Home Forums Gear Horses and ATV's Fly Spray

I saw this fly spray mix on another web site and thought I would pass it on. Seems to work pretty good on my mules.

Two cups of Pinesol, Lemon Scented
Two cups white vinegar
Two cups Listerine, mint flavored

Put in a 1 gallon sprayer and top off to one gallon with water.

Works out to about $3.50/gallon depending on where you buy every thing.

Gotta be better than Avon’s skin so soft!

I also switch from a mineral salt block to a sulfur salt block when fly season starts. Flies won't bother the mules as much. Don't use cow sulfur block that has urea in it though.

Does it work on blackflies? That's our major problem here.

Mosquitoes are our primary horse pest. I mix RepelX and apply it with a saturated rag.

We have very few skeeters. I can go for weeks between bites. Our big summertime bug is those miserable black flies. They breed in the irrigation ditches which are everywhere. They drive the animals nuts. Everywhere you look you'll see horses with fly masks. My problem is that no one makes masks for llamas. They have to live with them.
I might give Saddlesore's recipe a try and just wipe it on.

Lot of mosquitoes this year with all the rain. I don't know what you call black flies, but we get grey ones about 3/4"long that really hurt when they bite. Seems to be more prevalent after moisture and a big warm up. This mixture seems to keep them off.

Really just started using it. I spray before I turn them out in the AM and again in the afternoon when I bring them in.

I have used Espree Aloe Herbal fly spray concentrate for years. A gallon makes five gallons, but it has gone up to $70 a gallon and really doesn't work real well..

$3.50 a gallon is a lot better than $15 a gallon that works better.

I sue Off for mosquitoes around their heads.My mules will tear a fly mask off

Black flies are sometimes called buffalo gnats. They're a very small biting fly that breed in moving water like streams or irrigation ditches.

Don't have them here

Thanks for posting that recipe! Gonna try it out!

Update. I have mixed up a gallon and used about half of it . Flies got very bad. Sad to say, this stuff doesn't work as well as I was told. I'd appreciate any feed back anyone has.

We buy permethrin concentrate (13%) and mix 5 oz to a gallon of water. Comes out to about a 0.5% mix if i remember right. We spray down the horse stall floors, before mucking, every evening when flies get bad, as well as the manure piles i the close pasture area. Seems to work quite well. When it gets really bad, usually one or two hot stretches in the summer, we will spray down the walls and underside of the hay loft as well. any resting places the flies sit on and within a couple days it is back under control. Permethrin leaves a residue that will continue to repel and maybe kill too? We do not spray feed buckets or water containers with it, just the bedding and manure before mucking.

I believe you can use it on the animals too at that concentration, but would have to double check. A quart of the concentrate is about $25 and makes 6 gallons of mix.

Most home remedies don't. The same goes for cures for your ailments. If they worked that well, there would be no need for commercial products and those would disappear from the market.

Permethrin and keep some Golden Malrin around to kill the flies. I have seen them eat the Golden Malrin and die right inside of the lid/pan/plate or whatever you have the bait in.

It is the real deal.

some Golden Malrin around to kill the flies. I have seen them eat the Golden Malrin and die right inside of the lid/pan/plate or whatever you have the bait in.

It is the real deal.[/quote]

I haven't used golden malrin before. Do i need to be careful using it if there are barn cats around or anything?

I haven't used golden malrin before. Do i need to be careful using it if there are barn cats around or anything?[/quote]
Maybe put it where they can't get it themselves.

You would have to study up on it though. Have used/seen it used around dogs but they weren't vacuuming up the dead flies though

I haven't used golden malrin before. Do i need to be careful using it if there are barn cats around or anything?[/quote]

Bad for dogs and small pets if they eat it.

A lot of products kill flies. I am looking for a spray for equines that doesn't take a bank loan to use

Bad for dogs and small pets if they eat it.

A lot of products kill flies. I am looking for a spray for equines that doesn't take a bank loan to use[/quote]
Look here.

https://www.starbarproducts.com/all-products?f=Type%20of%20Control:Sprays

I heard about something called Tempo (I think). Came recommended from a generally reliable source. I have no personal knowledge.