Whats wrong with a good old fly rug?

exactly! nothing ,but i keep reading about how much effort we are putting into home made fly repelents for the horses who are being constantly bothered and bitten to bits by the flies,the repelents help but i think a fly rug is a good investment i would not sleep at night if i thought my sophie was rugless.
 
My Storm hated her fly rug - she got rubbed silly by one of them, then when I bought a different brand it was even worse. She got stung under it tho - blasted wasps / hornets kept getting under it and stinging her - poor gal. Just coat her in fly spray now - mind you, they don't really seem to bother her, she's a grey (there was another thread about this somewhere). JOe gets them much worse as he's dark bay - very odd. Must be something in it......
 
a heck of a lot of fly rugs on the market these days seem very gappy, and so flies can easily get under the rug and annoy the hell out of the horse. i've read a few horror stories on here about such situations. also, i'd be concerned about overheating as i've a very dark horse. as with all things to do with horses, you do what's best for the individual. my horse doesn't wear a fly rug (but does have a mask). my youngster wears a fly rug no probs, but he's much lighter in colour so doesn't overheat.
 
I have 3 fly rugs unused, they don't fit well and if its hot the horses overheat and if it rains they cling to them wet and cold,wish I could use them, would save me an awful lot of money by not buying flyspray. They do love their fly masks tho.
 
I don't really think fly rugs work well! If they work for you great, but they, on their own don't work for me. I use a combo of fly oil, a few drops and a fly sheet for my older guy.
 
Mysy got way too hot in a fly rug and the masks seem to be rubbing all the horse's nises and been left with white hairs as it scars. Much prefer her to be natural and cooler. I dont mind buying/making it for her and she's happier without a rug.
 
My friend's black shetland gets really bothered by flies, but her little chestnut and white Falabella doesn't seem to suffer so much. Is it something to do with colour? Anyway, my friend said that rubbing a cut garlic clove on the horses would help keep flies away - it did seem to work, but they stank of garlic! I think citronella is much more pleasant.
 
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