Itchy Scratchy

[Jo*Lo]

Max can't stop scratching his face at the minute and i have become his favorite scratching post! Not much fun when his heads almost as big as my body! (slight exaggeration!)
He's got a couple of little baldy patches on there and i was wondering if anyone knew what it could be?
If it was mites wouldn't they be all over him?

[500]

My horse does the same thing! I think it is the flies. They bite which makes it itchy then the horse itches it on a tree, fence, or you which rubs the hair off-mking it bald.

I not sure where Northumberland is but I'm pretty sure it's not in the U.S. (Which is where I am) so I'm not sure if you have this product but it's called Swat. You might have it there. It's a fly repellant cream for faces, ears, wounds, etc. It helps heal that rubbed skin and repells flys like nothing else!

[notpoodle]

maybe hes got sweet itch? my horse has that, i use a product called Aromahell (www.aromesse.com) for the bits she's rubbed which seems to work pretty well. other than that, she's wearing a sweet itch rug and gets fly repellant lotion on her head.

julia
x

[jeek]

Well firstly, you shouldn't let your horse rub on you, i know it might seem as a sign of affection but if you let them do that, they will think they can boss you around.
The little bald patches are probably just where they have rubbed. If they get quite bad I would get something to treat them with, or a fly mask is a good idea because it keeps the flys off the top part of the face and ears.
Make sure you area putting on lots of fly spray to keep away those nasty midges, especiallty on hot days.

Jeekx

[Jo*Lo]

Max may be big but i certainly don't let him boss me around! I know it's not affection and he would get just as much pleasure from doing it on a tree!
Northumberland is in north east england.
He scratched his tail occasionaly and along his mane but can you also get sweet itch on the face and underside of the neck? Will that aromaheel help prevent/sooth it?
thanks
Jo

[notpoodle]

sweet itch can strike anywhere where flies can get to. my horse has been badly bitten in the face by bugs and she scratches the second you tie her up (i wont allow her to scratch on me though because i am not a scratching post!).

aromeheel soothes the bits that have been rubbed but doesnt prevent the itch in the first place.

for prevention, a sweet itch rug is a good start, or products like benzyl benzoaete or some stuff called Killitch. you could also try the sweet itch fly repellent by aromesse (forgot the name of the stuff, but if you go to the aromesse website youll see what i mean!), which is very good at keeping insects at bay.

julia
x

ps: if in doubt, check with your vet about it being sweet itch or not