As a horse owner, one of the challenges you may face is dealing with horse lice infestations. Discovering that your horse has lice can be alarming, but rest assured—you're not alone! Lice infestations are incredibly common, especially during winter when thick coats and rugs create the perfect hiding spots for these unwelcome guests. Plus, with horses living in close quarters, lice can spread like wildfire.
While an infestation can cause itching, irritation, and discomfort, the good news is that it’s entirely manageable. In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to identify, prevent, and treat horse lice, including how clipping can be a game-changer in keeping your horse or pony comfortable and healthy.
What Do Horse Lice Look Like?
Lice are small, wingless insects of around 2-5mm in size that can be found on the horse’s skin and hair. They can be seen by parting the hair and may look like yellow/white walking dandruff! Take a look at this video by Jillian Scott here.
Equine lice are species specific so they cannot be spread to humans. There are two main types of lice that affect horses: blood sucking lice and biting lice.
- The biting louse: is the most common and can be seen moving about on the skin when you part the horse’s hair. These lice feed off dander and tend to be found on the main areas of the body covered with finer hair such as the head, neck, sides, and rump.
- The Sucking louse: feed on the blood of the horse and tend to thrive in coarse hair. These lice prefer to reside in the horse’s feathers and at the base of the mane, forelock, and tail. When parting the hair, these lice can be seen fixed to the hair shafts as they bury their heads into the skin and will be motionless rather than moving around.
Common Signs of Lice Infestation In Horses
Lice are incredibly contiguous and can affect any horse, even those in good health. Young or older horses, those that are immunocompromised and equines with Cushing’s Disease are the most prone to lice infestation.
Despite not being able to fly or jump, lice can be very easily passed from horse to horse and can spread quickly through a herd. It’s quite typical for young horses housed together during the winter to become infested. Long winter coats easily hide these parasites, letting them go unnoticed until spring.
If your horse is displaying any of these symptoms, you should always check for signs of lice before considering other causes of itching such as sweet itch or mites.
- Excessive itching and scratching.
- Hair loss or patches of rough, flaky skin.
- Presence of eggs attached to the hair shafts.
- Restlessness and agitation.
- Heavy infestations can lead to the horse looking poor. The horse may have a moth-eaten look to the coat with additional weight loss. Severe infestations with blood sucking lice can lead to anaemia.
Preventing Lice Infestations In Horses
Prevention is key when it comes to tackling lice in horses. Here are some proactive measures you can take to reduce the risk of infestation.
- Grooming tools, tack and rugs can spread lice from infected equines so it’s important to clean these items regularly, especially if they are shared between other horses. Disinfect your horse’s stable regularly too. Although they are unable to survive for long off of the host animal, lice and their eggs can be easily passed on to other equines via these objects.
- Monitor new arrivals: Quarantine and closely inspect any new horses to the yard before introducing them to your existing herd to prevent the spread of lice and other parasites.
- Practice good grooming habits: Regular grooming not only helps to keep your horse's coat healthy and shiny but also allows you to spot and address infestations early on.
- Use preventive treatments: Consider using louse repellent products, such as specialist shampoos, sprays, or powders to protect your horse from infestations. Ensure your horse is up to date with their worming treatments too.
Steps To Treat lice Infestations
If your horse does become infested with lice, prompt treatment is essential to prevent the infestation from worsening. Here's how to effectively tackle them:
1. Consult your vet: Seek professional advice from your vet to confirm the presence and type of louse and determine the most appropriate and effective treatment plan for your horse. There are a range of louse treatments available on the market from pour-on formulations, shampoos and powders but it's best to source a veterinary tried and tested product to completely eradicate lice and break up their lifecycle.
2. Consider clipping your horse or pony. Removing a thick coat will help you see and effectively treat the infestation more successfully. Clipping the hair short also makes the habitat for the lice much less preferable for them to thrive. A shorter coat will allow for topical treatments used to kill the lice and their larvae to reach right down to the skin much easier, ensuring they are completely eliminated. You will also be able to spot and treat wounds caused by your horse scratching more easily. Even foals can benefit from a clip if they have a high lice burden.
A heavy-duty horse clipper will easily and efficiently clip through a thick winter coat. If the coat is unable to be washed beforehand, consider using a coarse clipper blade first to remove the bulk of the hair. For a smooth finish, you can then reclip the body using a medium or fine blade to leave a short, easy to maintain coat length.
If you're unsure what clipper to use, feel free to contact us for tailored clipping advice.
3. Use insecticidal products: Once your horse is clipped, your vet may recommend using insecticidal applications such as Deosect to target lice. Follow the instructions carefully to ensure safe and effective treatment. These formulations usually need to be repeated after a period of time to ensure the eggs and larvae are eliminated. It’s best to treat all the horses in the herd at the same time, even if lice have not yet been detected.
4. Treat the environment: In addition to treating your horse, it's important to treat the surrounding environment, including stables, bedding, and grooming tools. Wash numnahs, rugs and headcollars to eliminate lice eggs or larvae. Don't forget to thoroughly clean your clipper and disinfect your blades too after clipping a horse with lice!
Saying Goodbye To Lice in Horses For Good
Clipping as a key treatment : Clipping your horse’s coat helps reduce lice infestation by removing the thick hair where lice love to thrive. Shorter hair is also easier to treat the horse and spot issues like wounds caused by scratching. Using a high-quality clipper ensures an effective and smooth result.
Prevention tips : Regular grooming, disinfecting tack, rugs, and stables, and using lice-repellent products are essential to preventing lice infestations in horses.
Prompt treatment : Seek veterinary advice for confirmed infestations, use insecticidal products, and clean the horse's environment thoroughly.
For expert advice and help choosing the right clipper for your horse, feel free to contact us!
FAQ's
Are horse lice contagious to humans?
No, horse lice are species-specific, meaning they only infest horses and cannot survive on humans. Unlike human head lice, which are adapted to live on people, horse lice require the specific conditions found in a horse’s coat to thrive. However, if you handle an infested horse, lice may temporarily crawl onto your clothing or skin, but they won’t stay or cause an infestation.
To prevent the spread of lice between horses, it’s always a good idea to wash your hands after handling an affected horse and avoid sharing grooming equipment or rugs without thorough cleaning and disinfection.
How can I disinfect my clipper blades after clipping a horse with lice?
You can use Andis cool care spray to disinfect your clipper blades after use. This 5-in-1 formulation not only cools and lubricates your clipper blades but also has cleaning, disinfecting and rust preventative properties to take care of your blades. Clean your clipper and blades thoroughly after use and spray your blades will cool care before wrapping them in an oily rag or grease proof paper and storing them in an airtight container such a plastic tupperware box or their original blister pack.
Can horse lice transfer to dogs or other animals?
No, luckily horse lice are species-specific and only affect horses, ponies, and other equines. They cannot infest dogs, cats, or other animals. Lice have evolved to survive on a specific host species, meaning horse lice require the unique conditions of a horse’s coat to feed and reproduce.
However, if your dog frequently comes into contact with an infested horse, lice may crawl onto their fur temporarily, but they won’t be able to establish an infestation.
How long can horse lice survive in the environment?
Horse lice are highly dependent on their host and cannot survive long once they fall off. On average, they can live for only a few days away from a horse, as they require a constant source of warmth and food (horse dander and blood, depending on the type of lice). Without a host, they quickly become dehydrated and die.
This means that while lice can linger on grooming equipment, rugs, and stable surfaces for a short period, they won’t persist indefinitely. This is why regular cleaning and disinfecting of shared items, along with effective treatment of infested horses, will help break the cycle and prevent re-infestation
