Culicoides Hypersensitivity

[cyb]

The vet was here on Monday to vaccinate my 2 horses so I asked her what the bumps were on Cisco, turns out he is allergic to Culcoides or biting gnat also referred to as "biting midges" or "no-see-ums". :(Has anyone here ever had to deal with this? My vet has ordered a special spray for him, I'm just waiting for it to arrive so I can pick it up.:help:
Can you see where he has been rubbing his tail? I put MTG on it again today, it looks a little better.

http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s286/pepper1968/IMG_1186.jpg

[WashingtonBay]

Is this on his chest and belly in particular?

I do have a friend whose horse is hyper sensitive to some kind of gnat, and she battles it, but does better when she uses plenty of a good fly spray.

If it's an allergic reaction what about some kind of regular antihistamine during the bad parts of the year?

[cloedoll]

Yep, my mare had the same thing this summer. She had it all under her mane (here (http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh58/cloedoll/Horses/Health/Cloes3.jpg) is a picture) and was itching like crazy. We had the vet out, sure enough 'twas sweet itch (summer itch, Culicoides Hypersensitivity, there are a lot of names for it). My mare was already on antihistamine because she has allergies and stays on it all summer long, but if she was not already getting antihistamine, the vet would have had me put her on it. I am sure your vet knows what he/she is doing and the spray should help. (: Is she stalled, turned out 24/7, or what is her schedule like?

[cyb]

Is this on his chest and belly in particular?

I do have a friend whose horse is hyper sensitive to some kind of gnat, and she battles it, but does better when she uses plenty of a good fly spray.

If it's an allergic reaction what about some kind of regular antihistamine during the bad parts of the year?

WB

He rubs his chest and tailhead, he also has bites in his ears that I'm putting ointment on.

[cloedoll]

He rubs his chest and tailhead, he also has bites in his ears that I'm putting ointment on.

I would invest in a fly mask with ears, similar to this (http://www.smartpakequine.com/ProductClass.aspx?productclassid=3361&cmPreserveSource=true&cmPreserveCategory=true) one (doesn't have to be the exact one of course, as long as it covers his ears). My horses had the same issue with their ears, it was from flies biting so much it would scab over. Pretty gross, but after they had their fly masks, no more of that problem. (:

[cyb]

Yep, my mare had the same thing this summer. She had it all under her mane (here (http://i253.photobucket.com/albums/hh58/cloedoll/Horses/Health/Cloes3.jpg) is a picture) and was itching like crazy. We had the vet out, sure enough 'twas sweet itch (summer itch, Culicoides Hypersensitivity, there are a lot of names for it). My mare was already on antihistamine because she has allergies and stays on it all summer long, but if she was not already getting antihistamine, the vet would have had me put her on it. I am sure your vet knows what he/she is doing and the spray should help. (: Is she stalled, turned out 24/7, or what is her schedule like?

Unfortunately Cisco is out 24/7 as I don't have a barn, the vet said if the spray doesn't work we will try other things but she didn't say what it was, she wanted to start out with the most simple traetment first to see if it worked then move on to something else if neccessary. The spray is called Genesis. She said in her notes to me that he has a mild case. I'm putting Triotic in his ears.

[cyb]

I would invest in a fly mask with ears, similar to this (http://www.smartpakequine.com/ProductClass.aspx?productclassid=3361&cmPreserveSource=true&cmPreserveCategory=true) one (doesn't have to be the exact one of course, as long as it covers his ears). My horses had the same issue with their ears, it was from flies biting so much it would scab over. Pretty gross, but after they had their fly masks, no more of that problem. (:

I just bought him a flymask without ears, oh well whats 1 more? LOL

[cloedoll]

Another option that you might want to think about would be looking into an insect control supplement, like Bug Check (http://www.smartpakequine.com/ProductClass.aspx?productclassid=686&cmPreserveSource=true&cmPreserveCategory=true) (there are many out there). I know you live in Florida so it's hot all year round, which means bugs and he is outside 24/7 so he doesn't get any relief from the bugs. Have you thought about a fly sheet/boots (maybe not the boots, but just another thought)? That could feasibly help, too.

I just bought him a flymask without ears, oh well whats 1 more? LOL Lol, I think no ears works for some, but in your situation I think one with ears would be good. :)

[OwnedByOurHorses]

i feel for you..my husband's gentle gaint Gunner suffers from that..he is on a daily antihistamine during the worst part of the gnat season..along with kenalog injections if it gets to bad..

[cyb]

Thanks for your help WB Cloedoll and Owedbyhorses, I will take some pics so you all can see what I'm dealing with.

[cloedoll]

Sounds good, we'll be awaiting pics. :)

[Mercury]

Cobalt has been having an allergic reaction to bugs too. He breaks out in hives and i have to call him my ugly pony:(. Vet gave me an antihisimine to put in his feed and it went away. Fortunately the bugs are gone now and the hives haven't come back since I ran out of his meds.

[Ryle]

Another thing to think about is the fact that anyone (human or animal) who is allergic to one thing is often allergic to several things and the effect is cummulative---meaning that the reaction is worse if they are getting exposed to multiple things that they are allergic to rather than just one thing. So, figuring out what all your horse is allergic to and removing as much of it as possible from his environment may help alot. Otherwise, using an antihistamine throughout the summer season to help stop the allergic reaction before it really gets going may be an option along with fly sheets, flys sprays, etc because it's also easier to prevent an allergic reaction from starting than to stop it once it's in full swing.

[FrogInABlender]

Yes, I've had this same problem with my Walking mare for the last 3 summers. She didn't start getting it until the summer she was two but has had it every summer since then. None of the fly sprays I tried seemed to do any good. That first year she rubbed her mane and the top third of her tail completely out. She looked pitiful! My vet said a dexamethasone (steroid) shot would help but he wouldn't want to give them to her on an ongoing basis for fear of laminitis, so I ended up keeping her in a fine mesh fly sheet with an attached neck like this one...
http://www.statelinetack.com/productimages/large/L80176.jpg
It works really well, but of course that leaves her head and legs exposed, so she scratches those unmercifully. Next year I may try to get some fly boots to go along with it. I've got a fly mask with ears, but I didn't want the poor girl to look TOTALLY like an alien so I haven't used it yet. I've also heard that you shouldn't leave them on when it's dark and since I can only get to the barn once a day I really can't do that.

Some of y'all have mentioned an antihistamine. What are y'all using? Is it a shot or something you feed?

[Mercury]

Yes, I've had this same problem with my Walking mare for the last 3 summers. She didn't start getting it until the summer she was two but has had it every summer since then. None of the fly sprays I tried seemed to do any good. My vet said a dexamethasone (steroid) shot would help but he wouldn't want to give them to her on an ongoing basis for fear of laminitis, so I ended up keeping her in a fine mesh fly sheet with an attached neck like this one...
http://www.statelinetack.com/productimages/large/L80176.jpg
It works really well, but of course that leaves her head and legs exposed, so she scratches those unmercifully. Next year I may try to get some fly boots to go along with it. I've got a fly mask with ears, but I didn't want the poor girl to look TOTALLY like an alien so I haven't used it yet. I've also heard that you shouldn't leave them on when it's dark and since I can only get to the barn once a day I really can't do that.

Some of y'all have mentioned an antihistamine. What are y'all using? Is it a shot or something you feed?


That is the type of sheet I've been looking for! Where did you find that? If Cobalt breaks out again next year I'm going to go ahead and get him one. I give him a feed antihistimine. It's actually made for humans so my vet gets it from the pharmacy. I'll try and remember to check and see what the name is. Originally he could only get caps and i had to break them open twice a day for awhile, but he recently has been able ot get in a powder. A thing of it lasted me 2 months and cost me $75 so if a sheet will work I would rather do that.

[FrogInABlender]

It came from Stateline Tack, but they're out of stock now except for a 68". :( I've tried a lot of different sheets but so far this has been the best. Here's the link...

http://www.statelinetack.com/itemdy00.asp?T1=SLT723263%2068NV

So I just ordered a different one for next year. It looks very similar and is on sale quite cheap but I don't know if it's going to be as good. It looks like this...
http://www.statelinetack.com/productimages/large/L80089.jpg
I'm afreid it's going to be made out of that slinky type mesh and those don't hold up very well. I'll let you know how it turns out when I get it.

[Mercury]

Yeah let me know... I'm not going to order one til next year, but if this stuff continues I'll have to sheet him next year when the bugs come out to play. I was expecting them to be more expensive!

[FrogInABlender]

Fly sheets are all over the board as far as price goes, and the most expensive aren't necessarily the best. My horse seems to be particularly hard on them, rubbing against trees and such, so I've pretty much had to buy a new one every year, even though I stitch up the rips with the sewing maching as they happen. :rolleyes: Thank goodness the one I like isn't that expensive!

[cyb]

Bump because I added a pic to first post, the pic of the bites in his ear didn't turn out.

[cloedoll]

Just saw the pictures, it's about what I expected. Gotta' love sweet itch, not. :mad: I think you have gotten some great advice and I would follow it and what your vet told you. (: