Pink cracked leg

[ravenstorrough1]

Hi there,

My heavy, feathered horse has started with a problem on her white leg recently. She has alot of feather but since I bought her a year ago, I have kept them clipped out as she had mites when I got her - this cleared up with frontline and I have never had a problem since.

However, in the last couple of weeks a couple of cracks started up the back of the sock horizontally, where her leg bends (above fetlock, below hock). I started putting sudocrem on this and then started with camrosa as it didn't seem to be improving. That didn't help either and I got the vet out as the whole sock started to look overly pink by now. The vet prescribed Malaseb and said to wash daily. A few days later it seemed worse and seems to be thickening and sore now, which it has never been. I washed it with diluted hibiscrub, totally dried off and applied pig oil but to no avail. The vet has now said wash everything off and leave to nature?? I washed off pig oil, totally dried, chalked (just to make sure it was totally dry) and then put arnica gel on to try to soothe it for her. I am worried this will not get better and have managed to get the vet to prescribe fuciderm but she dowsn't want me to use it for 5 days. It doesn't appear to be mites and I am sure it isn't sunburn so I am lost! :eek::mad:

Any help much appreciated. Thanks,

Lou

[ravenstorrough1]

Any ideas would be welcomed :)

[Nookster]

Is it only white areas effected? How are the other legs

I would be wondering if it’s a form of photosensitivity from what you have described. Best option for this would be flamazine on effected sore areas and sun cream on the rest. Maybe also needing antibiotics from the vet.

If its mud fever I would try for pig oil and sulphur? (sulphur is the healer / pig oil the barrier) But I see u mentioned u had pig oil on? How long for ? If mud fever I would never wash even with hibiscrub etc.

I would feel un easy washing the legs at all until the symptom was pin pointed as this reduces the integrity of the skin and could be fuelling the problem so to say.


not sure if this help :)

[colettybetty]

Sounds like Malanders. Fuciderm should help, its a problem with feathered horses, my lad used to get it in the summer when he was hot.There's also a basic (cheaper) steroid based cream the vet can prescribe, but I found the fuciderm was very good. Once its healed up, just keep on top of it by checking his legs daily. I brush them with a plastic curry comb and use either liquid pariffin, avon skin-so-soft or pig oil to keep the skin from drying out. (mites hate oily skin ).
Try not to wash the feathers too often as its drys the skin out. Good luck,once you've got on top of it, hopefully it won't be too difficult to keep him clear.

[colettybetty]

Ooops,forgot... thanks, Noosker, Flamazine is great.

[ravenstorrough1]

Hi,

Just the white leg, other legs are fine. She actually had a weeks course of antibiotics also. She hasn't got mud fever but I think you are probably right about not washing it Nookster and I will def go back to the pig oil once it has cleared up colettybetty to keep the mites away.

Fingers crossed it will clear up. Thanks guys ;)

[Nookster]

Sounds like it could be photosensitivity ? I have two horses that have it, Voltan my coloured had a bad case last year on his neck area which is white. My old vet couldn’t say what it was and had me treating it as mud fever / rain scald. Other people thought it could be mange, fly allergy etc. Everything I put on aggrevated it –I tried dozens of creams. I changed vet and they said photosensivity as soon as they saw it. Used flamazine and it healed up – took some time but it healed. Since then just took precautions with sun light.

My other lad Odin just bought in June is completely bay except for two white socks he had what we thought was mud fever – tried pig oil and sulphur and it went very angry and ten times worse. Not sure it might be a good idea going back to pig oil it if it is photosensivity? We were putting oil on a sun burn which equalled disaster.
Vet came and said photosensivity (I only expected it in horses with a lot of white not two tiny white socks) Since then flamazine and anitbitiotics /steroids. Its coming on 3 weeks now and just starting to properly heal so it does take a fair time. His loaner has bought the Uv leg wraps and a good supply of sun cream to see him through.

Hope it gets sorted for you soon, its very sore bless em

[ravenstorrough1]

Hi Nookster,

That's interesting - it does sound very much like that - where do you get flamazine? Shame for her if it is, what with the worry of mites but not wanting to also inflame the situation with her leg. Perhaps having the legs totally clipped has trigger it although I would be reluctant to let them grow back due to the fear of mites. (She was bad with them when I got her and had severe cracking/thickening/grapes which was cleared up and thickening greatly reduced).

She actually has hyperkeratosis on her hocks which she has aslo had since I bought her which I have not really managed to improve and am going to start a new thread re. that also - poor thing - she has quite a few problems, all of which I have had no experience of! :confused:

Thanks so much for advice.

Lou

[noodle]

Now I am NOT one for being able to give ANY advise on horse health BUT I was wondering if horses can get 'hotspots'
I have bred and shown dogs all my life and sometimes they get hotspots for no real proven reason,they usually involve just one maybe 2 patches on the body that get very itchy then start to weep and stay wet and sticky causing hailoss in the area.can horses get these?
In dogs they can appear anywhere, but tend to be on more coated breeds and treatment usually involves total shaving of area, some vets give anti-biotics and cream but I personally found that drying the hotspot out was better than keeping it wet with cream.

[ravenstorrough1]

Well, good news - the pinkness has faded and the cracks have scabbed up. I think the aloe vera gel definately helped take the redness out of the leg and I will start the fuciderm on the cracks tonight as they have dried out.

Fingers crossed I can get rid of it for good! :)

[colettybetty]

That is good news, its a miserable condition. I'm sure your mare is very grateful. :)I had a mare with Hyperkeratosis and now a cob who is susceptable to greasy heel and Malanders,but he's fine now, just check his legs daily and use Avon SSS or pig oil and brush out any flakes that appear in his feathers. He's a HW hairy who suffers with the hot humid days we're having at the moment.
BTW, Flamazine, I think is prescription only. (Is commonly used for Human burns victims.)

[ravenstorrough1]

Yes, she is feeling so much better - the night before I posted she actually kicked me in the face but stood like an angel lastnight so must be feeling better. I got a cracking black eye! :p