Ear bonnets 2023

[beowulf]

Originally I did not love the look of ear bonnets at shows either, but it only took one negative encounter with the world’s most persistent deerfly while I was trotting down the centerline at GMHA a few years back to change my mind. It sucked and it definitely impacted our score as my horse was head-tossing every time the fly landed on his ears.

They can increase the likelihood of the bridle slipping off, so I go for the thin materials.

A nice bonnet can really pull together the presentation. I like seeing all the variety of colors and combinations riders can come up with.

In the summer around here it’s a must-have if you are doing any serious work outside. I love the Cashel Quiet Ride flymasks, but they also make a Quiet Ride Comfort Ear Bonnet that IMHO is the best thing ever:

[emeraldcity]

@beowulf

they also make a Quiet Ride Comfort Ear Bonnet that IMHO is the best thing ever

I did not know this and definitely need a couple!!

[beowulf]

It is amazing. It’s lightweight and breathable and does not impact fit of the bridle like the thicker ones do, and it has a little forelock hole for pulling the forelock through.

[demidq]

Thank you! I use one for showing for the same reason!
For schooling I use an Absorbine fly mask over mare’s bridle as she is sure that mane or forelock touching her ears is a bug ready to bite.

[trubandloki]

@beowulf

they also make a Quiet Ride Comfort Ear Bonnet that IMHO is the best thing ever:

I like this one too! Slot for forelock, nice and light fabric. Just a nice simple ear bonnet!

[Knubbsy]

@emeraldcity

In pulling up those links, I noticed this one- I haven’t tried it but am intrigued, I assume the ear fabric wouldn’t fade the way the other smartpak one does.
https://www.smartpakequine.com/pt/coolmesh-ear-nets-11738

I have this one for my mare (in navy) because she is a “good” sweat-er, the bit check folks have complimented how light and airy it is. Close up it kind of looks cheap but from farther away, it’s fine. I usually don’t put it on for shows unless we’re at certain venues with bad bugs but it’s looks polished enough that I’m not embarrassed to use it as needed. I’ve had it for a year and it looks the same, I leave it hanging in our tack room so it’s exposed to fluorescents.

[Djones]

I have two geldings, one I rode and showed in a bonnet and one I didn’t.

One completely ignores gnats and such so riding him in just a bridle is fine. The other makes every excuse about tickled ears and a bonnet makes a world of difference.

Of the three of us, me, chip, and Archpod, none of us care that someone somewhere, thinks something looks dumb. However, of the three of us, im the one with a camera.

[eightpondfarm]

i’ve been wondering about horses reactivity to gnats, deerflies, other flies…etc.
I think why i don’t have much cause to dress jittery horses to protect from flying parasites is a) i don’t show and b) mine really aren’t very reactive. They live free to be in pasture should they choose to graze and consequently are pretty well desensitized. I’d think boarded horses who have turnout are the same way? We don’t have ear-gnats here. Deerflies seek higher parts of a horse than horseflies do here, so ears are prime hunting. But usually they’re gone by mid-July.

The mustangs, who come here with little or no experience with horseflies have bucking fits their first year. By the end of their second summer, they are not quite as incensed.

Curious…Is noise at a show more of a distraction than sight and smell?
And, are noise blocking devices legal or not? If not legal, i suppose desensitizing to noise is do-able for most horses. Also, if noise-reducing ear protection is not legal, i guess that’s on the rider to take the chance. Or maybe it’s a case of ‘everyone does it’ so it’s kinda ok anyway?

[trubandloki]

@eightpondfarm

Curious…Is noise at a show more of a distraction than sight and smell?

The answer to this question depends on the horse. Like humans, horses have their own sensitivities.

On your other point, I think have one horse who gets eaten alive by bugs and one horse who is not bothered by them. They live outside most of the time. Same place for lots of years and neither has changed their stance.

A friend has a horse who will scratch herself to the point of having holes and bleeding. I guess using your theory she should just ignore it until the horse stops?

[enjoytheride]

Gee, I’d much rather a horse wear a bonnet then endure a year of bucking fits due to bugs.

I find it hard to believe that not a single one of your horses shakes its head in a pasture during the summer due to bugs.

[beowulf]

@eightpondfarm

i’ve been wondering about horses reactivity to gnats, deerflies, other flies…etc.
I think why i don’t have much cause to dress jittery horses to protect from flying parasites is a) i don’t show and b) mine really aren’t very reactive. They live free to be in pasture should they choose to graze and consequently are pretty well desensitized. I’d think boarded horses who have turnout are the same way? We don’t have ear-gnats here. Deerflies seek higher parts of a horse than horseflies do here, so ears are prime hunting. But usually they’re gone by mid-July.

Another Regional Conundrum for the COTH boards: what’s normal for you isn’t for me. It’s very possible you live in a climate where bugs are a non-issue. Just like I live in a climate where regular wildfires are a non-issue.

Once May rolls around in NE, you are doing your horse a disservice if you hack the woods without fly gear. It is not a matter of desensitization. You get swarmed by deerflies in the wetter parts of the state: not unusual to see anywhere from five to twenty flies on each side of their neck. You will spend your whole ride smacking them and the horses are miserable, these bug bites hurt!

My riding ring is grass and, as our barn name suggests, the land is adjacent a long-standing tributary that flows into fens and several non-saltwater marshes. Bugs are a part of life here, as is planning your rides around them. Best time to ride bug free in spring and summer is early morning; if you miss this window, better bring your fly gear.

Here’s an old photo after a hack of my guy in his No-fly regalia (not pictured, the life-saving Comfort Ear Bonnet or my fly whisk). I try to limit pesticides because they kill many beneficial bugs, but the white stuff on my guy’s neck is CLAC DeoGel – which I will not leave home without in the summer months.

All of my horses are out 24/7 and exposed to tons of bugs, noise, and chaos. They are as far from jittery as can be. They still do not enjoy being bitten by bugs.

[Jealoushe]

@eightpondfarm

They live free to be in pasture should they choose to graze and consequently are pretty well desensitized

My horses live on a 20 acre pasture, next to woods. With flys, gnats, etc. They hide in their shelters during the day, even with masks and fly sheets. If they were forced out in a field with no shelter they would run the fence line all day due to bugs. They come in at night because the mosquitoes are so bad they will just run all night.

Some horses are more sensitive to them, has nothing to do with horsekeeping.

[Jealoushe]

@eightpondfarm

And, are noise blocking devices legal or not?

At my dressage shows you are not allowed to wear ear plugs or noise cancelling bonnets. They check the bonnets after the classes.

[sascha]

@eightpondfarm

The mustangs, who come here with little or no experience with horseflies have bucking fits their first year. By the end of their second summer, they are not quite as incensed.

Your “gives a shit about doing your best at animal husbandry” card has just been permanently removed. FFS, even cattle should be (and mostly are!) protected from that level of bug irritation.

Your “empathy” towards other sentient beings card has also been removed.

By the end of their second summer. I just can’t even with that level of disregard for an animal’s comfort. You should be ashamed but probably won’t be because “natural” and something looking “dumb” can always be overruled by “natural.”

There are not enough emojis on this board to capture the level of eye rolling and shock.

[ExpialidociousOTTB]

@eightpondfarm Some horses, like my grey pony I posted above, have an allergic reaction to bites. Having an allergy is obviously not something I can “desensitize” her to… It has nothing to do with me fussing over her excessively, or not treating her like a horse.

She mostly lives out in a large grassy field, we don’t really attend shows. I care much more about her health and well-being than how she looks, but realizing she got a big fat hematoma from being allergic to gnats was pretty distressing. She is also one that will scratch at bites until she’s hairless and bleeding. So… fly mask, fly sheet with belly band, and bonnet it is. And SWAT/IBH/whatever other necessary chemicals for the exposed parts.

I wanted to put her on Apoquel (an allergy medication) but it’s very spendy, at $450 for the first month and $250 thereafter. I hope it comes down in price so we can both be less stressed by bugs in the future.

[demidq]

In most parts of Canada east of the Rockies, blackflies chew EVERYTHING from late spring to mid July or even til frost a bit farther north. They particularly like crawling into ears, into manes, around the dock as well as any hairless areas underneath. Moose and deer are driven mad by them, domestic farm animals are driven mad by them, PEOPLE are driven mad by them. (There’s a great song about them too- google the National Film Board video of it). Black flies are followed by mosquitoes, deer flies and the dreaded B52 horse flies. Summer time is biting insect time.
My mare lives out 24/7 in a large pasture and is miserable without a flymask with ears. It’s a necessity, not a fad or fashion accessory. I also spray liberally with a human type of repellant (horse specific is a waste of money ) and at times use a flysheet, tho it gets too hot for that to be practical by July. She gets so many bites around her udder and her tail head that she will literally rub herself raw. She requires steroid ointment to the bites, and last year one raw area became infected and required systemic antibiotics.

[kaya842]

@eightpondfarm Not sure what part of MO you live in - I’ve lived all around the St. Louis and Columbia area and we definitely have gnats and bugs past July. In fact, they are typically worse after July though this year we were “blessed” with bugs starting in April and not leaving until a few weeks ago. You bet your sweet a$$ my horses were in fly gear (sheets and boots) that entire time, despite living outside and supposedly having time to “get used to it”. I will always do what I can to make them more comfortable. There were still days I brought them in and put them in front of fans because they were so uncomfortable. I can’t imagine letting them “cry it out” by bucking and running from the bugs for two straight summers.

Not sure what upset you so royally that you felt the need to start the holier-than-thou thread to begin with, much less make some of these comments insinuating that people need to make their horses “get over it” or turn them out more. It’s ridiculous. Do whatever you want and stop trying to rain on others’ parades - they are only trying to enjoy their horses, as you should be too.

Bonnets serve an actual purpose for some and serve as an accessory for others (and for some people it’s both). Either way, they don’t hurt anyone or anything and aren’t unsafe. Leave it alone.

[Djones]

Yeah, ummm…being cool with horses “naturally getting acclimated to horse flies” is laziness and apathy with regard to their comfort. My horses live outside 24/7. They get sprayed for flies in the hot months at least once a day. Trail rides mean soaking their polls in spray to ward off deer flies. They get swat in their ears as needed for gnats.

I just don’t get it, the idea they get used to getting gnawed on all summer. That’s bad horsemanship all day long.

[endlessclimb]

Not to mention, the greenheads and b52s draw actual blood. There’s no such thing as “getting used to” that.

[hybriseris]

If I didn’t have fly gear on my hard keeper lease, I can’t imagine how much weight she’d lose from pacing and running away from flies all day. Forget riding (which by the way, would be unproductive to say the least without a bonnet during fly season).

I am all for “natural”. However what I think most lose sight of is that the vast majority of what we do with horses isn’t natural. Even if you go barefoot, 24/7 grass turnout…we still SIT on them and ride them around. That ain’t natural! Even if you don’t ride, we keep them in fenced areas. So why not use the great inventions available to us to make their lives more comfortable and healthy? Bonnets included.