Do you leave fly sheets and masks on during night turnout?

[Nanerpus]

Do you leave fly sheets and masks on during night turnout?

[Trakehner]

You bet...24/7...same with his fly leggings.

I take everything off every 2 days to make sure there are no rub marks.

[Nanerpus]

OK, great thank you!~

[HandsomeBayFarm]

Me too. 24/7 fly mask for the horse with the eye allergy. It gets changed daily.

The old horse gets his fly sheet only at night was we live on a pond and he is uber sensitive to all things flying.

[LShipley]

Yes, but my horse is out in the pasture 24/7, and I don't make it out to the barn every day. I am out every other day or so to check for anything. My girl has mastered removing her fly mask by rubbing the top of her head when rolling. She rubs the fly mask off of her ears, and then gets it off with a good head shake. Needless to say, I often spend a good 15 minutes roaming around the pasture looking for said fly mask. Still worth it - even keeping it on for some of the time prevents all sorts of goobers from her eyes.

[kcmel]

No, I take everything off at night. It helps prevent rubs and I think he is more comfortable. Plus the masks impede their vision at night (try it and see for yourself ;)).

[Lori T]

Absolutely! Course the one with allergies who really needs it usually comes in missing his mask and a few fly boots, but at least the sheet is intact!

[Nanerpus]

I just went out to check the girls and one had her mask half off, so I took it off and took the other one off too. Left the sheet on the one who had her sheet on. It's pretty breezy tonight so I'm not too worried about bugs, but I put some bag balm along their ears and chins just in case. Thanks for all the info guys!

[amdfarm]

I only have one that has a fly mask, he's a homebred 3yo and so far he and his younger and smaller counterparts leave it alone. He seems to like it actually. They're all out together 24/7 and there are 7 in his group, including him. I check it daily for fit and rubs, so far so good.

[jetsmom]

I take it off if we are expecting rain, as I don't want him rolling and ending up with mud all over it so he can't see.

[amdfarm]

I take it off if we are expecting rain, as I don't want him rolling and ending up with mud all over it so he can't see.

My boy must be a princess then, as I've never seen a speck of mud on the thing. I don't think he puts his face on the ground when he rolls and I know he rolls cause I've seen him do it and he really doesn't rub his head at all. Silly boy. Guess he figures the round bale and other horse's bodies work fine to scratch or rub his head. He does use the pony mares, they're easy for him to reach for a quick rub. :)

[Simbalism]

Yep, my mare is on pasture board. I go out almost every day to ride, so she is checked for rubs. She has several fly sheets and masks, so I change both once per week.

[goeslikestink]

Do you leave fly sheets and masks on during night turnout?

yeap i most knats and mossy are out at dawn and dusk ,here in uk

[ryansgirl]

yeap i most knats and mossy are out at dawn and dusk ,here in uk

Yup agree! Mine wear fly sheets ONLY at night due to mosquitos and the little bugs - they DON'T wear them during the day as I've seen too many horse flies, deer flies, etc. get stuck UNDER the sheet and that is not a pretty scene :no:. They do wear fly masks 24/7 - my mare freaks even if I take her's off for a second just to put a clean one on. :)

[BelladonnaLily]

Most of the time, but I do take them off every few nights to give them a break and help prevent rubs. I do check under them daily to make sure everyone's eyes are okay (we've had a couple with eye ulcers over the years).

[S1969]

This time of year - yes! My horses use their stalls as run-ins during the day; with the heat the flies are bad even in the stalls, so I leave them on. Definitely on overnight as flies, gnats & mosquitoes are very bad at dusk & dawn. If my horses had to navigate obstacles at high speed I might be concerned about their vision, but their pastures are wide-open (no trees, nothing) so I have no concerns. Check them daily for rubs and if flies aren't bad I'll take them off during the day for a while to give them a break.

[ryansgirl]

I do check under them daily to make sure everyone's eyes are okay (we've had a couple with eye ulcers over the years).

Same here - i've dealt w/ some nasty corneal ulcers so I always check their eyes every morning and night! :)

[LookinSouth]

This time of year my gelding wears his flymask 24/7 unless it is raining. At dusk the mosquitos and knats are awful and he is miserable without it and won't leave his run-in. I want him out and moving around and comfortable so the flymask is a must. I have never noticed him have an issue with vision at night wearing the mask.

Spring and fall I usually take it off in the evening as the bugs aren't as bad.

[mypaintwattie]

Mask and boots stay on all the time, sheet has been coming off at night or during the day if the flies aren't bad because she was starting to get rubs.

[baysngreys]

Don't use sheets - it's just too hot here.
Fly masks come off every night. I do a final pasture check around 8:30. Everyone comes to a whistle, gets a carrot and masks come off.
I love hearing the thunder of hooves in the dark and then they all line up along the fence!

I wash the masks about once a week and have a spare for each horse so I can rotate/repair.

Masks go back on in the am at feeding time, before gnats gets going.