Fly Season
By Jeff Mattocks
It is that time of year again. Flies! Don’t wait until you have them to act. Natural methods of biting insect control take 3 to 4 weeks to start showing positive effects. The best proven method for deterring flies from your livestock in organic or natural production is through feeding garlic and sulfur. Feeding garlic which has sulfur compounds and elemental sulfur will gradually change the odor of your animals. These odors will be emitted through both the breath and skin of the animals. It is simple that the biting flies do not like the smell of garlic or the higher sulfur content of the blood of the animal. Feeding the Fly Aside dry which contains the organic approved Redmond Salt with garlic and 99% elemental sulfur granules (not dust) works. It works if you are prepared.
Feeding this product or any other product with garlic and sulfur takes time to build up in the bloodstream of the animal. Do not be looking for an overnight miracle. Natural treatments or remedies do not work like chemical compounds that kill insects. Now is the time to start feeding it. Being proactive and not reactive to the problem we all know is coming sooner than we like. Fly Aside dry fed at the rate of 2 ounces per adult cattle per day for the first 30 days to build up the sulfur compounds in the blood stream to repel the biting insects. After the first 30 days you can reduce to 1 ounce per head per day for maintenance. Antidotally, we have also had many reports from farmers they have seen a reduce MUN during the spring flush and over summer grazing.
If you wait too long you will be using spray on applications like Fly Aside liquid. Containing garlic, citronella, tea tree oil, and other essential oils. To be honest, this is really a bandage for poor planning. In an unusual biting insect season where a little more support may be required. Liquid or spray on products work, however, they have a short protection period of 12 to 24 hours. It is exceedingly difficult to topically apply anything in a natural system that will have long lasting effects.
In the long run, feeding garlic and sulfur supplements to deter biting insects is the best and least cost option. Now is the time to get started. Before you know it the flies, mosquitoes, ticks, gnats, and other blood thirsty insects will be attacking all of your animals and us!
