Regular readers know I have been battling flies this summer in a big way, particularly the large, biting greenheads that torture the horses in the pasture, the run-in and on rides.
Many of you have suffered the same situation at your barns.
So, during another desperate wave, I looked into trapping the bastards. To sum up what I learned, they are not attracted by bait, but are "sight" hunters, zeroing in on their targets (in this case, horses) by seeing the dark shape and size, and movement. So, you can't attract them with some delectable poison greenhead cocktail. You have to trick them into thinking they are going in for a bite of some horse flesh.
This led me to discovering these plans, and, one afternoon, in a hasty fit of angst, I put the plans into action and made this:
 |
| Horse-sized trap with beach ball "head." |
 |
| Hah! |
 |
| DeCato contemplates her new pasture mate. |
Also, in an update on the Summer Whinnies Sox, I am now in the league of those who find them to be a royal pain to put on and take off. They are good for those wretched, hot days and nights when you're not riding anyway, but if you are actively working your horse, they just are too much of a hassle.
However, the horses like the relief of fly socks, so I purchased three sets of front socks from Kensington. I'll let you know how I like them in a later post.
No comments:
Post a Comment