Natural Fly Spay
We've been using natural/chemical-free products on ourselves and in our home for the better part of a decade so when it was time to whip out the fly spray for the horses this summer I couldn't bring myself to use the typical store-bought stuff. First, I always try to use natural options for our animals whenever possible but second (and even more importantly), if you've ever fly sprayed a horse or livestock you know that stuff ends blowing around and getting all over you, too...and I'm not a fan of the idea of commercial insecticides getting all over our skin, in our eyes, etc.
I played around with a "recipe" a bit until I came up with one that I was really happy with. It works well, smells GREAT and is economical. Apple cider vinegar is cheap and you can even by it by the gallon to save even more. A 15ml bottle of Terrashield is only $10.50, which will make you 2 batches of this spray and then you just need 20 or so drops of the other oils, both of which are also inexpensive. If you're used to the store-bought fly spray brands where 1 application will last you a full day or even a few days, just a heads up: there's not really anything natural that's going to give good results that are that long-lasting. Like I said, this is super effective but without the chemical insecticides you'll need to apply it a little more frequently than you would the toxic stuff!
When it comes to DIYs I'm in the camp who usually doesn't measure anything and eyeballs everything but I know many are intimidated to whip stuff up without an actual recipe in-hand....if that's you, I hope this helps! I promise, you cannot mess this up!
- 2-3 cups apple cider vinegar (use raw, if you have it)
- Half of a 15ml bottle Terrashield (pop the orifice reducer off the top of the bottle and just pour half in, rather than doing it drop by drop!)
- 20 drops Citronella
- 20 drops Lemon Eucalyptus
- 1 Tablespoon dish soap
- 2 Tablespoons fractionated coconut oil
Add everything (either measured or eye-balled) to your spray bottle and shake gently to mix before each use.
***If you want to top it off with a little water to stretch it further, go for it...sometimes I do & sometimes I don't!
Hope your horses appreciate it as much as ours do! I can pretty much guarantee you'll get asked what it is/what's in it because the great smell always catches people's attention! If you try it, let me know what you think!
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