My poor mare is being eaten alive!  I dont know if its because shes dark and you can see her welts more because I dont see welts on the others.  She has huge welts from her neck to the middle of her back.  We have mosquito's and the "bomber" flys really bad and I dont think I can spray her anymore than I have been.  Ive used swat, the branco fly spray, endure, fly masks, the bio spot for horses.  I spray her with spray 2 times a day.  Only the swat and fly masks work for the face though and her milk bags.  But her neck is totally exposed and I feel so bad for her.  If anyone knows of a good spray to use please let me know, I was curious if there was a spray for horses specifically, with deet.  I sprayed myself with off while I was on her and I think some got on her and it worked but I dont want to spray her directly with it. Thanks

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Hi Elizabeth,
I have used a tiny bit of deet on my horse's ears. I have also sprayed it along his crest and in his tail because sometimes I am so desperate to be rid of the mosquitoesand biting flies that torment him. I do use it sparingly because I know it's not meant for horses, although I understand that riders in the U.K. do use it. Maybe if someone from the UK reads this, they can tell us if that is correct.
My friend used to do a concoction of Avon Skin So Soft and vinegar. It smelled unbelievably bad, but it didn't harm her horse and it kept the bugs (and everyone else!) away.
My retired horse is being sprayed with Absorbine Ultra Shield and it works very well, but it must have some pretty strong chemicals in it.
HI, I'm in the UK & use DEET sprays & topical lotions: an effective one is COOPERS Repellent.
I also use fly rugs: HORSEWARE IRELAND.Rambo protector or they make another one impregnated with permethrin.
Another good product which soothes as well as preventing more bites is NETTEX salve complete OR you can make your own using petroleum jelly & Benzyl Benzoate, but I'm not sure you are allowed to buy that in the States?
Feed garlic & brewers yeast work on some animals to prevent bites or there are anti fly formula supplements.
If she's getting badly bitten I'd keep her in though: Prevention is better than cure. Best of luck!
Hi, Elizabeth:

I use Absorbine Ultrashield, and have had some luck feeding 1/4 cup of cider vinegar as well. We use Big "D" textilene bug sheets in the spring/summer/fall, so that at least we don't have to use quite as much bug spray. We have one mare who really reacts to mosquito bites, and gets welts too, while the others seem impervious. I have used 3 days of Dexamethasone when she gets really horrible welts, especially those which go under tack. She seems to become less reactive as the season wears on, thank goodness.

I don't know of anything specifically for horses containing DEET, but I can't imagine that if we can use it spraying small areas of our horses (like necks and bellies) is going to be a bigger problem than the bug bite reactivity. If you don't compete you can use antihistamines for horses, which will help with the welts, but if you compete that's not an option.

I hope this helps!

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