Pig Oil & Sulphur...your stories!

[Fizzy's mum]

I am hoping to collect your pig oil/sulphur success stories in one place as I have a hairy cob and have just ordered a big 5 litre mix from Ebay :D

I want to be armed and knowledgeable for all the anti-feather brigade on the yard and also have some tips and stories for the fellow feathered...

So, please can you add some tales?

How do you apply it? Best results? What NOT to do with it?

Cant wait!

:)

[mogadoga]

Get a box of latex gloves from chemist. It STINKS! and doesnt wash off first time yukk!!
Armed with gloves and a cloth/sponge, shake the bottle (with lid on ;)) remove lid and pour onto cloth/sponge, then rub into the effected area, making sure you dont rubv sore patches/scabs though. And wallah! I re-applied every 2-3 days in the worst weather, sure people leave it for a week though.

Alex has nasty black scabs out of kno where on the backs of both front legs and would not go, he went lame and really sore. So i got some of the stuff and ONE WEEEEEEEK!!! later it was healed. Baldy skin etc but scabless!!! So now it goes on all of the time, especially in this summer/winter/spring/summer/autumn thing we have going on :)

[Fizzy's mum]

I am planning on using it as a preventative treatment / beauty treatment ( is that right?)

Can it also be used to get rid of mites? Or do you need something like Frontline? My friend has a horse in with a suspected mite infested cob... could her horse be in danger? And if her horse was Piggyed up, would it stop the mites from jumping across?

Thanks for your above tips!

Lucy

[Soot]

I use my bare hands and I like the smell *lol* ... Lucy used to HATE having her feathers touched but the mix must be very soothing because she stands still for the application now. We still have one mud fever patch behind the knee that is resisting all cures but it has become a LOT less sore for her so clearly something is happening ...

[molly34]

Coyote's our resident pig oil & sulphur guru, if you've got specific questions it might be worth dropping her a pm.

Mites can be transferred from pony to pony, but they also live off the animals eg. in hay, on birds etc so they can be picked up from anywhere really. The sulphur should sort them out.

[clydehorse]

hi , pig oil and sulphur is great, we use it at least once a week,whether theres a problem or not, as it also conditions the hair and keeps the skin good.we use roughly a handful of sulphur to 5 litres of pig oil, shake it up immediately before use as it separates, its easier to apply by putting it in a smaller bottle eg.1 litre coke bottle, and pouring it on the legs ,rubbing it in so it gets right through to the skin, it can be stingy on broken skin, so if there are sore bits just use the oil with no sulphur or very little sulphur for the first few times. if there are scabs your horse might be itchier after you put it on and might go and rub but this is normal.
my vet also told me that its not the hairy legs that the mites like, its the type of skin , as they've done tests with clydesdale skin cells and thoroughbred skin cells in a lab , and the mites thrived on the clydesdale skin but not nearly so well on the tb!
ps. you are best to apply it in a bedded box or in the field as if you are as messy as me it goes everywhere and drips off the hair staining stone slabs and softening tarmac....!

[coyote]

the mix is 2 cupped handfulls of sulpher to 1 litre of pig oil and it should be applied every 2 weeks at the earliest (unless in severe cases at the start)
Its cured my lad of horrendous sores that required a massive vet bill before i found the piggy stuff.;)
SOOT,that was the last part of Nelly to get rid of it took ages as its a joint that is always moving,in time it will heal i promise.:;)

[Joyscarer]

I am planning on using it as a preventative treatment / beauty treatment ( is that right?)
Lucy


That's exactly what I use it for. Joy had mud fever when I first bought her but hadn't had this year even before I started using the piggy oil mix. I wasn't going to chance it though and I apply just after the farrier has been so that I remember to do it every 6 weeks.

It looks yuck for 2 days and then the whiteness shines through, The feathers become softer and when riding through mud the mud doesn't stick :D

I use one of those rubber feed buckets and stand Joy's foot in it.

I go for funky marigold gloves (I prefer yellow but pink work just as well!) and use one hand to separate out the feathers to get to the skin and the other cups some mixture and rubs it in.

Any excess runs into the bucket and can be applied back onto the leg again.

I make sure to massage it right into the skin, especially at the heal, and Joy loves the massaging and actually balances her foot on her toe to allow easy access :D

[Fizzy's mum]

Hi Joyscarer,

My 5 litre bottle arrived today... going to get some rubber gloves!

If you stand your horse in a rubber feed bucket, is it okay to get the potion on the hoofs and base of the horses foot? Will it make him slippery ? Do you wipe it off base of feet? Sorry for the dim questions!

Lucy x

[coyote]

No dont worry it will be fine,
if you have a tub with a lid,i would take it out of the bottle and then cut it open and scrape the sulpher off the bottom,as it settles,this is what i do.;)
before every use shake it very vigorously!!!:eek:;)

[Fizzy's mum]

No, mine came in a 5 litre squash plastic clear bottle! Looks like lemon squash actually! Just got a pack of 10 latex gloves from chemist!

So, just to clarify, I can shake it all up, pour some in a rubber trug, stand foot in in, and sponge/massage into feathers and knees downwards? I havent got mites or mud fever, just want beautiful feathers, well my horse does!

you DONT wash off. So I guess it just looks like wet/greasy hair? Does it go fluffy on its own after a few days?

Thanks

[coyote]

No, mine came in a 5 litre squash plastic clear bottle! Looks like lemon squash actually! Just got a pack of 10 latex gloves from chemist!

So, just to clarify, I can shake it all up, pour some in a rubber trug, stand foot in in, and sponge/massage into feathers and knees downwards? I havent got mites or mud fever, just want beautiful feathers, well my horse does!

you DONT wash off. So I guess it just looks like wet/greasy hair? Does it go fluffy on its own after a few days?

Thanks

No you dont poor it into a rubber bucket ;)
shake it up vigorously then i poor it onto a cloth/sponge/cup, then wipe onto the egs,the rubber tub is just to catch any excess,if your carefull you shouldnt waste any (i dont:rolleyes:)
You make sure there is enough on the legs so that it goes all the way down to the skin,you must massage it well into the skin/feathers,
for a couple of days the feathers/legs are a bit messy but after that they will be gorgeous,soft and silky and tangle free.;):D

[Fizzy's mum]

Oh okay. Sounds like a proper bank holiday project! (my other one is willy washing!! Some girls have all the fun eh!!).

Thanks for all your help! Hope you are on commission from your relation!!

[coyote]

Oh okay. Sounds like a proper bank holiday project! (my other one is willy washing!! Some girls have all the fun eh!!).

Thanks for all your help! Hope you are on commission from your relation!!

Nope no comission,;)
for the willy bit have you tried baby oil,i just squirte baby oil from either side and after a couple of days its all clean,couldnt face touching it *shudders* :o

[Fizzy's mum]

well there is a woman on our yard who is an expert willy washer, so I am going to blag it slightly (well this time anyway) and ask her to show me how to do it!! My horses previous owner said they used to smother it in aquaeous cream and stick your hand up and have a shufty!! Must admit its not my cup of tea! Its bad enough he hangs it out when you comb or wash his feathers, so I can see my piggy oil mission may link on to the willy washing double-whammy! Cant wait!!

[Bay Horse]

Okay then, Fizzy's Mum, you're obviously quite enthusiastic about all this - I haven't yet had the courage to use my pig oil/sulphur so I think you ought to come and do mine as well. :D

[amylou_84]

Another stupid question alert. Say you put it on and your horse gets mud on his legs. If you wash off the mud will the po&s come off too and you'l need to reapply it.

[Fizzy's mum]

mmmmmmm enthusiastic or just plain sad!! I just get annoyed by the anti-feather club who keep saying that feathers cover a multitude of sins! I love my horses hairy Ugg boots and when he is trotting across the field he looks like a horse hovercraft! Maybe they are just jealous with their "baldies" :D

Truth is, I am becoming addicted to this site and it makes me slighty smug when the "experts" on my yard havent heard of half the things I keep getting! Like the Avon Skin So Soft spray. Things that have been tried and tested here and you know you have a good chance of them working! I love the way you can throw a question out in this forum and get lots of varied and expert replies! And you dont get made to feel a complete amateur or plonker!

Lucy

[coyote]

Another stupid question alert. Say you put it on and your horse gets mud on his legs. If you wash off the mud will the po&s come off too and you'l need to reapply it.

The mud tends to just slide off the feathers/legs,
you dont wet the legs at all ,
the only time you can wash the legs ,is for a show,you wash the piggy stuff out with washing up liquid,scrub,rinse,wash again with washing up liquid then rinse and BINGO luffly clean feathers/legs
immediately after you return from the show you MUST re-apply it again.;)

[amylou_84]

Groovy ;)

[Bay Horse]

A serious question. If your horse is hot shod, presumably you don't want sulphur on the feather around shoeing time?

*visions of horse going 'wooffff'* :o

[coyote]

SORRY BUT THAT IS FUNNY!!:D:D:D
No really its fine,ive never heard of anyones horse going piff paff poof whilst being shod ;)
its flowers of sulpher BTW!!;)

[Joyscarer]

A serious question. If your horse is hot shod, presumably you don't want sulphur on the feather around shoeing time?

*visions of horse going 'wooffff'* :o


Never would have thought of that but I don't think the stuff we use is the same as the flamable stuff.

I alwayd do the piggy treatment after she has been shod anyway so that I remember to do it on a regular basis.

[Bay Horse]

On a farriery website I'm reading it says not to use it two weeks before shoeing.

[storminateacup]

hehe!

we apply the piggy stuffs using a hoof oil brush, then massage! :D it works really well!

jacks legs were herendous but he hasnt got feathers so he's now just got really silky clean legs! :D:D

[chunky monkey]

Here's chunky after he has been done. I use a paint brush and just pull the feathers up and dab brush onto skin. I do chunky usually after the farrier has been so relegiously every 6 weeks. But in between if I notice a patch of something as well I just dabble a bit on the area.

http://www.newrider.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=273&pictureid=2081

Here's a before shot.
http://www.newrider.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=273&pictureid=2078

[thoroughlybred1]

Sorry if this question has been asked and answered before, but how does the pig oil and sulphur work?

i just tried it on a non feathered pony (an arab in fact) that gets a mud fever type condition that can get so bad he chews at his legs if it is not spotted and treated early enough. He's had dectomax a few times in the past that has always cleared it up, but this time i thought i would try the Pig oil and sulphur and without a doubt it worked

[chunky monkey]

Its the sulphur, sulphur I believe has healing properties. The oil just keeps it moist, ie doesn't dry it out.

[Bay Horse]

its flowers of sulpher BTW!!;)

I decided to do some reading up.

Flowers of sulphur is just a fine powder of pure sulphur. It is prepared by sublimation (going directly from solid to gas without passing through liquid phase)and then the gas condensing back to solid.

And, for the record, you can't use flowers of sulphur in making gunpowder because it ignites too fast.

:D

[Morganna]

Arion had mud fever twice over the winter - both times he needed antibiotics to help clear it up and had swelling on his back legs. I started using the pig oil and sulphur after reading so much about it on here. It took a while for it to clear up, I knew it would take a bit of time but I could see the scabs falling off and nice new skin growing underneath so persisted with it as per the lovely Coyote's instructions. After about 7 weeks I his legs had practically cleared up completely and a few weeks after that his legs were fine. We do still have an issue applying it every month as a preventative, but I am determined he will not suffer from the dreaded mud fever this year so want to make sure I keep applying it. My vet had advised me to hibiscrub it every day which I could not possibly do as he almost killed me as soon as I went near him with the hibiscrub. I have tried spraying on the piggy oil, brushing it on with a hoof oil brush, sponging it on but there is no easy way for me to do this - I just have to take my time and talk to him like he is a baby although it is much easier now that there is no pain for him. He still prances around like I am trying to chop his leg off mind you - bloddy big sissy:D