Bitless and Barefoot

Neem for horses

Out of desperation for one of our horses that had terrible sweetitch I did a lot of research, and accidently dropped upon neem oil.  I had never heard of it before, and bought a little bottle from an Indian shop. When I applied it, it instantly gave relief and the midges wouldn`t go anywhere near it.  I was so impressed with neem that I decided to sell the products.  About 14 years ago when I dropped upon neem it wasn`t really known in the U.K, so it was difficult to get hold of.  Now I have a great supplier who imports his neem from India and has his own pharmacist to hand whenever he needs advice.

Over these 14 years I have trialled neem for so many ailments with my horses, and neem never fails to impress me with it`s amazing results.

Below are some of the ailments/allergies/conditions I have used neem successfully on my 4 legged friends.

Barefoot horses - Pure neem oil is amazing for thrush. Sometimes we don`t notice in time that our horses hooves are changing shape, the frog is becoming narrow and the central sulcus is closing up.  This could be a sign of thrush.  I have experminented for a long time now with neem and thrush, and can honestly say neem does work for this condition. I have poured and rubbed the pure cold pressed neem oil into the frog area, the grooves and the central sulcus area daily and then every other day and so on and so on.  The central sulcus area starts to widen, the frog expands and starts to look much healthier. 

Sweetitch  Pure cold pressed neem oil is just amazing for soothing bad places where your horse has rubbed, it keeps the midges at bay whilst the bad places heal.  It is so safe to use you can put it onto the sore areas, as this will heal and sooth and keep the midges away.  I part the mane and pour a few drops onto the skin and massage in.  With the tail I rub the oil into the top part and massage well, they love this!  Once your horse has healed but is still prone to the midges I recommend applying it every other day as and when you think your horse needs it.  In the summer I can go for maybe 3 - 4 days before I have to re-apply the neem oil. Some people believe sweetitch is down to the immune system not working properly, so I also give neem leaf in with their food.

You can also emulsify the neem oil with a little natural washing up liquid, bubble bath or shampoo. You can then use this to sponge on all over the body.  When I make it, I always make it quite strong so that I can smell the neem oil.  You can also put this mixture into a spray bottle as an insect repellent.

Open Wounds - I have used pure Neem Oil on open wounds with amazing results.  Horses hate to have  cuts and wounds washed out, so all you need is Neem Oil, as this will clean the infection, keep flies at bay, sooth and heal all at the same time.  I have tried this several times now, and Neem is a truly great healer!

Ticks -  I`ve only ever used the neem oil on individual ticks on my horses and dogs with fast results.  However I did have a client who had moved one of her horses to another field and when she went to see her horse he was absolutely covered in ticks, all over his face.  I`d never seen anything like this before.  I suggested the neem oil, which she rubbed all over his face.  The next day she went up to see her horse and was truly amazed that the ticks had all gone.  She actually wrote an article in one the horse magazines about her poor horse and the amazing neem oil.  Neem Oil is so gentle on our horses, but so powerful!

Rainscald - If your horse ever gets rainscald, I highly recommend neem oil and neem mite shampoo, both are amazing at clearing this skin condition up.

Mud Fever - When one of my guys had mud fever many years ago I reached straight for the neem oil,this is always my first choice when dealing with my 4 legged friends. I detest all the chemical concoctions on the market, and know they can do more harm than good.  I applied the neat neem oil directly onto the bad areas, this gave instant relief to my boy as neem is anti-inflamatory and anti-viral.  I applied this daily, eventually going to every other day. After a few days the scabs would start to lift off, and we had beautiful clean flesh underneath.   I also fed neem leaf in his feed which gave his immune system a boost. I don`t believe in washing down the legs as personally I think this does more harm.

Immune System - Neem Leaf is a brillliant natural product to add to your horses feed, as well as being great to give the immune system a good boost.  Neems anti-bacterial properties can help kill infectious causes and anti-inflamatory properties and pain suppressing properties, help with arthritis and other such joint problems.

Internal Worms -  Neem teas have always been regularly used throughout the tropics to rid the body of intestinal worms.  I`ve done trials on this with my horses with good results using the leaf and bark and having egg counts done regularly. Egg counts came back very low every time.  With the egg counts, tape worms don`t show up, so this is something we must think about.

Urinary Infections. Neems antibiotic and antiviral properties help with urinary tract problems.  My horses have never had this problem, but I have trialled the neem leaf capsules with one of my dogs and yes it did clear up the infection.  I took her off the neem leaf and the infection came back. I put her back on the neem leaf for a longer course and it worked again.  So in theory neem leaf should work the same for our equine friends.

Gastro Problems - Neem leaf and bark used together help with conditions like stomach ulcers and gastro problems.

Neem products are deemed safer to use medicinally than honey and all Neem products can be used on us humans and our animals with similar conditions as well as being highly beneficial to gardeners for controlling pests in a natural and organic way.

Neem products are unique in that they are not outright killers. Instead they alter the behaviour or life processes of insects in ways that can be extremely subtle. Eventually however the insect can no longer feed, breed or metamorphose and can cause no further damage.

One of Neems substances, Salannin, is so repugnant to insects it stops them from touching the plants they normally find the most delectable.

Please email me  on sjandtj@btinternet.com  with your order or give me a ring 01974 831 009, mob 07543 780 790 and I will invoice you via paypal, or you can send me a cheque, postal order or bank transfer.  It`s so simple and fast,