Did you know?...Garlic mineral salts are an effective, all natural fly control for cattle. Swarms of flies and other biting pests, are more than just an annoyance, they are a drain on health and production levels. Let's learn more about biting pest prevention and how to use garlic salts to save your operation money and boost the health and production of your farm.
Benefits of Keeping Flies Away From Your Cows
Reducing Flies Improves Animal Health/Temperament
Cattle that spend the majority of their energy shooing away painful flies, spend less time eating and resting. This reduction in feeding and resting time is detrimental to all cattle but especially to nursing mothers and young calves. According to the University of Kentucky, College of Agriculture:
“horn fly control can mean an additional 12 to 20 pounds of weight gain per calf over the summer months and reduced weight loss for nursing cows.”
Each horn fly will feed on your cattle up to 30 times a day, drawing crucial blood and nutrients from your animals. Some cows can even become anemic in the process. That means flies are not only preventing your cattle from foraging, they are stealing essential minerals and nutrition from them as well. In addition, some fly defensive behaviors can become increasingly aggressive. Actions such as stamping, kicking, and head throwing don’t just prevent cattle from eating, they also lead to injuries for both humans and animals. Biting pests can also easily spread viral, bacterial, and parasitic diseases throughout a herd. Pest prevention will reduce fly spread diseases and hide damage that compromise your animals immune defenses.
Fly Prevention Boosts Production/Saves Money
Reducing biting pests not only improves the health of your animals, but also the health of your budget. A study conducted by the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville found that “in the United States cattle production losses due to horn flies have ranged from $730 to $876 million.” Whether your operation relies on cattle weight or milk production, horn flies alone can cause huge losses. Investing in fly repellent will lead to beneficial weight gain, boost milk production, and increase the productivity of your operation.
Garlic Mineral Salt For Biting Pest Prevention
Garlic salt, like Redmond 10 Fine with Garlic, gives your animals pest prevention and minerals all in one.
Some repellant methods involve processing cattle through squeeze chutes, installing insecticidal ear tags, rotating sprays to minimize insecticide resistance, inserting bolluses, etc. All of these methods are time and labor intensive and require cooperation from stubborn animals. Let’s take a look at the benefits of using natural garlic mineral salt for biting pest prevention.
How Does Garlic Repel Flies?
After being ingested, garlic emits a natural odor through pores in the hide as well as the breath. This natural repellent then drives biting pests away from the skin, shallow blood vessels, and sensitive facial areas like the eyes and nose. Check out the video below from our friends at Circle A Family Farm to see a dramatic, side by side difference of 10 Fine with Garlic in action!
Garlic Salts are Convenient
Are you tired of constantly reapplying fly sprays, rollers, dust bags, and other repellents? Using your cattle’s natural cravings for mineral salt to administer fly repellent is an extremely convenient method of keeping flies off cows naturally. Instead of coercing reluctant animals, you can simply serve up a delicious spread of natural garlic mineral salt, and let the cattle do the work. In addition, cattle don’t develop a resistance to garlic, like they do with other chemical treatments that have to be rotated in order to keep working. So you can ditch your repellent charts with lists of active ingredients and calendars, and get back to what you really love about raising animals.
Garlic Salts Cost Less Than Other Fly Treatments
Anytime you can enjoy multiple benefits from a single product, your farm can save money. Since cows will always need mineral salts, why not give your cattle something delicious while you are also making them less delicious for the pests?
Garlic Doesn't Taint Milk or Meat
When ingested, garlic oils are metabolized through the skin, repelling biting pests on the way out. That means you get all the benefits of fly repellent without tainting milk or meat quality or flavor.
Garlic Salts are Natural And Effective
As time goes by, ranchers, consumers, and animals have all been enjoying a shift towards more natural practices. Many are looking to homemade, or DIY sprays using apple cider vinegar and essential oils. While trying out natural methods is admirable, topical sprays will constantly need to be reapplied and lose efficacy in the rain, mud, etc. Homemade vinegar fly sprays are also difficult to apply around the eyes and face because of their acidity. Garlic mineral salt is not only a delicious natural alternative to other pest repellents, it really works! Unlike other fly repellents, garlic does not lose its efficacy and continues to work year round more effectively than fly sprays or rolled repellents.
The Saskatchewan Department of Agriculture conducted an extensive field test on the effectiveness of garlic mineral salt for fly repellent. 3 herds, consisting of 150 cow/calf pairs each, were each given mineral salt, with 1 herd being fed garlic mineral salt.
The garlic mineral salt group’s fly count was about 55% lower than the control groups. They also noticed a lot less fly avoidance behaviors in the garlic group, whose animals were able to happily enjoy a lot more time grazing and resting.
How to Use Garlic Salt to Keep Flies Away Naturally
- Don't wait until you see flies hatching to start your garlic salt program. Fly season varies depending upon where you live and your local weather patterns.
- There are many forms of garlic in cattle mineral to choose from (fresh, powdered, oils, etc). Choosing the right garlic product will increase its bioavailability, potency, and shelf life. Products that use bio-identical garlic oil outperform other garlic mineral salts.
- Garlic mineral salts can be offered to cattle year round without losing its pest repelling power.
- Did you know you can also use garlic mineral salts to keep biting pests off your horses? Visit Redmond Equine to learn about the recommended garlic salt feed rates for horses.
Redmond 10 Fine with Garlic
Here at Redmond Agriculture, we understand that animals crave what helps them feel good. That is why we offer natural, effective, and perfectly balanced mineral salts that animals love. Our ancient sea salt contains all the naturally occurring trace minerals that help nourish your animals inside and out. Restore the health and happiness of your animals, release yourself from the time demands and worry of other fly prevention methods, and give 10 fine with garlic or Redmond Natural Block with garlic a try. Give us a call today at 
; your animals will love it!
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