Got a good fly swatter?

[lgslgs]

We're in horsefly season and are spending 1/2 hour each morning and evening whapping horseflies as they land on our cow's back. Regular plastic flyswatters kill the bugs, but don't hold up to heavy use (killing 100+ horseflies on the worst days).


Does anyone have a really good flyswatter - store bought or home made - that they can recommend for heavy duty use? The electric zappers are not an option because they don't have the oomph to stun these monster sized horseflies. The horseflies also do not respond to quick kill fly bait.

Our cow Connie is hoping you folks have some good ideas. Let's see your best swatters!


Lynda

[Windy in Kansas]

How many do you want?

Yoder hardware in Yoder, Kansas sells three kinds of fly swatters. The cheap plastic kind with flimsy wire handle. The better handled one with a wire screen slapper, and a heavy handled one with leather slapper.

If you can't find them elsewhere any of you let me know and I can buy and mail them out--courtesy of your money of course. Haven't any idea how many they stock so it might take awhile if a lot of you want them. They may also sell direct.

I'm offering and may be in Yoder tomorrow for Yoder Heritage Day.
www.yoderkansas.com/yoder_hardware.htm
www.yoderkansas.com/

[Silvercreek Farmer]

A leather swater sounds like a whip to me! As long as you are whipping your cow, you might as well use a rolled up newspaper!

[farmergirl]

I've been using a citronella based fly spray on our Jersey and it seems to work.

[bill not in oh]

Originally Posted by farmergirl

I've been using a citronella based fly spray on our Jersey and it seems to work.

Hmmmm... milk with a twist... LOL

[Callieslamb]

an electric one from Cabelas.....$9 plus batteries. You can't swat them- you have to catch them in the air.

Have you thought about hanging one of those bags of dust to keep the flies off?

[DJ in WA]

Here are leather flyswatters at Lehmans. I ordered two a few weeks ago – haven’t used them yet, but they look good. Was going to use one as a Christmas gift to my dad, as swatting flies is one of his hobbies.

http://www.lehmans.com/shopping/prod...ProductID=4251

[Bonnie L]

Or let bugs fight bugs. www.arbico-organic.com.

[lgslgs]

Windy - Thanks for the offer! I couldn't get your link to work, but I've looked at the leather swatter link that DJ in WA provided. Might pick one of these up from Lehman's this week. We just got a bit of spring steel and are going to make up a few homemade swatters with 1/4 hardware cloth and try those out today first. If they don't do the trick we'll go for the leather and just not tell Connie what it's made of.

Callieslamb - I love the electric swatters, but the horseflies are so big that a direct zap rarely even stuns them. Sometimes it will addle their brains enough that they fall to the ground long enough to be stepped on - but you've got to step quickly or they are off again. As for dust, haven't had any luck with it yet.

Farmgirl, thanks for the citronella suggestion. Neem oil hasn't worked for us but we have not tried citronella yest. Worth a try!

We've also found these horsefly traps advertised: http://bitingflies.com/ and this link has PDF instructions for making your own. alamance.ces.ncsu.edu/files/library/1/TABANID_Trap.pdf They really do zoom toward black things (like rubber food bowls) so we are also going to try using black balloons and painting them with Tanglefoot http://www.amazon.com/INSECT-TRAP-Co...8145438&sr=1-3

Thanks everyone for your help!

Lynda

[suitcase_sally]

I was going to suggest those mouse glue traps stuck on her back.

[lgslgs]

Originally Posted by suitcase_sally

I was going to suggest those mouse glue traps stuck on her back.

That would be great until she gets her tail stuck at one end of the sticky paper and her tongue stuck at the other! Of course, if I got that on video I could win big prize money and just hire a couple of neighborhood kids to take over swatting duties.

Lynda

[ibcnya]

Originally Posted by lgslgs

That would be great until she gets her tail stuck at one end of the sticky paper and her tongue stuck at the other! Of course, if I got that on video I could win big prize money and just hire a couple of neighborhood kids to take over swatting duties.

Lynda

Tie her tail to her leg. The tongue is another problem entirely.

[Tracy Rimmer]

I have an excellent fly swatter made by the local Mennonite colony. They're longer than the plastic ones you buy in the hardware store, with a really solid wooden handle, and a leather end, reinforced and deadly

The flies don't stand a chance. They sell them in the local General Store. They retail for about $6 or $7, and are worth every penny. I have yet to miss a fly with it.

[redgreenbluegil]

Believe it or not, I've used a shop vac with the small cone nozzle on the end to suck up various bugs.

Hundreds of flies in the house and using a bristle brush nozzle attachment I've sucked up beetles off my sweet corn in the garden (the bristles keep the nozzle from tearing up the leaves). You can catch them on the fly (pardon the pun) if you're good, but I've found that if you sneak up with the nozzle where they've landed they don't realize there's danger, and when they finally do sense something's awry and try to fly away they get sucked up.

When I'm done I take a washcloth and suck it up part way (so half is sticking out and half is in the nozzle) and then immediately shut off the vac. This prevents anything from coming back out (although escape is not very likely, as seen by how yellow jacket traps work). It's best not to open the shop vac bin for awhile though (I read house flies can live 10-25 days), until the bugs have all died.


I don't know if the vac sound would spook your horse or not, but if it doesn't it's really amazing how many bugs you can suck up in a short amount of time!