The Art of Natural Dressage

Working with the Horse's Initiative
It is currently Fri Mar 29, 2024 6:02 am

All times are UTC+01:00




Post new topic  Reply to topic  [ 29 posts ]  Go to page Previous 1 2
Author Message
PostPosted: Fri Feb 26, 2010 2:10 pm 
User avatar

Joined: Thu May 17, 2007 11:57 am
Posts: 1983
Location: provincie Utrecht
the original boett is good too, but expensive. i have had one for five years.
you put the blanket on as soon as the temperature come above the 10 degrees day and night and you can see some flys
when you are to late the horse is maybe already itchy.
The flys who make the horse itcy are very very little and hard to see so it makes it not so easy :-)
Take also a good look at the food of the horse. a mix of the blancked and good food will help the horse a lot.

there is also "ivanhoe", this is only the neck part, for those horses who are only itchy at the mane.


Top
   
PostPosted: Fri Feb 26, 2010 3:32 pm 

Joined: Fri Jul 18, 2008 12:19 am
Posts: 72
Location: Rhode Island
Romy, that is so kind and generous of you! :f:
I don't speak German at all but a man I work with does. I will try him and see if he can navigate the site. Otherwise, I may need your help.

Inge - good info. I did see the Boett blanket and read the site info which sells it. They are now selling an oral med as well. My pony won't let me apply fly spray of any kind to any part of him - he smells it from afar and won't come near me when I have any of it. This pony is really forcing me to think of new ways to be!!
inge wrote:
a mix of the blancked and good food will help the horse a lot.
Could you be more specific with exactly what would be good? This pony eats Triple Crown lite and lots of hay. I'm not sure what you mean by blancked... :blonde:

Thanks, Carla

_________________
Carla


Top
   
PostPosted: Fri Feb 26, 2010 4:52 pm 
User avatar

Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2007 4:10 am
Posts: 3688
Location: Pacific Northwest U.S.
I believe Inge means "blanketed." This to keep the midges and biting flies off.

When you have a webpage rendered in a language foreign to you there are services that will auto translate for you simply by submitting the URL to them.

Often syntax and grammar can bit confused, and even a phrasing mishandled but generally the language you do read and it's translated to will be readable.

http://www.google.com/search?q=translat ... =firefox-a

#
Google Translate
Google's free online language translation service instantly translates text and web pages. This translator supports: English, Afrikaans, Albanian, Arabic, ...
translate.google.com/ - Cached - Similar -
#
Yahoo! Babel Fish - Text Translation and Web Page Translation
Translate a web page. Select from and to languages, Chinese-simp to English, Chinese-simp to Chinese-trad, Chinese-trad to English, Chinese-trad to Chinese- ...
Free Translation - Text Translation and Web Page ... - Help
babelfish.yahoo.com/ - Cached - Similar -
#
Language Tools
Specific languages, My language: English ▼ ... English, › Estonian › Filipino › Finnish › French › Galician › German ... Translate a web page ...
www.google.com/language_tools?hl=EN - Cached - Similar -
#
Free Website Translator. Online Website Translation
Free Online Language Translation. Translates websites from English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Russian, Dutch, Greek, Swedish, Arabic, ...
www.worldlingo.com/en/websites/url_translator.html - Cached - Similar -

_________________
Love is Trust, trust is All
~~~~~~~~~
So say Don, Altea, and Bonnie the Wonder Filly.


Top
   
PostPosted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 3:44 am 

Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:02 pm
Posts: 1072
Location: UK Worcester/Hereford border
My lovely Gypsy Cob, Danny has sweetitch and access to trees, fence posts, stable walls and anything else he can rip rugs on.
(He managed to murder 5 brand new Winter Rugs of 1800 denier in a single season, so he currently has none.)
I am happy to say that since adding linseed/flaxseed daily at 100 grams a day with 5 mg of pure powdered garlic to allow uptake, this has helped to reduce his allergic reaction to midge bites, and daily applying by sponge all over from late Feruary through to November a mix of vinegar, mineral white oil also known as pig oil with various essential oils (usually geranium, lavender, rosemary, sometimes eucalyptus but whatever I have in stock), he managed all last year without rubbing and enters 2010 with his full double mane.

Dan does always have access to the barn and a field shelter but we are near to a pond and a river so have a lot of midges, but so far linseed in food and vinegar and oil over his coat have made him a more comfortable pony. xx


viewtopic.php?f=13&t=2815

_________________
Susie xx
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepony/


Top
   
PostPosted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 1:18 pm 
User avatar

Joined: Thu May 17, 2007 11:57 am
Posts: 1983
Location: provincie Utrecht
What i mean with good food is: you have to find out where the problems (itchy) comes from.
Most horses will get this from high levels of sugar and high levels of fructaan in grass. That is also a kind of sugar only a different name.
It is also in carrots, apples, hay and horse food from a factory, the sugar reduce the dust and give a longer storage.
And also lots of proteins are not good. You can find it also in horse food and to much fresh grass.

Because the horse / pony can not digest it so good they get to much from some substances and then they can get signs of....what ever...some get itchy, some get founder, some get IR, some get just fat and so on.....
Lots of reasearch have found out that it is a combination of food and the flys which give problems.
search the internet about sweet itch and you will find al kind of people who have experiences with it and what they have done.
Sometimes they miss some vitamine or mineral when that is back to a normal level the itchy is almost over.

It is a long search but worth it!!
and the blanked will help also


Top
   
PostPosted: Sun Apr 25, 2010 8:12 pm 

Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:02 pm
Posts: 1072
Location: UK Worcester/Hereford border
Sweet-Itch
I know we have discussed Boett and other midge blankets, these do work for some horses who have pasture without woodland or something to either snag holes in the rug or available to rub it off.
For my pony Daniel I feed 100 grams of micronised linseed daily with 5 grams of pure garlic powder but would be happy to use flowers of sulphur if I had any left in the feedstore, just as Vitamin D is essential to the uptake of Calcium, sulphur plays it's role in allowing the beneficial copper and Omegas to be utilised.
Daniel also has a tablespoon of TURMERIC, twice daily when treating a sarcoid, now usually one tablespoon for maintenance. (Olive oil and pepper help with bioavailability.
I have fed raw, untreated linseed / flaxseed after clearing this with an equine surgeon veterinarian.
http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=960
A University of Guelph Equine Research Centre (ERC) study indicates that flaxseed (linseed) can relieve symptoms of sweet-itch, an allergic skin condition more formally known as recurrent seasonal pruritis. Sweet-itch is a common complaint in many parts of the world. As many as 60% of horses in Queensland, Australia, are affected; more than 21% of horses in Israel; 26% of horses on the northwest coast of North America; and nearly 5% of horses in Japan.

Sweet-itch is triggered by the serum of tiny biting flies known as midges or no-see-ums (genus Culicoides). The bites cause intense itching, skin irritation, and patchy hair loss in horses. In North America, some 20% of imported Icelandic horses suffer from sweet-itch, largely because those horses build up no immunity to the fly bites in their native Iceland.

A study performed at the ERC demonstrated that flaxseed (linseed), fed as an oral supplement, can provide relief from the symptoms of allergic skin conditions. Flaxseed has long been recognized as a superior vegetable source of omega-3 fatty acids to treat many atopic (allergies likely to be hereditary) skin diseases in dogs. But while it is commonly fed to horses to improve the hair coat, the exact effect of these omega-3 fatty acids on the equine dermis (skin) is unknown.

In the ERC's double-blind study, six Icelandic horses with a history of sweet-itch (confirmed by a skin test with Culicoides extract) were fed ground flaxseed, or an equivalent amount of bran meal as a control, for 42 days. On Days 0, 21, and 42, the horses were injected with Culicoides extract, saline (as a negative control), and histamine (as a positive control, guaranteed to trigger a skin reaction), and the resulting reactions were assessed over a period of 18 hours. Samples of skin, blood, and hair were also taken to provide a fatty acid profile.

Horses on the flaxseed supplement showed significantly smaller skin test reactions to Culicoides serum after 42 days, indicating a less severe allergic response. Researcher Wendy Pearson O'Neill, MSc, also noted a reduction in the long-chain saturated fatty acids in the analyzed hair, which she says is an indication of changes in secretions from the skin. "By altering the fatty acids in the skin secretions, it's possible that certain populations of dermal microflora were affected, changing their ability to metabolize compounds such as histidine and trans-urocanic acid, which are involved in immune function," she explained. "This would reduce the overall immune response to Culicoides injection."

There were no significant changes in the fatty acid profiles of the skin or blood in treatment or control horses, and blood counts and biochemistry panels remained within the normal range. The ERC team concluded that flaxseed as an oral supplement is well-tolerated by horses, has no adverse side effects, and has considerable potential as a treatment for allergic skin disorders.


http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=961

Horse owners wanting to take advantage of flaxseed's omega-3 content can rest easy. Flaxseed, or linseed, has a reputation as a toxic substance to horses when fed uncooked--earned because the seeds contain a small amount of cyanogenetic glycosides and enzymes that allow the glycosides to release cyanide. This poison is released when flaxseed plants are damaged by frost, drought, or processing. Since cyanide is readily absorbed in the GI tract, flax products could potentially prevent oxygen release in the blood, leading to sudden death.

However, we now know that glycosidase enzymes are destroyed in the equine stomach and small intestine long before they can trigger cyanide release. So it appears there is no risk of cyanide toxicosis when horses are fed raw flaxseed.

_________________
Susie xx
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepony/


Last edited by PiePony on Mon Dec 16, 2013 5:01 am, edited 2 times in total.

Top
   
PostPosted: Sun Apr 25, 2010 8:16 pm 

Joined: Wed Nov 12, 2008 9:58 pm
Posts: 1622
Location: Western Cape, South Africa
Blimey that was quick!!!!
THANKYOU.

_________________
Annette O'Sullivan

Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans. - John Lennon


Top
   
PostPosted: Sun Apr 25, 2010 8:29 pm 

Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:02 pm
Posts: 1072
Location: UK Worcester/Hereford border
I also apply a daily coating of mineral oil also known as Pig Oil, can substitute Liquid Parrafin but that would be expensive, basically food grade hydraulic oil or white oil.
Recipe to make 3 litres:-
1 Litre Pig Oil
1 Litre Vinegar often Cider or Wine are preferred but I now use Malt vinegar.
1/2 Litre of Dettol or cheap antiseptic disinfectant can be added with 1/2 Litre of water or cold tea.
Squirts of washing up liquid/shampoo to allow mixing of oil with water.
10ml per litre of favoured essential oils e.g. lavender, geranium, eucalyptus, tea tree, citronella etc.
Big sponge for bath or car, generously soak sponge and liberally apply all over daily.

In feed 3 times more Brewer's Yeast than body requires, so excess is excreted har,essly, odorless to humans but midge thinks he is a fungi or plant, ground or micronised linseed to reduce allergic reaction, and Turmeric for sweet itch and everything else.

Pony will look dirty, dust will stick, but midges do not like to stand on oily surfaces.

Dan grazing with daughter Jasmine and with Chutney before I found this recipe.
Image
Image
Dan on a road walk Autumn last year after commencing recipe + linseed last February
Image
and giving my buddy Sue a lift as we usually walk along side.
Image


I can only say this is working for us, and I am happier with a mucky, scruffy pony, than an itchy, distressed, clean, posh pony.

_________________
Susie xx
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepony/


Last edited by PiePony on Sat Jan 25, 2014 12:55 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Top
   
PostPosted: Sun Apr 25, 2010 9:51 pm 

Joined: Wed Nov 12, 2008 9:58 pm
Posts: 1622
Location: Western Cape, South Africa
Fabulous. Thanks soo much.
What a presence Dan is. Handsome boy.

I'm hoping the worst is over, but it would be good to get her prepared for next years onslaught!

_________________
Annette O'Sullivan

Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans. - John Lennon


Top
   
PostPosted: Sat Sep 01, 2012 6:45 am 
Site Admin
User avatar

Joined: Fri Aug 31, 2007 8:20 am
Posts: 6281
Location: Dresden, Germany
Just copying some sweet itch related Susie posts from Leigh's diary so that they will be easier to find.

PiePony wrote:
Both Daniel and Ben are itchy this year and I have found tiny warts in the whorls of their belly fur, I think caused by the flies transmitting papilloma virus, I have mixed iodine with turmeric to dry the area and applied with a sponge/pan scourer, hoping this does not develop or cause sarcoid at a later date. I need to order a lot more turmeric to mix into chaff and have also run out of linseed/flax, I do find the pure ground seed, (I buy micronised but have used whole seed 100 grams a day) better than the oil at alleviating some of the reaction to flies and midge bites.
http://homepage.usask.ca/~vim458/virolo ... horse.html


PiePony wrote:
Just to clarify, I put turmeric mixed with iodine or betadine lotion on the outside and heaps ( 1 or 2 tablespoons daily) of turmeric on the feed.
I don't know if you have bovine papilloma virus spread by midges or flies who infect deer, horses etc in your region but it happens around me and ear plaques are common although often cause no problem. The downside is that sarcoids can form in response to this virus.
I hope these papilloma articles will help you to decide if this is what is causing the itchy discomfort.
http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index ... /72214.htm

This article suggests types of transmission and differences between true sarcoid and papilloma response.
http://vir.sgmjournals.org/content/89/6/1390.full

Sulphur and oil, as used on Shires feathers for showing, lots of heavy horse websites discussing use for cleaning, and to protect from mud fever might help deter fly bites causing the itching. Often it is microscopic parasites transmitted by the midge that cause moon blindness and sweet itch.

Midges hate to bite onto oil and those little girls do not like vegetables, hence vitamin B1 in megadoses, no harm as the body readily excretes any excess but must be a minimum of 3 times daily requirement so that the skin pores release the yeast smell, undetectable to humans, but midges hunt by smell (where yellow heads hunt by sight), and to a midge the prey becomes invisible when fed brewer's yeast, backed up with daily application by all over sponge of equal mix white oil-food grade/can substitute with baby oil etc, vinegar, cold tea or water, squirt of washing up liquid to allow mix and optional essential oils like lavender and geranium 10 mls per lite of mix, so 30 mls for 1litre oil, 1l vinegar, 1l tea/water.

Hope this helps, it worked so well for Daniel for a while when I fastidiously applied daily and had included his brewer's yeast and linseed in feeds all year round, less good this year since he gets sponged twice a week and ran out of linseed and brewer's yeast,does not have daily feeds as he is rotund, so now we are back to playing catch up. (Bad owner, poor management, he grew a long mane and thick tail for a few years when I treated daily....I will do better and begin before winter ends again for him next year!)xx


PiePony wrote:
re my post above, the mixture of almost salad dressing with linseed added to feeds is what allowed Daniel to recover a full mane a tail for a few years. He suffers from sweet-itch. I became lax this year because it has not been a problem, so the reaction to midges has caused his sweet-itch to return this year. I now know he is not cured but can be managed if I add his linseed from February and sponge his vinegar/oil mix daily from late March.
Daniel has access to spiny hawthorn trees and various other things that would rub or rip a fly coat, so for us those are not an option. xx


Top
   
PostPosted: Tue Jan 08, 2013 12:49 pm 

Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:02 pm
Posts: 1072
Location: UK Worcester/Hereford border
Charnwood-Mill have delivered a new bag of micronized linseed for Daniel to begin having in his feed daily. I try to start him by February and hope that he will build allergic resistance to midge bites before they begin to appear in force.

http://www.charnwoodmilling.co.uk/mail- ... d.html#a55
Micronized Full Fat Linseed Meal Protein 23% Oil 35% Fibre 7% Ash 5.15%

Linseed, in its raw state, contains the enzyme Linase, which, in moist conditions, can trigger the release of hydrogen cyanide. Micronization not only enhances feed value and palatability, but also destroys Linase, so that the resulting product can be fed direct to all stock. High in health giving Omega 3, 6 and 9 fatty acids, Micronized Full Fat Linseed Meal provides health within, and appearance without! Its high energy, combined with very low starch levels, is especially beneficial to all Equines, including older horses, and those prone to Laminitis

Feeding rate: On average 150gm - 200gm per day depending on the size of the horse. ie. 150gm for a small pony and 200gm for a large thoroughbred.
Micronized Full Fat Linseed Meal 20kgs ... £21.25 + £6.75 shipping = £28.00 delivered.
A natural source of protein and B vitamins that helps to stimulate gut flora and aid digestion. Increased levels of microbial activity may also improve starch digestion and reduce the incidence of behavioural problems.


Brewers Yeast 25kgs ... £49.00 A natural source of protein and B vitamins that helps to stimulate gut flora and aid digestion. Increased levels of microbial activity may also improve starch digestion and reduce the incidence of behavioural problems. Thiamine, vitamin B1 at 3x or more daily recommended against biting insects that hunt by smell.
(B12 is the happy vitamin for calmness.)

I also apply a daily coating of mineral oil also known as Pig Oil, can substitute Liquid Parrafin but that would be expensive, basically food grade hydraulic oil or white oil. (Vegetable oil is a little thin but then I would add less water if that were the only oil I had available.)
Recipe to make 3 litres:-
1 Litre Pig Oil
1 Litre Vinegar often Cider or Wine are preferred but I now use Malt vinegar.
1/2 Litre of Dettol or cheap antiseptic disinfectant can be added with 1/2 Litre of water or cold tea.
Squirts of washing up liquid/shampoo to allow mixing of oil with water.
10ml per litre of favoured essential oils e.g. lavender, geranium, eucalyptus, tea tree, citronella etc.
Big sponge for bath or car, generously soak sponge and liberally apply all over daily. Sponging gets the oil to the skin better than a spray does, spray coats only the hair tip.

Pony will look dirty, dust will stick, but midges do not like to stand on oily surfaces.

_________________
Susie xx
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepony/


Top
   
 Post subject: Re: Sweet itch
PostPosted: Sun May 12, 2013 9:19 pm 
User avatar

Joined: Thu Apr 18, 2013 2:21 pm
Posts: 206
Location: Devon, United Kingdom
Wow Susie, that's really interesting about the linseed... I think I shall start giving some to Skylark. She's not showing any signs of sweet itch yet, but the field she's in is next to a stream, and she gets sooo many midge bites and she's really itchy from them, but doesn't look sweet itchy. I think that, combined with the pig oil - which i've been meaning to try out! - should be great for her. Thanks very much. :thumright:


Top
   
 Post subject: Re: Sweet itch
PostPosted: Wed Jun 19, 2013 2:44 pm 

Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:02 pm
Posts: 1072
Location: UK Worcester/Hereford border
Tick Repel : Sounds like the vinegar/oil/water mix I use for fly and midge repel listed in earler sections of this topic..., if affordable add geranium, lavender, tea tree or eucalyptus etc....
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =1&theater


It's summer! Time for camping, hiking and getting outside to play. Don't let those pesky annoying ticks stop you. Here's how with a simple homemade solution!

Repellent for your pets:

For pets, add 1 cup of water to a spray bottle, followed by 2 cups of distilled white vinegar. Ticks hate the smell and taste of vinegar, and will be easily be repelled by this ingredient alone. Then, add two spoonfuls of vegetable or almond oil, which both contain sulfur (another natural tick repellent).

To make a repellent that will also deter fleas, mix in a few spoonfuls of lemon juice, citrus oil, or peppermint oil, any of which will repel ticks and fleas while also creating a nicely scented repellent. Spray onto the pet's dry coat, staying away from sensitive areas including eyes, nose, mouth, and genitals. When outdoors for an extended period, spray this solution on two to three times per day.

For you and your family:

In a spray bottle, mix 2 cups of distilled white vinegar and 1 cup of water. To make a scented solution so you do not smell like bitter vinegar all day, add 20 drops of your favorite essential oil.

Eucalyptus oil is a calm, soothing scent that also works as a tick repellent, while peppermint and citrus oils give off a strong crisp scent that also repel ticks.

After mixing the solution, spray onto clothing, skin, and hair before going outdoors. Reapply every four hours to keep ticks at bay, and examine your skin and hair when back inside to make sure no ticks are on the body.

_________________
Susie xx
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepony/


Top
   
 Post subject: Re: Sweet itch
PostPosted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 1:57 pm 

Joined: Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:02 pm
Posts: 1072
Location: UK Worcester/Hereford border
For biting flies these hunt by sight (midges hunt by smell) see Epps. http://www.horselineproducts.com/eppsbitingflytra.html
The Epps Biting Fly TrapTM is uniquely effective because it traps biting flies by using the flies own natural behavior patterns. Many biting flies are attracted to large objects of contrasting color to the surroundings because such objects tend to be potential hosts like cattle, deer, and horses. Also, biting flies such as stable flies, horse flies, green heads, deer flies, bull flies, and yellow flies tend to circle the host before actually landing to bite. The EPPS Trap takes advantage of these behaviors by providing a large, contrasting surface area, with transparent areas (which are actually clear plastic deflectors) representing air space between an animal’s legs and over its back through which the flies would normally circle before feeding. Flies see the deflectors as open spaces and try to fly through then. They hit the deflectors and ricochet into the soapy water in the trays below. Dish soap is added to the water in the trays to cause the flies to be wetted and drown faster.

Also have a look at this website as it offers ideas for various other fly traps.
http://www.rinconvitova.com/fly%20trap%20biting.htm
Deer flies, horse flies, sand flies, face flies and horn flies are very irritaiting to animals and people, but are not attracted to the traps that catch house fly and other filth breeding flies. Commercially available fly parasites don't attack the pupal stages of these flies. To deal with them you need biting fly traps. Studies have shown that 5 biting flies per leg or 10 tail twitches per minute is the economic injury level for treating for biting flies. Here are some options for simple mechanical traps.



Olson sticky traps

Farnam Bite-Free

Epps biting fly trap

Nzi biting fly trap

Horse Pal biting fly trap

Other devices

DIY traps

Biocontrols

_________________
Susie xx
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepony/


Top
   
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic  Reply to topic  [ 29 posts ]  Go to page Previous 1 2

All times are UTC+01:00


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 16 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
cron
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Limited Color scheme created with Colorize It.