I’m still not sure what caused Jovi to get hives last week. He didn’t have them when I feed in the morning but two hours later he presented with hives on his neck, shoulders, sides and hindquarters.

I believe that he was laying down by the fence where there have historically been red ants. There are some fruit trees with a lot of fruit on the ground on the other side of the fence. So it could have been ants, or wasps. Or maybe something he ate? Though I’m leaning towards it being ants as this has happened to other horses before.

I gave Jovi some Tri-Hist and then some Cimetidine and took him for a long walk. That seemed to help. Things were looking better on Tuesday morning and that is when it was recommended to me to try putting some Redmond clay on the hives. Brilliant! I did that twice a couple of hours apart along with cold hosing and the hives just about disappeared completely.

On Wednesday I took Jo out for a 10 mile ride and got in some hillwork and a good sweat. I was also keeping Jo out of that particular paddock. Now it’s been a week and no sign of the hives returning. If this happens again I’ll start with getting Jovi some exercise followed by the Redmond Clay, and then cold hosing.

Here is a description of the Redmond Clay: Redmond Red Edge Natural Soothing Clay Poultice is a poultice for horses that is made with hydrated bentonite clay and pure essential oils. It is a natural analgesic that can relieve sore muscles, tendons, bruises, sprains, and hot spots. It can also be used on hooves to provide relief for soreness and abscesses.