my mom bought me absorbine ultrashield.  it is day 3 since i sprayed my horse and he is bug free!  it says it lasts up to 17 days.

i'm impressed but also concerned about how safe it might be.  i am going to look for some reviews tonight.

like to know other peoples' feelings on this product.

That's the only spray I've used for the past 9 years.  I'm really happy with it.  I would think it may be safer from the perspective that you only have to spray once a week or so, rather than soaking them in chemicals every day.

I haven't used if, but I will sure try it after that endorsement! Wow! Three days!?

 LOL, yeah, you can spray those things in NC -- they last about 17 minutes.  I think mine says 7 days, our bugs chortle with glee in the face of such declarations.  At least I know there is some place on earth where fly spray labels aren't a blatant lie...

it still seems to be working.  topped him off with a thorough wipe down last night including inside his ears and nostrils (i hope he can stand the smell.  it's not too bad, but, it is strong) and all those delicate spots. he pretty bug free tonight still. and the mosquitoes are awful the past few days. i can barely stand going outside at dusk. but, i look at him and his coat is pretty bug free.

but, yeah, it's not going to last 17 days! still 2 or 3 is great. the other stuff i have tried doesn't seem to do much at all. and i remember using a kinds of things in the past such as avon skin so soft and some kind of garlic based thing that made my horses smell like pasta sauce because the commercial products are not so good.

I used to use that spray all the time and I loved it. Unfortunately where I live it is also $56 for a spray bottle :(

 

Edit** Fixed my typo, I also managed to find a $42oz bottle for $20 :D

This is the only fly spray I use on my horse. It's oil based, so that's where the longevity comes from. I wouldn't say it lasts 17 days, but I think we have a little lead time on the 17 mins :) (what kind of crazy bugs live in NC anyways! hehe)

Personally, the citronella smell doesn't bother me, and I did like that the product lasts longer than the water-based products and since my horse has free choice turnout, I am confident that he is not getting pestered to death by those stupid biting gnats!

I don't think its unsafe to use, but in the grand scheme of things, how many flysprays are if they are capable of mass-murder? ;)

TGKnightV:

I wouldn't say it lasts 17 days, but I think we have a little lead time on the 17 mins :)

LOL!!!!!!

$56 a bottle.  WOW.  it costs $26 where i live.

But you haven't lived until you have been tormented by a horde of Carolina deer flies!   Go ahead, go in those nice shady woods...if you dare!

Solaris:

But you haven't lived until you have been tormented by a horde of Carolina deer flies!   Go ahead, go in those nice shady woods...if you dare!

 

Sounds like the green heads we have up in NH

lovmyhorses:

Solaris:

But you haven't lived until you have been tormented by a horde of Carolina deer flies!   Go ahead, go in those nice shady woods...if you dare!

 

Sounds like the green heads we have up in NH

LOL. I'm originally from SE Pennsylvania, so I know what you guys are talking about. I've seen greenheads get up and fly away after you knocked them to the ground and they layed there "dead" for 5 minutes. I used TriTec 14 back then and believe it or not, after the initial build-up period, it really did last all 14 days on my 24/7 turned-out mare. However, my ultimate solution to flies and mosquitoes was to move to the desert!! The problem I now have is not with fly spray longevity but with dust sticking to the oil based sprays. Imagine bathing your mostly white horse, getting him sparkling white, spraying for flies (we do have a few in the desert) and turning him out, only to look out the window a few hours later to see brown stripes where the dust stuck to the spray! (I'll admit, I'm not the best at applying an even coat of spray!) I've tried most of the long-lasting sprays and with the exception of Duraguard, they all seem to attract dust, even if the label says it won't. I think my next horse should be dust-colored!

PS: I didn't really move to the desert to get away from the bugs!! The desert does have it's drawbacks. Like it's really hard to get your butt outside when it's 110 degrees out there!