Despite the fact that we have just had our 4th winter storm this season, which is unprecedented in Coastal North Carolina, I am getting geared up for spring. Several years ago I started using Fly Predators and last summer I added a Feed Thru supplement which I know was overkill.
I have 4 horses and 15 chickens. My pig passed this winter so I am mainly just dealing with horse manure. Any suggestions as to the best way to proceed this summer?
You are killing your fly predators with the feed thru fly control. Use one or the other. I’ve had great luck with fly predators, I always worry about putting chemicals thru my horses system so never used the feed thru. The fly predator information says the feed thru fly control will kill your predators thus making fly control VERY expensive. 
[QUOTE=TwoBrooksFarm;7461494]
You are killing your fly predators with the feed thru fly control. Use one or the other. I’ve had great luck with fly predators, I always worry about putting chemicals thru my horses system so never used the feed thru. The fly predator information says the feed thru fly control will kill your predators thus making fly control VERY expensive. :-O[/QUOTE]
That is right, if you have fly predators, you have to go easy with any fly killing products, especially in manure, where fly predators live.
Okay, I just submitted my order for a new year’s supply of Spalding Fly Predators. In a few months we will be sick of the heat and bugs!
When using fly predators, you can still use many kinds of fly traps and carefully fly sprays to help horses with others, like mosquitos.
Just don’t spray right over where you put the predators, only spray on the horse’s themselves and only the minimum necessary.
Fly predators only work on some of the kinds of flies that bite horses, but there are other kinds out there too.
Read the literature when your first shipment comes to learn more about this.
Thanks Bluey; I have had good success with fly predators for several years. Someone gave me a huge container of feed thru fly control and I simply used both last year despite knowing that they don’t work together. I figured I had enough chicken and pig poo that the fly predators would still help.
I just had to decide which or what to use this year as march is the time to start using predators in NC. I decided to stick with just the fly predators! Oooh I cannot wait for warm weather and bugs!!!
I use both. Have for several years now. When I was in Florida, I found that using only 1 of the products just wasn’t enough (and believe me, due to costs, I did try to use only one or the other). I also used different predators (they can be slightly different species). It’s been several years since I did all the research on this, but I did want to chime in.
There is a COTH poster who works for Spalding so hopefully they will chime in. Have used both Spalding (as opposed to Arbico) and a feed through for several years with success. Spaldings website does have a FAQ section and has had this question several times and says that the feed through doesn’t have an effect on the predators. I looked at Arbico (Fly eliminators) website and couldn’t find anything so don’t know about them. There are so many different kinds of flies that there is no one way to control them.
Feed thru products such as Solitude and Simplify do not effect Fly Predators. You may use both if you choose.
These products are IGR (Insect growth Regulators) which keep the maggot or larvae from properly developing an exoskeletal system. So then the fly never forms to pupate. The Fly Predator is looking for pupae, the stage after maggot or larvae to lays their eggs,and as a source of food.
Fly Predators do not EAT manure, rather only dig around looking for fly pupae.
For the IGR to work properly everything on the farm that poops needs to use it. That would be horse, cow, dog, cat, llama, goat and chicken since flies lay eggs in all this manure.
Thanks Larry! I ordered my summer supply of Spalding Fly Predators and just upped it a little.
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