Bug Off!
10 Steps to Pest Prevention
By Jennifer Roberts
Uninvited guests can wreak havoc on a barn. Whether it is flies driving your horse into a sweaty, pacing mess, or mice chewing through your electrical wires, one thing is for certain…the only animals wanted in the barn are horses, and the occasional cat or dog. Simple preventive measures can help to ensure that your barn does not end up infested with pests. Follow this month’s ten tips to keep the pests where they should be…not in your barn!
1. One of the most effective forms of pest prevention is also the most obvious: be sure that all of your grain is in a secure container. Almost every unwanted animal in your barn, from flies to mice and skunks, would love to get at your horse’s carefully selected meals! Be sure to take the same care when storing your horse’s supplements. If you spill any feed, clean it up immediately, using a damp cloth to wipe away any residue.
2. Bill Telgen, of Insect Control Systems, feels that cleanliness in and around the stable, with daily manure removal, is the primary requirement to control pests. Manure is an ideal breeding ground for flies and other insects. Along those same lines of cleanliness, be sure that any garbage in your barn is disposed of promptly. Keep any garbage that is in the barn in an airtight container in an area that can be monitored often. If you see that some sort of animal has been in the garbage, remove the garbage immediately!
3. Protective barriers, such as fly masks, fly leg wraps and fly sheets, can be a very effective way to keep your horse’s sanity intact. Many of the fly sheets on the market today also offer UV protection; keeping your horse bump-free and shiny has never been easier! If you clip your horse’s ears, be sure to choose a fly mask that has ear coverage to keep the flies out of this tender area.
4. Fly Predators®, such as those sold by Spaulding Labs, are small insects that feed on fly larvae. Placing the fly predators in the manure pile will allow them to feed on the flies before they reach adulthood, thus cutting down on the fly breeding population. These fly predators will be barely, if at all, noticeable to you and your equine counterparts.
5. Hanging fly strips from the ceiling of your barn will keep the flies off your horse. These strips snag the flies out of the air onto the paper, making for one easy-to-dispose-of (albeit a bit sticky) fly-covered band of paper to toss in the trash.
6. Bill Telgen believes that one of the largest mistakes horse owners make is spraying their horses occasionally with synthetic pyrethroids, to which flies and insects can develop immunity to, due to the infrequent application.
7. Consider applying a natural pyrethrum, which is extracted from chrysanthemum flowers. Insects and flies do not build up immunity to pyrethrum. It is suggested that you apply pyrethrum regularly seven days a week, several times per day, a few seconds at a time, to control flies, mosquitoes and spiders in your stable.
8. If you are using barn cats as a form of pest control, make sure that you feed them. Hungry cats are more apt to go looking for the easy prey, such as the mice in the fields, while satiated cats will spend more time stalking down that one, lone mouse in the feed room. Be sure that your cats are current on their shots as well, or they can contract all of the nasty diseases you are trying to avoid by getting the pests out of your barn.
9. Place a layer of screen behind any vents in your barn, especially the vents headed into areas such as your tack room, feed room, and hay loft. Be sure to fix any broken windows promptly as well. We often forget these easy points of entrance, but they’re always utilized by pesky critters!
10. If you already have a case of pest infestation, it is best to contact an eradication professional. They can help you to identify the invasion that is occurring and how to properly rid your barn of the pests. Be sure to find a professional that has worked around horses before and understands some of the precautions that must be taken to keep our equine partners safe.
A special thanks to Bill Telgen of Insect Control Systems for his help in writing this month’s ten tips. For more information on Telgen, call him at 802-897-5800.
