Flies are a part of life in any horse barn, but there are a number of ways that you can decrease the fly problem on your property. Are you putting these 6 tips for fly control around your barn to use?
1. Minimize Feed Waste
If you feed sweet feeds, treats, or other substances which are attractive to flies, then make sure that you minimize the amount of feed that is dropped or wasted in the barn. Keep all feed bins tightly covered, and feed horses out of large buckets so that they drop less feed on the ground in the process.
2. Remove Manure Regularly
Manure attracts flies, so make a point of cleaning out stalls multiple times a day. Additionally, make sure that your manure pile is located far from your barn. A pile which is too close to the barn will only attract flies inside.
3. Minimize Mud
Muddy pastures provide the perfect breeding ground for flies. Do your best to keep the mud on your farm to a minimum. Rotating pastures so that the ground can recover can help to minimize mud, and you can’t beat the effectiveness of installing a good drainage system.
4. Try Feed-Through Products
Feed-through fly deterrent products can help to arm your entire barn of horses against flies at once. These products are supposed to make your horse’s smell less appealing to flies, so the flies don’t bother your horse as much.
5. Invest in a Fly Misting System
In larger barns, using a fly misting system may help to get the fly problem under control. A fly misting system automatically dispenses fly spray at periodic intervals, helping to kill off the fly population and leaving your barn a much more pleasant place to be. The downside of this approach is that these systems are expensive, so this may only be a practical option for larger facilities.
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6. Use Fly Traps
There are countless versions of fly traps on the market that you can put to work in your barn. From fly tapes to plastic jug-type traps, using fly traps can help to reduce the fly population in your barn. Remember, though, that this method is really only effective if you stay on top of the issue and frequently put out new traps as the old ones become used up.
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