ties have a minature horse, 275 lbs, that keeps picking up .ticks when I drive
I use it…on full sized horses. We are in a massive tick area. It does work…won’t completely eliminate ticks, but does make a significant difference (way more than fly sprays when it comes to the ticks). I haven’t had any reactions, though my one horse is sometimes a bit wiggly when I put it on. What I have found to help reduce that it, is I try and put it on when they are wet…and I put it on my hand (wearing a surgical type glove) and then on them…if you try an use the applicator, too much comes out at once and that can irritate the area.
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Freedom 45 since I put it on ,no ticks found on either horse. Farnam Equi spot did nothing waste of money.
Yes, I use it. It’s Completly fine.
When I had my horses on my own property my best defense against ticks was chickens. Never had a tick on my property when I had chickens. Didn’t have them one year and we had a ton of ticks.
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We have chickens. We have ticks. I use equispot on the horses that are out in the retirement paddocks ( long grass more trees more deer). I find it makes a difference.
There is something in the formula that my horse did not like. When I applied it, he would stomp, pin his ears, and walk around the stall. The sensation would go away, and no after effects. It does work, but that reaction wasn’t worth it, so I bought a bottle of Frontline spray. Works great.
Mine would react, too, with both the Equi-Spot and Freedom 45. The reaction was so dramatic!
I hadn’t tried any spot-ons in probably 10 years because of my horses’ past behavior. But recently my feed store had Manna Pro’s Force 50 on sale. I gave it a go, no dramatic reactions with the first application. Of course, I have different horses now, but one of them was one of the original offenders 10 years ago…
Both the Equi-Spot and Freedom 45 are permethrin, I believe. I’ve used both but prefer the package for the Freedom 45 - gives better control for application. It works well for about a week in my experience. That being said, my paint mare got hives the last time I put it on her, so I no longer use it. Endure spray seems to be the best for me now… The spot-on treatments are very strong, so be careful.
Just be careful and maybe test in one spot first. I did not do that and my poor horse ended up with a big welt at every application site. He’s fine with any fly sprays that I’ve tried, just not that product.
I use it on all three of mine and it works great! The combo of free range chickens and keeping the fields mown reduces ticks but doesn’t entirely eliminate them. The Equi-Spot takes care of the rest. I have either a tiny pony or a large miniature - a lightly boned 10 hand pony - and I use a half dose on him.
I have not had the problem others have reported with sensitivity. I do also find it helps some with flies.
I just bought some for the first time and watched the Farnam video where to apply and was surprised nothing gets applied near the tail? That’s where I find most of the ticks on my horses.
I also prefer Freedom 45. I have not used Equispot, but the application seems more tricky (more places to spot-on, and more of them in possibly troublesome places.) Yes, some horses will react badly to it, so try one spot and wait a while to see how the horse reacts. My mare definitely feels “tickled” by it. I have had virtually no trouble with ticks since I started using it, but it doesn’t really do much for flies. It’s recommended, for both products, that you wear disposable gloves, just as you would when applying permethrin to your clothing.
I applied Equi-Spot last night to both my mares. My ASB is highly sensitive to flies and everything else about life. She danced a bit when this was being applied but I think it was more because I was bothering her when she was trying to eat. So far so good. She hasn’t displayed any sensitivity in the areas it was applied other than her coat being very greasy. Fingers crossed this actually works, along with everything else she has to have, to keep some of her fly related hives down.
My welsh didn’t care when it was being applied or after it was applied. She swung her head around to watch me but beyond that didn’t seem to notice anything was put on her.
I put frontline spray on my horses. It’s not approved for horses but probably also isn’t harmful. All my horses are old or infirm so I’m not that concerned with long term side effects from a thin spray meant for birds once a month.
dungrulla, I dimly remember ~ 20 years ago being told to use frontline spray for dogs off label and to put in themane and tail for one of my geriatric horses. Something about old horses not metabolizing the topical as well, and the spray being more effective?
You don’t want them to metabolize it since frontline metabolized is fairly toxic. It’s actually fairly toxic to humans when ingested/inhaled. On the skin, once it’s dry it’s harmless to most non-insect life. It isn’t absorbed very well transdermally and is oil-based so generally the theory is that you spray it on and it stays there.
