopefully he can be happier.

I'm sorry if this is a silly question, but he won't get colder in the winter will he, if I clip him below the knee?
 

SuperCoblet

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We clipped my neds feathers off end of October as we were fed up with the scabs and nothing could actually get to the skin.
He looks rarther smart, pic doesn't really do any justice
f248afe2.jpg

The vet recommended Frontline spray, which you can only get from local vets with an equine vet referral. Its done a fab job of him mites, we apply it once a month and with his feathers clipped it's so easy to put it on :)
 

HappyNeds

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We clipped my neds feathers off end of October as we were fed up with the scabs and nothing could actually get to the skin.
He looks rarther smart, pic doesn't really do any justice

The vet recommended Frontline spray, which you can only get from local vets with an equine vet referral. Its done a fab job of him mites, we apply it once a month and with his feathers clipped it's so easy to put it on :)

I love his black tail, what a beautiful boy! He does look smart.

I think clipping might be the way to go temporarily to sort the problem, we certainly can't afford to just continually pay monthly vets Dectomax injections and not have any long-term results, and it's so hard to 'apply' any of the treatments you've all kindly been suggesting with all his feather.

Please can I ask - Should I try and cut most of the feather off with scissers first, then get someone out with clippers to tidy it up? Presumably I couldn't do it just with scissers? (I don't have any clippers myself as our boys are au-naturale).
 

SuperCoblet

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Yes we used sissors first then clipped, we've only got little liveryman battery clippers an they almost died getting through his mass of hair! Also, clipping downwards is much easier :)
 

Tegan

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Hi

I am using Nettex feather mite powder at the moment which seems to be working well. Might be worth a try.

Tegan
 

HappyNeds

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I think I will do what I can with scissers and then get someone out to finish it with clippers - I've just googled horse clippers and they seem very expensive! :eek:

I'm almost worried about what I might find under it all, I know from my combing through he's got some very odd shapped scars and lumpy bits from years of untreated mites, plus the active mite sores that he's currently chewing at. I can see thought that the best thing is to see it so I can help him, but won't he do more damage if he still chews at the sores when they are visible? I supposed there's not much that can be done about that whilst I get on top of the problem as soon as I can. If the treatments are soothing hopefully he won't still chew at them too much.

Is your boy stabled, or does he live out all the time? I know it sounds silly but I'm worrying that as it's winter I will make his feet cold without his feather. I have rugs for him but as he's currently unclipped I don't plan on using them unless the weather throws someone very odd at us, so he's just in his field as is.
 

HappyNeds

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I am using Nettex feather mite powder at the moment which seems to be working well. Might be worth a try.
Tegan

Hi Tegan, thanks for your message. I've just googled this, it does sound good, it says it's non-synthetic chemical that works by breaking down the waxy protective coating of mites causing them to dehydrate and die.

The problem is, I end up not knowing what to try first with everything I read! :rolleyes:

Can I ask, did you clip your cob to be able to apply it affectively?
 

HappyNeds

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Black_Horse_White

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My cob also had bad scarring through years of having mites and not being treated. His legs were terribly wrinkled. I'd only had him 10 months and had the injection done twice, and clipped his feathers off twice too. Everytime they grew back he would stamp and bite them again. Although he didn't have sores anymore. Sadly I lost him to ringnone.
 

HappyNeds

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My vet told us to use the frontline dog spray on the feathers. It's in the blue spray bottle and you apply it directly amongst the feathers.

Hi Lottie, thanks for your message. It seems I have a vet who is only interested in making money from Dectomax injections as each time they've come out I've asked what else I can try and they've said only Dectomax will work.

Have you tried this spray on a cob, has it worked?
 

HappyNeds

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My cob also had bad scarring through years of having mites and not being treated. His legs were terribly wrinkled. I'd only had him 10 months and had the injection done twice, and clipped his feathers off twice too. Everytime they grew back he would stamp and bite them again. Although he didn't have sores anymore. Sadly I lost him to ringnone.

This is very sad, I'm so sorry you lost him :(
 

Walrus

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Hi Lottie, thanks for your message. It seems I have a vet who is only interested in making money from Dectomax injections as each time they've come out I've asked what else I can try and they've said only Dectomax will work.

Have you tried this spray on a cob, has it worked?

I know it's not much help but I tried frontline on my fell - it worked but only for short periods, the dectomax worked on my lad. I think they work along the same principle (ivermectin) so I would imagine that if the dectomax didn't work then the frontline won't. The frontline isn't cheap either!

I would thoroughly recommend reading the pm Theresa_F will send you and then following it like religion!!!
 

SuperCoblet

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Lottie- that's the same stuff I use, but I put it on gloves as he hates anything spray-ish!
He lives out 24/7 as he climbs out of stables :eek: not a typical cob, can you tell yet? :p he is on hard standing with his stable at night to dry his legs off but so far all good.
If you do clip, don't clip them too short else there will be no hair to protect from the mud, mines ok because they have grown back a bit :)
 

HappyNeds

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I would thoroughly recommend reading the pm Theresa_F will send you and then following it like religion!!!

I can't wait to read it! I've PM'ed Theresa_F my email address as she kindly said she would send me her 'guide to happy hairies' so I'm waiting with baited breath for it to come through. It certainly sounds like she's found a way that works. And I like her moto - "Life is short, enjoy it to the full with large hairy horses" :D:D
 

hayinamanger

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Re needle size for Dectomax, I use a 19 x 1 (usual horse needle) and inject 20mls of the stuff into the brisket of a Shire without a problem. It is thick old stuff, I find it helps if you keep it in your pocket for a while to warm up.
 
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