I’ve seen a couple of ads for Ultrashield Gold. They’re saying it makes it harder for the flies to find the horse, which sounds similar to Ecovet. I’ve had good results with Ultrashield Black. Has anyone used Gold yet?
Not yet. Gold has the same three fatty acid ingredients as Ecovet, but at first read seems that the concentrations of each of them in Gold are quite a bit lower than in Ecovet. Gold also contains pyrethrins, permethrin, and piperonyl butoxide. The latter chemical inhibits insect enzymes from detoxifying the two insecticides and enhances killing.
For me the choice between Ecovet and Ultrashield Gold is largely whether I am OK with spraying insecticides on my horses or not. Since I recently had two horses with pretty severe dermal allergic reactions to a different Absorbine fly spray to the tune of over $1000 for emergency vet management I’m going to stick with Ecovet for now. I look forward to reading about COTHers Ultrashield Gold experiences, and I hope they are all positive.
1 Like
I love EcoVet and routinely use Absorbine Black. I’d be willing to give this one a try if on the shelf around here.
This should not be confused with Farnams Bronco Gold. Years ago it created blisters on my donkey & horse.
1 Like
I have use Fly Bye spray. 1st year it worked great. Next year hardly worked at all and last year it was OK. I will probably get another gallon. At least you can breathe when you use it. It has a pleasant smell…made with geranium oil.
1 Like
@LCDR - Thanks for clarifying. It looks like it’s 5% of each of the three acids in Eco-Vet and 1.6% in Gold.
I attached screen shots in case it’s helpful to anyone else.
I may give it a try. Ecovet works well for me, but the smell is overwhelming and my husband’s gelding strongly objects to it.
I did chuckle reading the Gold directions. They say up to 17 days of coverage. Has anyone gotten more than a few hours from any type of fly spray?
I’m in New England and the bugs get pretty bad here in the summer.
My current top three are:
- Ultrashield Black (my go to for summer trail riding when the bugs are out in full force)
- Ecovet (it works, but the smell…)
- Spalding Labs Bye Bye Insects (all herbal, works well until the bugs get horrific)
5 Likes
I often add a few ounces of Ecovet to whatever other fly spray I’m using (usually Ultrashield black or pyranha) and it does seem to help a bit, so this should probably be in that same ballpark.
I usually pay 60ish for a gallon of Ultrashield Black and a gallon of Ecovet lasts me a few years, so dunno if it makes sense to pay the premium with this new Gold formula.
5 Likes
Curious for someone to give it a try. I can’t be in the barn or even our outdoor crossties when Ecovet is sprayed without causing a full blown asthma attack so I wonder if this would be better or just as bad.
2 Likes
One of the big reasons I started adding a little ecovet to other stuff rather than using it straight up was that respiratory effect. Even my horses object. And WHY is it that I can still smell it on them days later but the flies can’t at that point. Ugh.
It’s mucho easier to handle adding a little to something else.
2 Likes
More power to those using Ecovet. My horse runs and will break cross ties over the smell. He stands like a perfect gentleman for all other sprays. But that one is where he draws the line.
It’s awful.
I’m using fly sheets, fly masks, fly legs and cattle tags. Plus some natural sprays that worked last year. Between that and fly predators, I don’t have a ton of flys/bugs.
1 Like
I saw this in TSC the other day and wondered about it.
I use TriTec 14. Seems to be the one that works the best for my horse.
I chuckle at the outlandish claims these sprays make about how many days and weeks they last. They might as well say “Lasts up to a Zillion Billion Years!” I’ll take it just as seriously. I’m happy if I get a few hours out of it.
7 Likes
I get all day coverage out of mine… and it’s still about 50% effective after 24 hours, assuming it hasn’t rained and isn’t muddy. It’s Gordon’s Horse & Pony spray, and I go through a gallon every couple weeks (I have 4 horses here). The bottle claims 3-14 days coverage 
The downside is that it’s an oil-based spray and it will make the horse sort of greasy. It smells nice though, kind of baby wipe-ish.
2 Likes
Maybe it lasts longer if you actually follow directions to back-brush the hair in sections and then apply spray so the liquid gets down to the skin. But I have never done that. Truth is I had never read any fly spray container’s application directions until this thread started.
“Apply spray while brushing against the lay of the coat to ensure adequate coverage.”
2 Likes
Also following for the same reason. I’ve also had issues sharing an arena (indoor and outdoor) with a horse who has been sprayed with EcoVet.
1 Like
I like this stuff a lot. It definitely works and lasts all day. One can lasts longer than you would expect too!
I had a bottle of ecovet in the door of my trailer, along with other fly sprays. I forgot to take them out over the winter, and they all froze and leaked. Absorbine Red and Black were also in the door.
Guess where the ecovet bottle was sitting?
The only other bug spray I’ve seen melt paint is Deep Woods Off. I tossed the bottle. I’m not going to spray something so caustic on my horse, period.
1 Like
You use cattle tags on your horses? Like ear tags? How does this work?
Zip tie to the fly mask or fly sheet.
I’ve used cat flea and tick collars on their legs when ticks are bad. It helps but didn’t work as well as just spraying Frontline.
1 Like
Very creative! Do you think it makes a difference?
@endlessclimb, I didn’t realize what I was looking at until I blew up the picture. That’s AWFUL!!!
1 Like
