© itchin-post.com
The current cycle of horse magazines in Ranchette’s mailbox contained a funny ad for an interesting product made in Minnesota. Called the “itchin-post” they are soft rubber panels with raised nubbins (yes, that’s a technical term). The panels are intended to encourage your horse, mule, donkey, pig, goat to rub themselves on the panel to relieve an itch, rather than say, as is The Big’s Horse’s favorite, leaving drama queen sized sized butt indents on nice metal barns.
Here’s what one of the panels looks like:
© itchin-post.com
And here, is how they look installed:
© itchin-post.com
They are sold by a company based in Hugo, MN. Although the original design was intended for farm animals, they have filled orders for installations as exotic as the dolphin tank of the Duluth Zoo. Full information at: www.itchin-post.com. Fun video of a Shire going to town on a itchin-post massage included on the website.
December 3, 2008 at 3:12 am |
That’s actually not a bad idea, especially if your animals are scratching themselves on something sharp. Hopefully, people get all the sharp stuff out of their animals’ reach, but…
December 5, 2008 at 2:13 am |
Great idea! Sure better than the post by the gate that we have to keep fixing. The photo makes me think of everyone gathering around the water cooler.
Thanks so much for your advice and suggestions about Royal and laminitis. Spent the day reading about magnesium and calling SmartPak. It sure is a dreadful worry!
December 5, 2008 at 5:00 pm |
NuzMuz: I thought it was a terrific idea. The prices are a bit steep, but its still tempting.
Strawberry Lane: It does look like a water cooler gather doesn’t it. Must be the cool place to hang out. Good luck with Royal, laminitis scares the heck out of me. I’m sure you’ll get him on the right side of things though. Good luck on the research, I know there isn’t one single answer, but the more we learn about different approaches the better I think.