Keeping Ticks Off Your Horse

Spring has come early in Montana and everyone is rearing to bring in their horses and get back on the trails. Unfortunately, with the warmer weather, ticks have also come early! I've had several people ask me what they can do about their tick problems.

Some are full-fledged, head to toe covered in the icky little things, while others are more moderate infestations. Most equine fly sprays do treat ticks in addition to flying insects, fleas etc., but sometimes, we need a more aggressive treatment to get rid of them.

Ticks can cause anemia in large infestations if left untreated and they can cause other serious illnesses even in smaller numbers. It's very important to keep you and your animals clear of ticks to protect your health as well as your animals.

We've got an article dedicated to keeping ticks off the dogs in your family as well.

Our first instinct is to want to yank them off as soon as we see one, but if the body becomes detached and the head is still embedded in its host, it can cause serious infection or an abscess. There are safe ways to pull them, but if you have a horse covered from head to tail in them, you could be at it for a while.

Here are a few ways you can help your horse and prevent further tick problems.

Keeping Ticks of Horses: Use Ivermectin De-worming paste

Yes, the stuff you are probably going to be giving your horse here soon for his springtime deworming. If you have a horse who is absolutely covered in ticks, giving your horse a dose of Ivermectin deworming paste.

Buy Ivermectin paste from us here.

This will help kill the ticks from the inside out. The perk to this option is the tick will withdraw its head and fall off because the ingested deworming paste goes systemic through-out the horse's circulatory system, making his body inhospitable and toxic to the tick. You will still want to follow-up with some kind of insect spray or tick treatment to keep your horse tick free.

Read our complete guide to deworming horses if you have any questions.

If you have already dewormed your horse for the spring, you will want to consult your Veterinarian before trying this option.

Use Equi-Spot Fly Spray to Keep Ticks Away

Equi-Spot is a great permethrin based product that will clear up a horse with a tick infestation if you have already dewormed for the spring.

To apply, you will want to start from the top of the neck, between the ears of your horse and go in a thin line down the top of the neck and back. (just like you would with a flea and tick treatment for your dog).

You will also want to put a line of Equi-Spot on the back of each leg.

Keep the Stalls Clean: Use Permetherin Premise and Livestock Spray

You can use Permetherin as a fly spray, tick treatment, flea treatment, cattle rubber pour-on or premise spray. To prevent ticks from having a chance at my horses, I treat my horse's shelter, any shelter belts or trees my horses like to hang out by with a premise spray.

Ticks like shrubs, trees and tall grass. Unfortunately, your horse probably likes all of the same places to hang out or feed.

Permetherin concentrate can be mixed with water for use as a regular fly and tick repellant for your horse, or it can be mixed with mineral oil to be used as a long lasting pour-on (Some ranchers use diesel fuel; I do not recommend this for your horse).

Here are some more options you can get from us to help control ticks on your horse.

I'll be honest, it has a strong smell that some have told me reminds them of Kerosene. And while mixing Permetherin with mineral oil seems like a great idea for a long-lasting tick solution, it can be very, very messy. If you have a light colored horse and you put a mineral oil based repellent on him, good luck ever keeping his coat dirt free!

Permetherin works wonderfully as a horse insect spray if you can stand the smell, but I prefer to use it in a garden pump sprayer as a premise spray to treat my barn and yard for flying pests and those nasty ticks.

I tend to use the good old Ultrashield fly spray (much more pleasant smelling, plus it has sunscreen) for an all over spray for my horses.

Note: Be careful around cats though, Permetherin can be toxic to them.

Really, the best way to keep the ticks off your horse after the initial blood sucking invasion is over, is in preventative measures by keeping trees and shrubs trimmed, grass cut, treating target areas, applying Equi-spot every few weeks, or by just plain keeping your horse hosed down with a good fly and tick repellent spray.

That being said, good luck to you in whichever route you take!