Summer with your Horse

Sweet Itch Sunburn Worming Weight Sweet itch is an allergy to the Culicoides midge, which is, as we all know, very common in Scotland! All horses and humans find the biting irritating, but a proportion of equines develop a hypersensitivity to the midge saliva, and can suffer greatly as a result. With warmer winters, the midge season can last from February to November in some regions. There is no absolute method of prevention or cure, so it is most effective to combine a number of strategies. Starting your avoidance efforts early is important, before the immune system begins to overreact. Anything you can do to reduce the number of times the pony/horse is bitten is worthwhile – the more midges bite, the greater the allergic response! Although it seems difficult to believe in Scotland we see a lot of sunburn in our horses over the summer months. Areas such as the unpigmented muzzle and ears can be particularly badly affected. Sunburn starts as reddened skin and progresses to large crusting scabs that ooze serum and are very painful for the horse. As with sweet itch there is no cure but there are things we can do to prevent it becoming a problem and still enjoy the Scottish sun! It’s very important to keep on top of your worming programme through the summer months when worms thrive on warm moist pastures; particularly prevalent in Scotland! Current evidence is that a strategic targeted approach is best in addition to good pasture management. Resistance to wormers is increasing but there are steps we can all take to ensure that we prolong the time period the wormers we have available are effective. There are currently no new wormers for horses on the horizon despite extensive research going on to try and identify potential new drugs. The single biggest problem we see over the summer months is obesity. Obesity is a bigger welfare problem in the UK than emaciation. Being overweight predisposes your horse to laminitis, exercise intolerance, joint problems and many more painful conditions. Your horse should be a body condition score 2.5-3 out of 5 during the summer. (www.bluecross.org.uk/ pet-advice/how-body-score-your-horse). You should be able to easily feel ribs and see hip bones. • • A close-fitting midge-proof rug which covers as much of the horse as possible is the single most effective thing you can do to prevent the midges getting to your horse’s skin Choose the most windy, hilly field that you have access to – midges can’t fly in windy conditions – and avoid boggy areas and water courses • Avoid dawn and dusk turnout if possible • Use electric fencing to stop the horse from scratching, which inflames the skin and causes even more itching • • Use fly-repellents (although none are completely effective) and barrier oils. In-feed supplements may reduce the itch response in some horses Severely affected cases may require prescription medication – speak with your vet if concerned • Apply childrens sensitive skin factor 50 suncream to unpigmented areas twice daily if your horse is turned out/stands with their nose over the door in the sun! • Apply suncream 30 minutes to an hour before anticipated sun exposure • Patch test your suncream on a small area for 48 hours before smothering large areas and stick to that brand if your horse does not react to it • Talk to us about training techniques to help your horse accept having suncream applied • For horses with very little skin pigment barrier rugs can be very useful – look for a thin sheet with UV protection • If all the white areas on your horse become blistered contact your vet as there are some diseases that can make the skin more prone to burning, such as liver disease • • Consider using a field safe turnout headcollar with a nose net attached as a barrier to harmful UV radiation If your horse does develop sunburn contact your vet to discuss the best treatment strategy – avoid using lotions and potions that contain chemicals likely to further irritate the skin Management • Remove faeces from pasture promptly • Co-graze with ruminants • Discuss with your vet a strategy for newcomers to your grazing When to worm? • Perform faecal worm egg counts every 8-12 weeks depending on the risk level of your pasture throughout spring, summer and autumn • You can submit faecal samples in a clean tub/bag to your vet • Fresh samples are ideal but keep faeces chilled overnight if you can’t get them to a testing facility until the next day • Worm those animals with high burdens as per your vet’s recommendations • Speak to your vet about the best wormers to use for your area as they will have information about specific local resistance patterns • All horses should be wormed at least once per year in case of undetected hibernating redworms and tapeworms • A well fitting grazing muzzle introduced gradually can help reduce intake where restricted grazing is not available • Restrict grazing to reduce your horses intake but ensure you do not starve your horse as this can be harmful • Your horse’s digestive tract is designed to receive small quantities of forage throughout the day – they are trickle feeders not meal eaters! • Body condition score and weigh tape your horse every 2 weeks and act if the score creeps up! • Research suggests that exercise is protective against laminitis and also helps keep the weight down – horses should be out of breath during exercise to have an effect • If you think your horse may be overweight talk to your vet as soon as possible to get a safe personalised weight loss plan in place