Hi everyone! I have a question for you and would like to get a general consensus from this community. I have a 17.2 dark bay thoroughbred gelding. He is first off very sensitive to the bugs. We fly spray him as much as possible and of course he has a mask with ears and a long nose. My question is, are fly sheets/neck covers worth it? I’m also trying to keep him from sun bleaching. Will fly sheets help prevent this? I am also wondering if he will be too warm on certain days in a fly sheet. I live in upstate NY so mid summers can get pretty warm (80s-90s). I never bought one for him in fear that he would get overheated and too sweaty. What’s your opinion on fly sheets? (On a side note if anyone has any tricks/tips-other than night turnout- on keeping their dark bays dark over the summer please let me know!)
The bleaching is caused by heat, not just sun exposure so a fly sheet may not provide much of a difference in that respect.
I have to clip my younger horse in the summer as he has a very dense coat, and trouble with his thermo regulation. Once clipped he must wear a fly sheet to protect him from the bugs until the coat grows out a bit. I do worry about the sheet making him hotter, and it likely makes him hotter than he would have been without it.
But. The first summer I had to clip in the midst of the hottest part of the season and he was cooler clipped with the fly sheet than he had been unclipped and naked. Last summer I clipped earlier so that he would have enough coat growth to be bug protection by the hottest part of the season and I could take the sheet off. It worked quite well.
I use the stiffer mesh type fly sheet (Rambo Protector) rather than the silky soft type. My guy loves to roll, grinds himself into the ground, and would probably destroy a silky sheet in a day. The Rambo stood up to him nicely.
Day time/all day turn-out (fly sheet or not) is pretty hard on horses IF they don’t have a run-in shed to retreat to for shade.
So, my question – just for clarity 
is: what’s your turn out situation? Shed/no shed? Fans/no fans in shed? All day turn out or just a few hours a day turn out then night turn out too? Lots of factors to consider.
My horses are out mostly 24/7 – no fly sheets – but they have sheds with fans, and they retreat to the sheds for relief when bugs are buggy and the sun is beating down. None stand out in the hot sun long enough to get bleached – and on those horrible 90% humidity>85 degrees I bring them inside to their dark, cool stalls + fans and turn them back out at night. Anyway…
…more info on your turn-out set up and desires would be helpful.
I’m one who won’t ever keep a horse inside during the day just to prevent bleaching, though there are other good reasons to - heat, bugs, etc.
You don’t list where you are, and that makes a big difference as to whether any fly sheet will be too warm. Sheets that are very soft and drapey are going to get hot much sooner than sheets that are stiff and tent over the horse. The latter creates shade and allows, and maybe even causes air flow, while the drapey ones just lay there and get hot(er). For that reason, sheets like the Rambo Fly Buster are better. White/light color, not anything dark. Heat is less an issue than humidity is, so most places in the South get too hot and too humid for sheets.
Bleaching is from sunlight and sweat, so rinsing him off a few times a day if he’s sweating will help.
Aside from not turning out during daylight hours, the best prevention is making sure the diet has enough copper and zinc in it. So many diets don’t have enough, regardless of how things look on paper. The NRC guidelines on these things are for “health”, but not necessarily optimal health.
The darker the coat, the more pigment needed, the more melanin needed, and therefore the more copper and zinc needed. It’s too late now to affect the Summer coat, as it’s all but grown in. But adding those things now will affect the Winter coat, and continuing with them will then help next year’s coat.
I use polycopper and polyzinc from Uckele, or the equivalent from HorseTech.
For the bugs dark shelter works better then any fly sheet will.Flies just get up underneath the sheets and drive horses crazy.
My horse would not be able to handle being turned out without a fly sheet on. They don’t get up underneath the sheet and he isn’t going to stand inside if he could be eating grass. Last year I had just a regular sheet but there was a very obvious color difference where his sheet stopped that looked a bit silly so this year he has one with a neck. I think the lighter ones aren’t as hot as the stronger/stiffer ones and I can get at least two seasons out of them. It was mid 80s yesterday and I could tell his shoulders got a little sweaty but other than that was fine
I gave away the ones I bought 15 years ago w/o my horses wearing them.
Now mine have some more which they’ve not worn. I buy a lot of gallons of fly spray year round.
My pony prefers his on vs off even when it is 90 out. It’s white and he’s almost black so I think it helps him stay a bit cooler. He hates bugs and but loves to be out. If he doesn’t wear it he just stands miserable under the turnout shed or the gate, with it on he’s out in the middle of the pasture eating. Now if I can get a fly mask with ears that stays on I’ll be in business.
That’s for these responses guys! I live in upstate NY which I said in the OP. For turnout, currently they don’t have a formal shelter, just trees for shade but this summer we are adding runs with fans to help keep them cooler. They are typically outside from 7:30/8am until 7:30/8pm. So about 12 hours in the summer months.
General consensus seems to be to use them? But make sure they are “tent” like not too drapey to encourage air flow. I think my boy will be happier with them on. He’s so miserable with the bugs. Any brands you reccomend most? Not looking to break the bank but don’t need to go bottom of the barrel either. I know Rambo was one people mentioned…
I use the stiff mesh Kensington brand until it’s over 90 degrees. Horse likes it and I notice 's his tail is still when the other horses are swishing constantly. I also use fly boots which are very helpful
I totally missed that you are in upstate NY, sorry! I was looking for location under your avatar
At this point, all you can do is try one and see. Where you are it might be fine.
I had a solid black percheron while living in Western NY so I feel your pain. I was really nervous about using fly sheets but I ended up purchasing a Rambo Fly Buster and it was AWESOME. I was told by fellow boarders he would be hotter with a fly sheet but made sure to check him a few times throughout the day when I first started using it as well as with drastic heat changes since New York summers are fairly humid. Honestly, he was hotter without it whenever I checked him. At the time he did not have access to a run-in during the day, just some shade near trees. I attributed fly sheet success up to the fact that without bugs, he was not constantly moving/swatting/shaking (I have not had great success with “waterproof” fly sprays when combatting heavy sweat throughout the day) as well as the fact that dark absorbs light whereas the sheet is a white barrier. The Fly Buster is also designed to discourage bugs so you won’t get bugs making their way up inside (did see this happen once though with a horse fly - not the best experience).
Good luck with your decision! Everyone’s horse and situation is different so I would suggest if you do end up slapping one on, just make sure that at least initially, he can get checked throughout the day to be sure he’s not overheating.
I just read the good news that it will reach 100 by Thursday :eek:. (This is in central CA.) Wasn’t quite expecting those temps this early, but… I Iike loosely fitting fly sheets–mesh, full coverage so that I don’t have to soak them in spray. I keep mine inside their stalls with all the ventilation possible during the day–use fans as well. Night turnout.
I’m in Florida and most of the year my horses wear fly masks and fly boots. If the temp is staying in the low 80’s and I am going to be around I will use a sheet on my “hot house flower”. I won’t turn any horse out with a sheet unless I can keep an eye on them. He is less fretful of the biting flies and I don’t have to use as much chemical fly spray. I don’t like the Kensington fly sheets (too stiff) but they are the only fly boots I will buy. Mine have 24 hour turn out (only in to feed or if they want to get out of the sun so I remove everything at dinner time.
Fly sheets are great until… a horsefly, deer fly, or something equivalent (big & hurts like HELL when they bite) gets trapped underneath the sheet. And YES it does happen.
My old, stoic, unflappable TB had it happen years ago and almost killed himself trying to get away from the horsefly (which obviously he couldn’t because it was trapped). It was a very scary scene and I absolutely will NOT use fly sheets once those type of bugs arrive. My horse(s) will wear them at night when the mosquitos are out but that’s it (24/7 turnout). I’ve tried putting on their sheets when it wasn’t quite dusk yet and as I’m literally putting on the sheets those nasty bugs are flying underneath and getting trapped. So sheets come off and I’ll head out later to the barn and put them on.
Fly masks and fly leg wraps are a must - those go on daily (and left on at night if bugs are bad) as is Flys Off (SWAT equivalent but much cheaper). I do clean them twice daily so I have multiple masks and wraps.
Access to shelter is what really helps - being able to go some place that is somewhat darker is key. My current OTTB (& old TB when he was still alive) preferred to stay inside when it was super hot and buggy out. They’d go out as they wanted.
Thanks for your help everyone! Yes I am concerned about the bugs getting trapped underneath. We are going to put up shelters with fans this summer so that should help I hope. Just trying to keep my boy happy!
I do two things to reduce the risk of bugs getting trapped under the sheet. One is to Wipe his belly, legs and chest (Wipe - the wipe on bug repellent) and the other is to add Apple cider vinegar to his feed starting a couple of weeks before fly season. The ACV makes the horse less attractive to biting flies. The Wipe is not as easy to use as sprays so few people use it and it appears that flies find it more discouraging than most sprays. Wipe-ing the horse’s belly, upper legs and chest seems to help keep the flies away from the fly up under the sheet zone. My older horse has worn a fly sheet one summer in nineteen years. The year we were at a stable in the forest and the deer and horse flies were a huge problem. He did not get flies stuck under his sheet and was much happier. That was also the only place we boarded that didn’t have a man made shelter the horses would use (they stood on the hill under the trees in the breeze).
How much apple cider vinegar do you add daily?
This is the sheet I use and so far so good
https://www.argentoeq.com/products/performance-fly-sheet-neck-set
It does run about a size small though
I always spray lots under his belly and inside his legs and and also under the sheet at his back legs since that is the loosest part and I’ve never had an issue with a fly getting trapped under the sheet
I also use ACV and put 1/4 cup in his grain am + pm. Not sure how effective it really is against flies but its great for joints and overall health so I still use it
Thanks! I am also curious how much ACV to add to their feed. I tried some last year but maybe I just didn’t add enough because it did not seem super effective. Would be curious how much everyone else feeds of it…
