Hello, I am new to the Forums and have a question regarding biting flies and mosquitoes. I have often used Deep Woods Off on my mare when trail riding and was wondering if anyone uses this instead of conventional fly sprays? Pros and cons? Thank you.
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A big plus for me for DEET is that it repels biting horse flies, which my area has in abundance.
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Pro - it works.
Con - it’s expensive.
I use it for trail riding, and I spray my horse’s legs when we go out to hand graze. I’m using it to deter ticks.
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I’ve done it before on the trails with no issues
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I’ve used it also when trail riding. Not had any issues with it.
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I buy it when it’s on sale at Costco. It’s great for horses, and sometimes I give myself a shot at the same time. Works great, lasts for a long time. I don’t think it’s much different in price from what they charge you at a horsie store for horsie fly spray… and it works better.
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Yes, I use it on the legs and put a shot on the tail too to deter ticks from climbing on board.
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I bought DEET concentrate off of Amazon, mixed it with generic flyspray and it worked beautifully! I have a horse who freaks out at aerosol sprays of any kind, so regular Off will not do. I’ve used Off products very successfully during mosquito years here in the PNW. I did find they make it in a non-aerosol bottle, too.
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I’m interested in trying this. Could you please post a link to the DEET product you bought off Amazon?
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I’ve always heard that it’s a Bad Idea to actually mix deet and any of the pyrethroids (like in regular fly spray.)
Just a quick goggle turns up this:
Other studies conducted by these authors suggest that exposure to DEET and permethrin causes significant sensorimotor deficits and disruption of the blood-brain barrier.
Observations demonstrate that a pesticide mixture (permethrin and DEET) can promote epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of adult onset disease and potential sperm epigenetic biomarkers for ancestral environmental exposures.
I’m pretty blase about mixing different types of fly spray, but won’t add deet with other things.
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be mindful that DEET can mar plastics, actually soften and melt them. Not sure about leather.
in people the 100% DEET concentrate can be quite toxic producing neurologic symptoms and can interact with sunscreens.
It is widely available in most outdoor supplier stores. Treat it with respect
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It’s another that melts paint. I will spray “things” with it (ears on fly masks, fly boots, etc.) but I will not spray directly on a horse unless I plan to bathe them very shortly after. For example - going on a shorter trail ride, 1.5 hours or less, I will spray it on but the horse will get bathed when we get home to get it back off.
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I use it sparingly-
Only for trail riding (not as a general fly spray) and only spray the specific spots where horse flies and deer flies tend to bite. I always wash it off afterwards.
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