Coffee Clutch with Dutch Henry: 2016-05-15

Thursday, May 19, 2016

"Fly Masks and Fly Sprays"

My girl Kessy

Howdy Folks,

The other day a young woman emailed me this question: “What's your opinion on fly masks and fly spray?”

I answered with my “opinion” this way ...

Correctly fitting well made fly masks that include the ears are great. They even have been proven to help light eyed horses avoid eye damage from the sun.

On fly sprays—over the many years of my life I have found none of them really do all that much in the long run. Certainly not worth the health damage to the horse. Hair works as a wick to suck those deadly chemicals right into the horse's system causing vitality degradation, organ problems, breathing issues, immune issues and even contributing to founder. ... The problem here is people never make the correlation to healthy, attitude or vitality issues with their horses and the chemicals and toxins they expose their horses too.

People look at horses and only ever think "how big and strong" they are. They are indeed. But they also have one of the most fragile systems in all the animal kingdom when it comes to dealing with toxins and infections. They lack the ability to shed, or discharge toxins they way most mammals do. So the toxins accumulate and do slow, long term damage throughout. This applies to all toxins, vaccinations (I believe in some vacs, just not over vacs—once is enough), wormer, sprays, commercial feeds, certain bedding, muddy manure laden paddocks—and many more.

Here is how I recommend, and practice, fly and pest control. First cleanliness; all areas where the horse lives must be free of manure, mud and filth. No horse should ever be forced to walk in mud. This is easy to correct, and I view horses forced to wallow in mud as abuse.

Then no clipping; no muzzle clipping, or mane, or face and ear clipping, or leg or fetlock trimming—the hair is there for a reason.

We must also do all we can to be sure our horses have immune systems that can (and will) handle the pesky fly, mosquito and tick bites. The first step in this is stringently, doggedly, preventing toxins from entering the horse's system. And the very best, bar none, immune system booster, in my opinion, is Dr Thomas' "Total Immune Health" herbal blend. I put Kessy on it each late winter early spring, and blood work has proven how it increases the white blood cells in the system. A side note here, Dr Thomas has proven to be the best overall health provider I have ever met. I whole heartedly recommend him and his company. Find him here www.forloveofthehorse.com .

Another side note, a VERY healthy horse, with a very strong immune system, will be bothered far less than horses not so well off. Insects are not as attracted to horses in shinning health on great diets (all forage). They go after horses with lesser health and immune.

Lastly I do have on hand all natural spray and will, very rarely, spray her belly. But I think I spray her 2 or 3 times a summer. I do check her ticks often, but even that is not too bad. She does have chronic Lyme from before she was mine, so that takes management, again with Doc Thomas’ help and herbs.

Hope this helps!

Gitty Up ~ Dutch Henry.

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Welcome to the Coffee Clutch

Welcome to the Coffee Clutch, a happy place to visit. I write uplifting stories about a wide variety of subjects from horses to birds and nature, to love and family and friends. Sometimes I'll post excerpts from stories I've written for Equine Publications. Sometimes I'll post about writing itself. Coffee Clutch got its name because I often write while enjoying my morning coffee in the barn with my mare Kessy, and all our critters. Join us here for fun conversation and stories I promise will make you feel good.

It's For The Horses

This is not a book about riding, or training horses. It is a book on my thoughts, ideas and suggestions on how folks might find the joy in doing things for the horse, with the horses’ point of view as the leading guide. My hope is to help as many people as possible learn to hear the horse, feel their spirit, and in that way help horses everywhere. Over the years I’ve met and worked with remarkable people and horses who taught me about their feelings, their joys, their sadness, and their spirit. As a horse advocate everything I do is from the horse’s perspective, including this little book. Every story, idea, suggestion and thought on these pages will be to suggest and share thoughts and ideas on how to maximize a relationship between horse and human—from the horse’s point of view.

Tom Named by Horse

The only man ever to offer Tom respect is Red Cloud. The only woman to give him love is Red Cloud’s granddaughter. Struggling with his own personal demons, Tom finds himself wedged between honoring that friendship and staying true to the depths of his conscience. Amid a backdrop of tumultuous social upheaval, he finds nothing prepared him, the woman he loves or Chief Red Cloud, for the changes about to thunder into their lives, sweeping them helplessly into the tides of human conflict and historical drama. Available on Amazon.

From The Banks OF Little Bear Creek

The Tom Named by Horse Saga continues. Three years after the death of Tall Dog, Tom Named By Horse and Soft Cloud have turned the little soddy, the lands granted them by Red Cloud, and the lean-to barn into a thriving horse ranch, fulfilling Tom’s dream. The Plains Indians Wars, or Red Cloud’s war, is mostly behind them, and the lands have had their transformation as Red Cloud’s vision had warned years earlier. Trailing horses from the ranch to Denver city has become an annual event for Tom, Buck and the rest, and this is the story of that trail. In the spirit of a good old John Wayne movie, vengeance, cattle and horse thieves, a dirty sheriff and corrupt mayor, and a wedding make this year’s drive a ride you’ll want to tag along on.