To buy or not to buy - What would you do?

[DunDally]

Hi all, I am fairly new on here and this is my first thread. I would like some advice, please.

I have the opportunity to buy a 3yr old WB for my daughter. She has backed him this summer for his owner and is currently riding him on. He is a super laid back chap and has taken everything we have asked of him in his stride. He is well bred (by cavanier out of a 2* event mare). The only downside to him is that he has sweetitch and this is the only reason we can afford him. If he did not have sweetitch he would be way, way beyond our budget.

My daughter would want to event him but I am concerned about the sweetitch as we have not had a horse with the condition before. Does anyone have an eventer with sweetitch? How do you deal with the condition when out at a competition? Do you take Boet (or whatever) rug and all the lotions, potions and sprays. Would you suggest putting him back in the lorry/trailer between disciplines?

I do wonder if I am making too much of it but I hate the thought of him being miserable while out at competitions. I doubt we will be in a position again to have a horse of this quality but I want to be sure we can do right by him when out and about. He has not been too bad this summer and we have managed ok but I have been told the condition gets worse as the horse gets older, is this correct?

Am i being daft. Any advice is welcome.

 

[be positive]

I had a show horse that had it, it was never a problem at the competitions, the midges are worst early morning and evening so if kept in over night that can help.

If you feel he is a really good prospect that you would not otherwise be able to have I would definitely consider buying, usually I would say avoid as a general riding horse as they do need constant management. If you can keep in at night turn out covered during the day you should find it is easier to control.
The only other thing is if you need to sell, if he is successful it should not affect his value so much but if not so good it could be more of a problem.
Every horse has something wrong with it and you are otherwise starting with a clean slate.
They can have injections to help, it may be worth asking your vet about trying him on them.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I have found that some horses with sweet-itch improve if all molasses is taken out of the diet, so it would be worth finding completely non-molassed feed to go with the rugs etc.
As someone else said, every horse has something wrong with it.

 

[kirstyl]

Hi, I hate to be negative but having dealt with a few horses and donkeys with sweet itch, I personally wouldn't purchase one myself. Obviously it would depend how severely the horse suffered but it really is quite difficult to manage and particularly for an eventer when the season coincides with the warm weather and midges, flies etc. The donkey had a Boet rug which he hated having put on and they're really quite thick so are warm when temperatures get up.
I hope someone can come back now with a positive experience to prove me wrong!

 

[tasteofchristmaschaos]

My boy has sweetitch, and it wouldn't put me off having another. Like somebody else said, comps are in the middle of the day, and midges are worst morning and evening so they wouldn't be too bad for shows, just keep spraying them with midge repellent/applying creams etc.
It can get worse as they get older, but it tends to settle at a point, and can even reduce in a small number of cases as they get older. Unless severe, which it doesn't sound like it is at all, it is a manageable condition, in the right circumstances. BUT I would say the single most important factor is the field the horse is kept in - ideally it needs to have no trees, be high up, windy and away from water, as factors such as trees, water, no wind and low lying ground are where midges 'hang out'. If you will be keeping them in a suitable field, i would say go for it!

 

[MissSBird]

It's also worth considering where the horse will be kept.

I knew a pony at the riding school I used to work at who suffered terrible sweet itch. He had to be kept in a boet rug constantly, and had biting bars over the top door of his stable so he couldn't rub himself on the edges of the door. Even with this, there were still times he had to be off work because he'd rubbed himself raw where his bridle would sit.

The stables shut down and the horses were sold.

Not that long ago I stumbled across an advert seeking information about a pony that sounded exactly like this boy. So I phoned and yes, he was the same pony! I chatted to the owner for a while. Turns out, he now goes out rugless and hasn't shown any signs of sweet itch since she bought him!

The stables where the riding school was is in our local park, and I still walk my dog frequently around the area. The yard was situated in a wood, so surrounded by trees, and right behind it is a bit of boggy/peaty land that is always damp. Consequently, a breeding ground for midges. His current yard is apparently ontop of a hill, and very open.

So, when stabled on the right yard, this pony's sweet itch is not only managable; it's non-existant!

 

[smellsofhorse]

I know a couple of horse with sweet itch.
They wear boet rugs and are in at night durring the worst season.

They have plenty of creams and sprays and neither have had a bad flare up for ages.

Its all down to management.

 

[Ladyinred]

Alfalfa in the feed can also aggravate sweetitch. I was told this seven years ago and could have saved a lot of misery if I had believed it then. Cutting the stuff out of my boys feed has changed him from a miserable itchy horse with no mane into a normal happy chappy!

 

[Inchy]

My dressage horse has bad sweetitch - wouldn't stop me having another.

At home during 'fly months' I just mave to make sure he's always covered up - fly rug or lite weight turnout with neck and fly mask. Always has 'coopers fly repellent' on, and doesn't eat any food containing molasses (I feef aflfa a - found it made no difference).

At comps - he has a rambo hoody fly rug to travel in - dual purpose as keeps him clean and keeps away and flys which may have snuck in the lorry! When we're there I make sure he has his coopers on - and then forget about the bugs!

When I first had him he had no mane or tail and lots of raw patches...now you can't tell he has sweetitch

 

[Honey08]

We had two ponies with sweet itch, and they weren't a problem at all. They didn't need boett rugs, Rambo sweet itch hoodies did the trick, and as someone said, they were better in at night, but did live out. At shows we put Equimins Biting Insect cream on the top of the tails. I think that you would get less effect eventing as you aren't standing around in big show classes etc..

I didn't sell either of our ponies for less due to their sweet itch. To me its not a major thing if its mild.

On another note, we have a ISH that had Cavalier Royale as a grandsire. We bought him at 4 and he was a really laid back easy youngster. He did make up for it as a 6yr old!! Turned into a lovely horse though.