Bug Allergies

[murphy28]

Hello All,

With the onset of Spring/Summer comes the onset of the gnats and flies. Summer brings with it a lot of stress for my gelding, which then in turn stresses me out.

A little back story: I have a 17 year old Appendix gelding who I’ve had for just under 5 years (crazy to think it has been that long!) . When I bought him in the summer of 2013 he was located in Orlando FL and I moved him straight to Gainesville b/c I was starting school at UF. He was there for 2 years until I graduated and moved back to Jacksonville. While I had him in Gainesville I never had an issue with bug related allergies. He obviously got annoyed by them, but not the extent that he reacts now. The first summer I had him in Jax I noticed that he was getting itchier and rubbed a good chunk of his forelock out, and was rubbing/biting his belly. And the summers since then have become progressively worse. He rubs his face until it is bloody, he rubs his tail out, he bites/itches at his belly and sheath to the point of them bleeding. And heaven forbid he feels one bug, he gets very dramatic about stomping and tail swishing.

For a little info on how he gets “treated” right now: With the help of the vet we pretty much determined his major allergic reactions are due to the gnats. So he is on allergy shots for that, which I definitely think have helped. I can’t imagine how much worse it would be without having those. He is also on a maintenance dose of dex every 5ish days. As for turnout he comes in when the bugs are the worse and I just got him a new fly sheet, the Amigo evolution, which I really like b/c of the belly guard and its longer length. I give him a vinegar rinse to try to help calm his skin down, and also b/c it reeks so hopefully to deter the bugs for a bit.

I was doing the research on spirullina and think I may try that this summer and see if it helps him at all.

I honestly think it has to do with being on the coast of Fl. Seeing as how when he was in central FL I didn’t have these issues, but once I moved him to Jax is when they started. I also have a friend who brought her horses to Gainesville when she was at school there and a lot of their skin issues/bug related stuff subsided till she moved them back down south (and more coastal) once she graduated. It could be a totally wrong hypothesis but it was the only thing that changed from the first 2 years of owning him till when the issues started.

Sorry for the saga, I am just kind of at a loss for what to do. I feel awful for him b/c I can’t imagine how stressed out he gets.

I figured some of y’all have had to deal with this too, so wanted to see if there was anything y’all found that you think helped?

If you got through all of that thanks for the read and any advice!

[DawningDreams]

I’ve heard that adding in flax can really help with seasonal allergies. I’m planning on adding it to my mare’s feed because she too suffers from severe skin allergies that result in full body hives, lots of pinned ears, etc. I mean, it can’t hurt to try!

[MysticOakRanch]

I use IBH spray (by Equishield) - and it has been a bit of a miracle for my super sensitive horse. It isn’t cheap, but it is effective. I get mine through my vet.

I’ve tried all the “supplement stuff” - garlic, ACV, etc - it did nothing. All my horses get flax anyway. The only other thing you might try is Benadryl - although you’re already doing Dex. The IBH is a topical approach - which might compliment the internal approach you are already using.

[murphy28]

@DawningDreams

I’ve heard that adding in flax can really help with seasonal allergies. I’m planning on adding it to my mare’s feed because she too suffers from severe skin allergies that result in full body hives, lots of pinned ears, etc. I mean, it can’t hurt to try!

Thanks for the info. As you said it can’t hurt to try! I’ll see if the local feed store has some available.

[murphy28]

@MysticOakRanch

I use IBH spray (by Equishield) - and it has been a bit of a miracle for my super sensitive horse. It isn’t cheap, but it is effective. I get mine through my vet.

I just recently hear about this stuff and it piqued my interest. Do you spray your whole horse with it or just specific areas? Also, do you use a fly spray on top of it or just let it act as a “fly spray” since it says it is supposed to have bug repelling qualities.

Thanks so much!

[MysticOakRanch]

@murphy28

I just recently hear about this stuff and it piqued my interest. Do you spray your whole horse with it or just specific areas? Also, do you use a fly spray on top of it or just let it act as a “fly spray” since it says it is supposed to have bug repelling qualities.

Thanks so much!

Just the affected areas. You could do the whole horse, but it is - expensive. I spray areas that are already showing signs of irritation AND areas that I know get irritated. Then I use regular fly spray on the rest of the horse - although that stuff seems fairly useless. I also use fly sheets. Sadly, it is too hot to use the heavy duty ones, so I use soft ones and have to switch them out every month or so as they get shredded.

But I’ve had great improvement using this product. My vet got me a free bottle a couple of years ago when it first came out, and said give it a try, report back. I’ve been buying it ever since!

[murphy28]

@MysticOakRanch

Just the affected areas. You could do the whole horse, but it is - expensive. I spray areas that are already showing signs of irritation AND areas that I know get irritated. Then I use regular fly spray on the rest of the horse - although that stuff seems fairly useless. I also use fly sheets. Sadly, it is too hot to use the heavy duty ones, so I use soft ones and have to switch them out every month or so as they get shredded.

But I’ve had great improvement using this product. My vet got me a free bottle a couple of years ago when it first came out, and said give it a try, report back. I’ve been buying it ever since!

Golden, thanks for the info. I feel you on the fly sheet situation. It gets so hot here that anything too heavy is like torture. I’m hoping he doesn’t rip up the one I just got him too quickly, so fingers crossed for that.

Have you only ever tried the spray, or have you tired the salve as well?

[PrincessPonies]

Make sure that you fly mask and fly sheet protect against gnats. My mare wears a fly sheet for sun protection, almost all pink skin paint, so it’s high in UV protection but the gnats can still get through. Since we don’t have any here and they didn’t bother her in our old place it’s ok. If I remember correctly the finer mesh sheets and fly masks are good for gnats. Also when he’s in a stall make sure there’s a fan on him my vet recommended that when we had a fly issue last year.

[MareBegger]

My mare has terrible skin issues in the summer that we’ve never been able to pin down, but she would also rub herself bloody. I finally gave her some leftover APF (http://www.auburnlabs.com/html/eqProdGen.html) and it’s the only thing that has helped. She’s on it all year round and the dosage is increased around this time of year. I don’t know if it would help your horse with the gnats, though. It’s definitely expensive, but it makes the summers bearable for both of us.

[Long_amp_Short_Ears]

I am in Middle Illinois, near St.Louis My Mammoth donkey is sensitive to fly bites so we do everything we can to minimize bugs. We feed feed thru fly control and a garlic supplement we clean dry lots multiple times a week, we drag pastures. The cows are on a feed thru fly control and and chicken coop gets clean weekly.  We also make sure that the lots and pastures do not have standing water. 

Everyone wears fly masks and fly boots. I am not a winter fan but I love that their are not bugs!

[murphy28]

Princess Ponies:

Good point on the fly sheet. I’m pretty sure the one I have is a finer mesh so it should help deter the gnats. Also in his stall he has one of those powerful metal fans, but I think I may add another one to really create a “fly free” zone.

MareBegger:

I will have to look into that supplement. I haven’t heard of it before. Who knows, maybe an immune boost in combo with the allergy shots would help him combat the reaction more.

Long&Short Ears:

We feed garlic to all the horses at the barn, but I don’t know if I could convince the whole barn (it’s a boarding barn, and many people wouldn’t be interested in spending the extra money a month) to go on a feed through sly control. I totally agree with the winter comment. Are winters are fairly mild here in FL so I wouldn’t mind having them year round to avoid the bugs.

[MysticOakRanch]

@murphy28

Golden, thanks for the info. I feel you on the fly sheet situation. It gets so hot here that anything too heavy is like torture. I’m hoping he doesn’t rip up the one I just got him too quickly, so fingers crossed for that.

Have you only ever tried the spray, or have you tired the salve as well?

Haven’t tried the salve - just the spray.

Oh, another thing that may (or may not) help. You can buy those little portable fly spray systems, battery operated? If your horse is in a stall, those can keep bugs out of the stall. Costs about $30, runs on batteries, very practical!

[murphy28]

@MysticOakRanch

Haven’t tried the salve - just the spray.

Oh, another thing that may (or may not) help. You can buy those little portable fly spray systems, battery operated? If your horse is in a stall, those can keep bugs out of the stall. Costs about $30, runs on batteries, very practical!

I didn’t know they made smaller versions! I just ordered one so we’ll see if it helps once it gets here. Thanks for the suggestion

[MysticOakRanch]

@murphy28

I didn’t know they made smaller versions! I just ordered one so we’ll see if it helps once it gets here. Thanks for the suggestion

No problem, hope it helps! It made a huge difference for us - and one was big enough to “de-bug” a stall.

[eq6375]

I’ve had the same problem! I board my horse at a barn that is literally backed up to the everglades and the gnats are terrible! The other horses don’t seem to be bothered except for mine. the only thing that has worked for me is the ripshield fly sheet from weatherbeeta with the neck. My horse shreds every blanket but can’t seem to rip this one. She rolls and it doesn’t move. Definitely worth a try and it’ll likely clear up your horses skin within two weeks. I also feed flax/chia and mirra coat as part of her supplements. Her coat is back to normal now since I got the fly sheet. Honestly, flax is great but I don’t know how much it actually does for allergies. I started feeding flax around the same time as I got the fly sheet so I don’t know how much it’s done. After they get really itchy from allergies, itching becomes habitual even if they get allgergy/bug supplements and any types of sprays or lotions. The only thing that really works is a good fly sheet to prevent bugs from biting and as a barrier between their skin and whatever they itch on. I hope this helps!

[bugsynskeeter]

UltraCruz Equine Skin and Allergy - I’d be happy to send you a sample if you are interested.

[Peggy]

My vet advised flax with extra DHA for my horse who is allergic to many things, including gnats. Since feeding fish oil to a herbivore seemed strange, I use Profile from HorseTech (https://horsetech.com/profile) which doesn’t contain fish oil. He got pretty itchy last year when the gnats were especially bad. For reference, though it will only make sense to people who have shown there, our barn’s gnat situation is similar to showing in the Allen rings at LAEC. Since he was removing hair and some skin we broke down and had the vet give him a shot that contained triamcinolone (Vetalog), a long-lasting steroid.

The horse has been on allergy shots since December 2016. I have been told that it sometimes takes over a year to get the full benefit.

[Cynical25]

North Texas here - it’s a never ending fly battle for my chestnut gelding, but my gray mare rarely has a single fly on her! I’ve spent literally thousands over the years, but this year my plan has started as such:

• SmartPak Bug-Off from March 1 thru October
• SmartImmune, started March 1 in hopes it helps “immune response”
• Depo-Medrol shot from the vet on March 1 as a preventative, vet suggestion to maybe avoid needing Dex
• WeathaBeeta Fly sheet & hood until it’s too hot/humid to be safe, Cashel mask on days/off nights
• Rotate Endure & Tri-Tec 14 fly sprays, plus Swat on legs/face/sheath/centerline of belly
• Fan going 24/7 in the loafing shed (I don’t have stalls)

Going to try/re-try a few fly spray brands this summer, as the Endure/Tri-Tec that worked the last 2 years isn’t doing anything right now. My horse welts instantly from Pyrahna (even just overspray from someone nearby!), but sadly that’s what seems to be working for my neighbors right now