Urban Riding Programs
Horses help city kids dream big.
dry periods when grass is too short or stressed from drought.
A dry lot is also excellent for managing easy keepers who gain too much weight on abundant grass, as well as horses with metabolic issues whose grass intake must be restricted.
Dry lots can also be part of a rotational grazing program, allowing healthier grass to grow— which is the best way to cut down on weeds.
Speaking of weeds, mowing them before they go to seed may avoid the need for herbicides. You can make a non-chemical, vinegar-based weed killer (see “Easy Homemade Weed Killer,” pg. 48) for spraying fencelines and around the barn.
Pest control
Sanitation and good management practices go a long way toward reducing or even eliminating the need for insecticides or pesticides.
“Standing water, mud, and piled-up manure are great breeding grounds for mosquitoes and other insects,” says Nelson. “Addressing these issues is critical to any pest management strategy. If you don’t address these sources, you’ll never fix your pest problem.”
Pests (insects and rodents) are always seeking food sources, so do your best to remove them. This includes:
Vigilant manure management (more on that next)
Eliminating standing water sources
Keeping brush/vegetation trimmed around barns and structures
Sweeping up all spilled grain and feed daily
Storing grain in sealed metal bins
Not leaving out free-choice pet food at night
“In an ideal world, we’d be 100 percent chemical-free, but we have to be reasonable,” says Nelson. “A lot of the chemical-free solutions are effective but take time, so if you have a problem that has to be addressed, you may need to use some chemical strategies. The idea is to minimize that use.” He recommends chemical control as a last line of defense.
Don’t ignore mechanical methods of control. Fans in stalls can be quite effective at keeping mosquitoes and no-see-ums from landing on horses; these insects are poor fliers and can be deterred by the strong breeze of a fan.
Two effective insecticide-free methods for reducing the fly population are sticky tapes and fly traps. Hang sticky tapes in the barn out of horse reach and replace frequently.
Fly traps come in both reusable plastic containers or disposable bags. Sometimes called “stinky traps”—for good reason!—these traps contain a bait attractant to which you add water. Flies are drawn to the smell, enter the trap and drown. (Hang traps outside the barn and away from horses because they attract flies.)
Physical barriers, including fly masks, fly sheets and fly boots can also prevent irritating pests from biting your horse—no chemicals involved.
Biological controls include the use of native fly parasites. These beneficial pest-eating insects are small, non-stringing wasps that lay their eggs in fly larvae, which destroys developing flies. The wasps themselves don’t become pests and don’t bother humans.
“There are several species of these wasps commercially available,” says Nelson.
You can buy them from a company that mails small batches of fly parasites to you. Scatter them around manure areas once a month or so throughout fly season.
For on-horse protection, try a natural fly repellent or make your own chemical-free option. There are plenty of recipes available, but be sure to avoid formulas that include petroleum products or household cleaning agents.
Remember, even if a product contains no insecticide or EPA-regulated ingredients, a sensitive-skinned horse may still have an allergic reaction. Apply to a small area and wait a few hours to be sure there’s no negative reaction, such as hives, before spraying your whole horse.
If you are using chemical fly repellent, make a point of applying it to your horse inside the barn instead of outdoors. “This helps avoid fly spray reaching beneficial insect habitat,” Blickle explains. “Even bare ground can be a habitat for native pollinating insects.”
Good bugs—like bees and butterflies—will appreciate that.