-15% off your first order*.

Enter your email address to receive your promo code.

*except for the SAFEFIT airbag

      popup-img

      -15% off your first order

      enter your email to receive the code

          3 problems that affect our horses when spring returns

          Tuesday, 19 April, 2022

          The return of spring, is also the beginning of the beautiful days, the competitions under the sun,  the first long evenings. But this period also brings its share of problems for our horses. To make life easier for you at the beginning of the season, we give you details of the 3 main problems and how to keep them at bay.

          1. The scourge of spring: winged insects

          As the temperatures warm up, the insects are back. They are a real problem, especially when your horse spends time in the outdoor. Spring insects include the flies, and flat flies, the mosquitoes and horseflies which cause particularly painful bites. 

          flying insects horses spring

          The presence of these insects They can be a nuisance to the horse, which must constantly chase them away, and can even cause stress. They can also carry diseases such as infectious anaemia (IAA) or cause conjunctivitis and superinfection of certain wounds. Worms, especially gastropods, ingested during grazing can also cause various diseases.

          So how do you fight them? First of all, you must avoid certain places such as stagnant water areas where the insects proliferate. Hygiene and maintenance of living areas are also important to limit the development of insects and worms. As for your horse, leave him the natural defences that are his mane, his tail and its toupee. He will use them to chase away insects. In order to keep them away, you can put a "honeycomb" shirt on your horse. This will allow air to circulate but will protect him. You can also use essential oils such as eucalyptus, lemongrass, geranium, lavender or tea tree which reduce the horse's smell and disorientate the insects. Regarding worms and bots, remember to deworming your horse regularly to prevent infestation. See our blog post on worming for more information.

          Focus on sweet itch

          This chronic inflammatory disease of the skin appears mainly in spring and intensifies in summer. It is caused by culicoides, a species of insect whose females feed on blood and bite horses. Their stings cause severe itching and severe skin irritations, which in turn cause hair loss (often on the top of the tail or in the mane) or even sores when the horse scratches too hard. In France, 1 horse in 10 is affected by this disease.

          There is no real cure for sweet itch but there are ways to prevent it. It is best to bring horses in before the end of the day and keep them away from wetlands and stagnant water. You can also get mosquito shirts, a product specially designed to combat the bites of culicoides. Finally, you can use repellents or cover sensitive areas with Vaseline oil. However, be careful not to overuse them. In the long run, these products can cause burns

          2. Respiratory allergies

          Just like humans, horses are sensitive to pollen. If certain allergens (e.g. cypress) are present in the air, horses may suffer from respiratory discomfort or coughing. Like us, allergies are incurable but can be relieved.

          If your horse has a respiratory discomfort, keep him away from sources of pollens that may be responsible for the allergy. Leave him in the stable if the discomfort becomes too great. A desensitisation can also be carried out. This is a process that extends over a long period of time and consists of vaccines administered according to a precise schedule. The aim is to make the horse less sensitive to allergens to which it reacts.

          3. Food-related diseases

          When the horse returns to the pasture, the feeding of the horses is modified. A horse may spend 10 to 12 hours of its day eating in the pasture. This is a radical change compared to the time spent eating in the stable. His digestive system will have to adapt. If he encounters difficulties, this can cause colic. They are not to be taken lightly and can have dramatic consequences.

          Other diseases can be linked to feeding when returning to the pasture. This is the case of laminitis. It is a congestion and a inflammation of the horse's feet. While colic is the leading cause of mortality in equines, laminitis is the second most common. Laminitis is most often caused by the horse's diet. A sudden change in change in diet or overfeeding cereals can cause laminitis.

           

          Measures can be taken before returning to the pasture to prevent colic and furring. The transition from stall to pasture feeding should not be too abrupt for the horse. Start by alternating pre and post before leaving him in the stall all day. Make sure that the horse has enough food hydration and avoid as many sources of stress as possible, which can also cause colic. 

           

          The spring is therefore a pleasant period but one that should not be taken lightly if you want your horse to enjoy it to the full. There are simple measures that can be applied to combat these inconveniences and offer your horse pleasant, long days in the sunshine.  

          Taking care of health of your horse is all very well, but taking care of his moraleis even better! Take advantage of the return of fine weather to go ride. Are you worried about going out alone? SEAVER has thought of everything with its SAFERIDE feature. It detects falls and warns your loved ones by sending them your geolocation

           


          Sources :