Protect Your Horse from Insects in Summer

Summer is often a challenging time for your horse, with high heat and humidity — and plenty of flies! The warmer months are prime time for biting insects, which can cause your horse severe discomfort.

Let's look at why it's important to protect your equine friend from insects, and how you can do it — including the best fly rugs for horses.

What insects can bother your horse?

Flies, ticks, and midges can be a problem for horses in Australia. They feed on your horse’s blood, and their saliva can cause irritation and skin issues on top of pain from the bite itself. Insects can also carry diseases.

• Ticks: Your horse can easily pick up a tick, particularly if they are paddocked or you're riding through a heavily-vegetated area. According to the RSPCA, the ticks of concern in Australia are cattle ticks, New Zealand ticks, and paralysis ticks, which can cause serious health problems for your horse.
• Culicoides midge: This little insect is the usual cause of Queensland Itch. This is a nasty skin condition occurring in horses in areas where there is stagnant water during summer.
• Bot flies: These flies can lay thousands of eggs that attach to individual hairs, mainly on the legs and chest of your horse. The horse can ingest them via licking, and the eggs hatch larvae in the mouth, then migrate to the stomach. Heavy infestation can cause mouth ulcers and oral discomfort, and ultimately lead to weight loss and poor condition.
• March flies: Also known as horse or stable flies, these are blood-feeding flies that require blood to help form their eggs. The bites are painful and, if plentiful, can cause severe skin irritation.

Stress and agitation from being bitten may also lead to accidents in the paddock or stable, or during a ride in an infested area.

How to protect your horse from flies and other insects

There are several strategies you can use to protect your horse from being plagued by insects.

• Keep your horse in a yard or stable during early mornings and late afternoons, when insects are most prevalent, to help reduce exposure.
• Keep your stable clean, and regularly clear manure from your yards and paddocks, as insects are attracted to manure.
• Keep your horse away from boggy wet areas in paddocks. Standing or stagnant water attracts insects, so keep troughs and buckets clean and re-fill them regularly.
• Provide cover in paddocks or an open shed that offers shade will help keep your horse cooler and reduce their sweat, which insects are attracted to.
• Provide fly masks. Correctly fitted fly masks or veils offer protection for your horse's head. Just make sure to check your horse's mask regularly for debris or damage, and don't leave it on overnight.
• Use topical repellents. There are a range of different fly sprays and gels that you can use on your horse, particularly during rides where insects are more prevalent.
• Provide fly mesh rugs. Lightweight fly mesh rugs keep your horse covered and can be a convenient alternative to sprays that have to be applied regularly to be effective. You can even buy fly rugs that have been treated with insect repellent for added protection.

Ready to protect your horse? Shop Caribu's range of horse health treatments to prevent irritation and disease.