Removing bot eggs

Jessey

Well-Known Member
Dec 20, 2004
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Suffolk, UK
Whos got some tricks? they seem to be rife this year and stuck like bloody glue! I have tried knives and a grooming block, and resorted to picking them out with my nails because that was more effective but there's so many......
 
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1. The further into the season, the stickier the “glue“ seems to get.

2. Warm water is the trick. Warm or tepid water tricks the eggs into thinking the horse is licking them, so they release. But you have to be quick with whatever device you use to remove them, elst you have to put warm water on them again.

2.1. I do prefer a bot knife because I have other uses for it when it gets too dull to scrape eggs off. I don’t have much in the way of fingernails, so I also keep a pair of children’s 2” pointy scissors in my bot removal kit, lol.

3. Also —- there is such a thing as throat bots — I am assuming if we have them in the U.S., they have also made their way overseas😠

Throat bots are SELF-MIGRATING into the mouth!

You have to pull the hair under the chin backward really tight and almost look with a magnifying glass to find them. I can’t get them off as devices don’t get in that area and I’m not using scissors. I slather them with any sort of available ointment.

Vaseline
A&D
Antibiotic ointment
HemorrhoId ointment

Just anything that will stop them in their tracks. Wait a few days, then wipe off; generally the horse will start itching its chin, if you forget:)

3. There are also nose bots. I’ve never seen them but now that I’ve mentioned them I probably will.

https://thehorse.com/124776/got-bots/. where it says:

Throat bot​

“Eggs of the throat bot are also stalkless and are usually laid near the skin,” note the North Dakota extension specialists. “For this reason, they are often obscured by overlying hair. The flanges, which attach the egg to the hair, extend almost the entire length of the egg. The color is whitish-yellow, and the egg is approximately 0.05 inches long. The long axis of the egg extends parallel to the hair.”

The female throat botfly deposits her eggs under the jaw or throat area. She hovers in the air, often causing consternation to the horse, then darts in to quickly deposit the eggs. As with the common bot, the throat bot female is capable of laying about 500 eggs.

Larvae hatch within three to five days. Once hatched, they crawl along the jaw, enter the mouth, and burrow into the gumline. This can cause the horse further irritation as pus pockets in the gums are sometimes the result of the larval invasion.

Later the larvae make their way to the stomach, where they overwinter and mature. They are passed out with the feces to begin the life cycle all over again.

Nose bot​

This fly’s eggs are stalked and are generally shaped like barnacles. “The connecting flange extends from the stalk upward toward the top of the egg,” say the North Dakota extension specialists. “The general color is brownish-black, and the egg is about 0.06 of an inch long.” Nose bot females lay their eggs on the very fine hairs around the lips, usually the upper lip. The females can cause extreme distress to a horse during this egg-laying period because they dart in to lay one egg at a time. Nose bot females are capable of laying about 160 eggs apiece.

The eggs hatch in a short time—as little as two days—and burrow into the lip and tongue membranes. They remain there for five or six weeks, then migrate to the stomach, where they spend the winter maturing.

In the spring, they detach and migrate to the rectum, where they reattach near the anus before dropping to the ground and pupating.
 
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There are a lot this year! I'm going bonkers trying to get them off. Hogan had some larvae dropping from his bottom and in his poo about 3 months ago, so I had to worm him with the appropriate wormer. Lots of people had the same problem. I get most with my knife, but I'll have to clean it, as it's got greasy.
 
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I always worm for them after the first frost anyway as no matter how hard I try to get them all removed the horses no doubt ingest a few and once you've seen those larvae you would never risk leaving them inside a horse!

I have never heard of the nose or throat type @Lollykay , but just looked it up and they are here too though pretty uncommon, they sound horrible! I'm going to try out the warm water trick, thanks!
 
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I’m also lucky that we don’t get them here. I wouldn’t know what they looked like anyway.
 
I’m also lucky that we don’t get them here. I wouldn’t know what they looked like anyway.
You are lucky, its the one fly that will set my lot off madly charging around, they hate them. The eggs are just tiny yellow dots attached to the fur, I stole a googled picture to show you why they're so bloody difficult to remove
bot-fly-on-leg.jpg
 
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You are lucky, its the one fly that will set my lot off madly charging around, they hate them. The eggs are just tiny yellow dots attached to the fur, I stole a googled picture to show you why they're so bloody difficult to remove
View attachment 108419
I can't even be shocked at that pic - Hogans legs have been like that this year - and worse.
 
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Yes, that is one ugly picture, lollol.

I have noticed these miserable creatures will spray heavily THIS day, then they seem to go away for a day or two, evidently refueling.

Also, there is no fly spray to keep them off the horse because they do not land on the horse. They shoot the eggs from their tail system — little wonder they drive many horses crazy🤯🤯
 
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