HerdLeader Summer Itch Relief - Oral supplement for insect bite irritation & summer allergies

£33.96 GBP
£33.96 GBP
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Information on Feeding & Ingredients

Feeding

Feed once daily by drawing up the correct amount of the product into the measuring chamber and sprinkling it over a small handful of concentrate which you then give to your horse.

Daily use/Feeding recommendations:
Feed at the rate of 5ml per 125kg bodyweight.
Typically horses (500-600kg) 20-25ml daily, and ponies (350-500kg)15-20ml daily

If you choose to add it to your horse’s whole feed ration then ensure that the liquid is taken and not wasted in the bottom of the feed bucket/bowl.

A 1000ml bottle of HerdLeader is typically 50 days supply for a horse, more for a pony, up to 66 days supply.

Ingredients, Safety & Regulations

Herdleader Oral is a composition of pharmaceutical grade 99% pure Nicotinamide (one of the B3 vitamins) and Purified water. No other ingredients. Nicotinamide is the only one of the various forms of Vitamin B3 that suppresses the immune response that releases the irritant histamine.

Nicotinamide is a water soluble natural vitamin. It is very safe. Excess vitamin is expelled through urine. It does not accumulate in the body.

The level of Nicotinamide is 270mg/ml. This means that a 500kg horse receiving 20ml per day of Herdleader Oral is fed at the intended rate of 11mg Nicotinamide per kilo of bodyweight.

The current FEI banned and controlled substances list does not include nicotinamide. Rest assured, Herdleader Oral and Lotion contain no prohibited substances.

When to start feeding and how long before you would expect to see an effect?

If it’s been a mild winter, for example, midges will be active earlier than after a prolonged cold season.  Then there are environmental factors, i.e. where the horse is kept, low lying ground, proximity to water, etc.  Add in all those other measures that are available, factor in how early in the year you started the supplement & then, of course, each animal will react to the same irritant individually. 

Now, more technical information for you.  Nicotinamide works in two different ways.  Firstly & most well known is the dampening down of the immune system & therefore the urge to scratch/rub itchy parts. Secondly,  it works to thicken the skin.  The first effect - relating to the immune system - builds up quite quickly, in a matter of days, while the second takes effect much slower.  The skin’s thickening is caused by increasing numbers of fat cells it contains & this process is ongoing, it can take a month or more. 

Feeding to Mares in Foal

Herdleader Summer Itch Relief is completely safe to feed to pregnant mares at any stage. Indeed the B3 vitamins generally are important and useful to the developing foal.

How does the cost compare?

Herdleader Summer Itch Relief delivers a higher dosage (11mg/kg bodyweight) of Nicotinamide than other brands and yet its cost in-use is less. Typically its cost for a horse is 68p/day compared to 75p/day for the Cavalesse brand for example.

  • A pleased owner 15/6/23

    Amazing
    "I have used Cavalesse for a number of years now and transformed my horse from quite literally a giant walking scab to a beautiful boy. I wanted to see if there was anything better though and after some searching on google found this and I have to say I think it’s even better than the Cavalesse and much easier to administer. Because really who loves having medicine injected into their mouth. I’m on my second bottle and will definitely be sticking with this from now on! I should add he now has a full tail and mane (something previously unachievable) and is no longer in a sweet itch rug most days"

  • Samantha Spriggs 19/6/23

    "We spend thousands each year on vets bills for our old TB mare who suffers from the most hideous allergic reactions to any type of fly bite. This summer we have tried Heard leader and we have a very happy senior TB. This stuff isn't good, it's magical. Can't rate it highly enough, it's brilliant."

  • Pippa Dorey 12/9/23

    Relief

    "My horse had blood tests which showed lots of allergies. She had immunotherapy for 2 years and I tried antihistamines and Cavalesse. This caused sores so couldn’t continue. The one thing that showed the lost relief was Herdleader Oral. Not a cure but has helped the itch. So much. I put a neck rug on her from snuggly hoods and even though needed 1 course of steroids this year- it was only a low dose oral. Thanku x"

Spring sees the start of the itchy season

Summer can place an additional burden on our horses skin health. Factors in the environment change with increased insect activity, pollens and fungal spores. extra support for your horses immune system from Herdleader supplements can give both you and your horse a more comfortable summer. 

Herdleader is ready mixed: saving you time and trouble each day.

Herdleader contains more Nicotinamide than any other brand - giving your horse maximum comfort.

HerdLeader is a neutraceutical non-medicinal product containing nicotinamide, one of the B vitamins, which helps to maintain a healthy skin in horses prone to irritation from insect bites & allergies in the summer months.

Midge bites cause Sweetitch in horses

Insect bites

Typically insect bite irritation is a condition in equines caused by the bites of Culicoides midges. It may be found in any horses and ponies and especially in the warmer regions of the world.

The irritation develops at the sites where the insects feed.
Mainly these are the mane and tail and dorsal midline. Ventral midline irritation may also occur. Similarly around the ears and head. 

These irritations result in itching, which results in rubbing and considerable self-trauma. The itch response is triggered by the immune reaction in the mast cells of the skin, releasing Histimine.

Other triggers

Under normal living conditions horses are engulfed in dust, mould spores and other foreign substances all day long. In pastures where horses graze there are many different airborne proteins that could mean your horse needs extra support to maintain a healthy skin.  

Such triggers leading to the need for support are commonly pollens (often tree), grass, foods (grains and hay)

Herdleader is useful for Hives

Hives, urticaria, are swelings on a horse's skin. These bumps are generally round in shape and flat-topped.

Hives in horses may or may not be itchy, appear minutes to hours to days after exposure, are often seasonal in nature, and can develop anywhere on a horse’s body, although the most common sites are the neck, back, flank, and legs.

They are most often an immune response to insect bites and stings or inhaled pollen.

Herdleader works in much the same way as for Sweet Itch bites, dampening down the immune reaction in the skin.

And Donkeys too!

  • writes Lesley Martin

    We have four Donkey Sanctuary male donkeys; two of whom have been with us for nearly 13 years. 

    One of these - Quincy - is a scewbald and 16 years' old.  He is a very itchy donkey who ends up with pink skin at his neck and bottom due to the amount of rubbing he does. 

    Because another of the donkeys - Danny - had used his teeth to remove a large area of hair, I got chatting with the vet about the possibility of giving both Quincy and Danny sweet itch vaccinations.  As our vet practice had no experience of giving such a vaccination to donkeys, I asked them to speak to the vets at The Donkey Sanctuary.  The message came back that the TDS also have no experience of sweet itch vaccination in donkeys and, although happy for us to have our donkeys vaccinated, we weren't happy for them to be guinea-pigs!

    TDS vets did, however, suggest Cavalesse as another option and a Google search brought your product up in first place on the scroll bar of photos.  Once I'd got my head around the fact that Cavalesse had to be prepared and your product was pre-made but still had the active ingredient nicotinamide, I thought I'd give it a try and boy oh boy does it work!

    I gave all four donkeys a 15ml dose a week ago yesterday - Saturday night - for good measure I gave them another 15ml dose on Sunday morning as the directions said it could be given once or twice a day and then a further 15ml dose that evening and since Saturday night, Quincy hasn't itched once and the once pink skin on his neck and bottom is no longer. All are now having 15ml once a day (in the evening).

    The liquid is, obviously, palatable because Quincy and Danny are suspicious of anything out of the norm.  I'm using a large pinch of Hi-Fi Molasses Free feed to soak up the liquid.  This sits atop their TopSpec Donkey Forage Balancer and everything gets eaten and licked from their bowls.

     

    THANK YOU FROM ME AND THE BOYS!

     

    Lesley Martin.

Customer Reviews

Based on 43 reviews
79%
(34)
9%
(4)
2%
(1)
2%
(1)
7%
(3)
R
Rachel Eather
Success

My shetland had been on herdleader since the 1/2/25 and is currently showing no signs of sweet itch and has a lovely shiny coat
My other pony gets hives and has recently started on herdleader and is looking better

R
RUTH
Super product

Really helps my horse with her itching and it's very easy to use. She's a fussy eater but this has no smell and it's given in such a small amount I have no problem getting it into her, just sprinkle it on to her feed.

S
Sarah
So far so good

I’ve started this during the spring to get it into my horses system. He suffers from severe allergy reactions and today, he went out naked for the first time in 2 years. I expected him to start chucking himself at the walls as usual when he’s been out where there are flies but I was surprised when he came in and just tucked in to his haynet! It is too early in the season to determine if this is making a huge difference but today it seemed to do the trick. Order arrived quickly & efficiently.

L
Lisa
Herdleader

First time using Herdleader recommended by our vet as horse suffers from insect bites. I put a order in thinking it's worth a try and that evening said horse came in from the field with hives oñ both shoulder's and hind quarters. Herdleader arrived very quickly and I gave the recommended dose to her, by the following morning the hives had disappeared, I couldn't believe it as last year she had them for about 4 weeks covering her entire body. She's had a few spots since appearing but then going just as quickly so fingers crossed Herdleader will keep her immune system under control. She's only been on Herdleader for 3 weeks but so far very happy with the results. Hoping for a much easier summer for my mare who will continue to be on Herdleader ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

User picture

Welcome to Herdleader Lisa. Delighted to hear that your mare is happier on her new supplement & thanks for the 5* review.

K
Kathleen Tear
Early days

Official last day of winter has just passes so started with this product before warmer days bring the biters out. So far I would say yes there is an improvement and less inclination to itch.

We appreciate you taking the time to post your review & very happy that your horse is more comfortable.

T
Ts

Can’t review yet it’s to soon .

J
JS
This Works

I feed this all year round now to my elderly mare and she has stopped rubbing her tail. I did stop post summer which resulted in a few broken fence rails but within a few days of restarting, the problem stopped - thankfully.

Many thanks for your five stars. We're finding that more & more people are coming around to your way of thinking!

E
Emma Roberts
Headleader summer itch relief

Wow finally something g that has stopped my boy itching l have tried everything over the last 10 months & nothing has helped him. Thank you 😊

Delighted to hear that your horse has responded so well to the product, many thanks for the feedback.
Sheila@Herdleader

P
Patsy Day
Game Changer!! 😃

This is truly magical stuff! Has transformed the quality of life for my horse! He was a bad sweet itch sufferer, but this added daily to his feed has meant he can live out all year pretty much rug and itch free. At bad midge times I put a rug on to stop the itch/scratch cycle start, but he has no rubs/sores anywhere and a lovely mane and tail. Most important is he is happy!
Previous to using Herdleader, I had used pretty much every additive or topical potion going. None had the result Herdleader has had - you really would not know my horse was a sweet itch sufferer.
Big tip…. Start early in the season. I start at the beginning of February and keep going till the end of November. So only December and January without it - believe me it’s worth it!!

Love this, many thanks for our five stars. Excellent point you raise that may help others with your 'big tip' - 'Start early in the season. I start at the beginning of February and keep going till the end of November.'
Very good advice from Patsy!!

C
Carol Ferguson
So far so good!

I am on my second bottle of Summer Itch Relief after my 16 year old gelding had a sweet itch flare up in August. Midges haven’t particularly bothered him in the past but this summer has been different & he was so itchy it was difficult to keep him in work. I have used this alongside a spot on insect repellent. The service from Herdleader has been very impressive with the product delivered next day on both occasions. The itching has completely subsided. Skin has healed along his mane & tail & he is much happier.

I'd agree, the midges have been particularly bad & they have definitely outstayed their welcome in our part of the world. Delighted to hear that your gelding is now more comfortable, happier, with a full set of floof too. Thanks for the feedback.

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