When I got Cherokee, he came with one of those mesh fly
masks. If he rolled in the mud, the mud would cake on there and dry- I'm
sure it made it hard for him to see. On hot days, his face seemed hotter
than the rest of him. Many times I'd go out to the paddock to find flies
all over his nostrils and mouth- some even crawling up under the mask. I
know he didn't like the mask anyway, because if I forgot to put it on
him and had to carry it out to the pasture, he would take one look at me
and the mask and take off. No way was he going to let me put that mask
on him.
I knew there had to be a better way to keep flies off his face.
Horses in the wild have their long, unkept mane and forelock to brush
the flies off their face. I had this soft, silky sueded pigskin [ we use
it to line our bags ], its durable and washable. Cut into thin strips it
would simulate the long forelock of the wild horse. So with this in mind
I set out to design the fly halter. Most importantly it had to have a
break-away feature, in case the horse got it caught in a tree or fence.
To make it light weight and comfortable for the horse, I've kept the
hardware to a minimum and the leather narrow - after all it's purpose is
to keep flies off, not to lead an unruly horse.
So after a couple seasons testing and a few design changes, we're
ready to offer the "Shoo Fly Halter" for sale. Cherokee seems
to like his, he actually puts his head into it as I hold it out, even
when he is in the pasture. More importantly it really works. It keeps
those nasty flies away from his eyes, nostrils and mouth. I've found it
trampled in a mud puddle after he got tangled in a tree branch, so I
know it does "break-away". After a quick wash it's ready to go
again, and should last for many seasons.
We're offering the "Shoo Fly Halter" in three sizes cob,
regular and large. It's available in black, gray, palomino, bay and
sorrel suede.
Price ---$55
