Little bumps.....Hives?????? HELP???

[Lmmartin23]

My horse has a ton of little bumps all over him, they don't seem to itch. They are even on his face(jaw) there is just a bunch of them, they have been there a couple days now and are not going away. I thought maybe he might have had a reaction to the fly spray, which I used forever on him and thought they would go away but they haven't, I don't think they are bug bites, way too many, too close together, and flies aren't that bad. Now one of my other horses is getting it on his shoulder. I haven't changed feed or anything. Please help, just wondering what I can use to make them go away or if I should take them to the vet for a shot etc. Thanks hope someone can help us.

[makebelieve]

Sweet itch possibly? You should talk to your vet about getting that checked out. Are they bugging him at all?

[Lmmartin23]

No they don't seem to bother them, they just look bad. They don't seem to itch or anything. What is sweet itch and how do they get it and how do I get rid of it? What are the symptoms?

[makebelieve]

Here in Ontario, I haven't ever heard of sweet itch but it is possible. There are a few members on here who know more about sweet itch and have had horses who have had it. I do know that sometimes treatment for sweet itch isn't effective at all.

[RachelEvent]

You may not have changed feed, but have the ingredients in the food been changed or adjusted. I would ring up the food manufacturer - just saying this, as a horse at our yard reacted like this, they rang up the feed company and lo and behold an extra ingredient had been added which he reacted to!

Otherwise, I'd get the vet out just to check things out :)

Rachel xx

[Tor&Warrior]

Could they have rolled in/or eaten something in the field which has caused the reaction? Its that time of the year whe everythings shooting up! Its also the time of year for lumps and bumbs. Flyte came in today covered in some really huge ones. I think they must be some sort of insect bites, bu theres only about 10 of them. If they don't seem to be bothering them and they start to disapear I wouldn't worry but if they don't go away in the next couple of days I'd consider getting the vet. You could maybe try a cream or spray with antihistemean in it, I've got a good one which is also a fly spary, it may help a little.
It wouldn't be sweet itch. Sweet itch doesn't cause bumbs on the body, they just itch and cause scabs, but not risen bumbs/hives. And they don't catch sweet itch so your other horse wound't get it to.
But I'd say just monitor them and get the vet if they don't go. They could be a reaction to just about anything but they may need something from the vet just to help them go away! Good Luck!

[Lmmartin23]

Thanks for the advice. I went out this morning and they are going down some and are kinda scaly/scabby and in one spot on his back the hair is coming out a little and it raised a bit. I just wondering if the spot on his back was because he was saddled yesterday for a couple hours and was a little sweaty under the pad??!!??

My other gelding's bump are also going down and are less then I saw yesterday, so his are almost gone. And again are kinda scaly/scabby.

But they still don't seem to bother them or itch, I try to scracth them for them to see if they react, like it feels good, but I get no reaction from them, and I haven't seen them rub up against anything.

But they are getting better, but if they flare up again or don't go away I will talk to my vet. . So that being said does anyone know what it could have been?? Do hives get scabby??

[I'mForAris]

Have you ever heard of rainrot? I'm not sure what everyone calls it, I'm sure it has several names.
A lot of horses get it in the spring (my horse gets it all year round in little bits.)
It starts out with little bumps that eventually get scabby. It's actually a super mild skin infection I think. It's nothing to panic about though, If you give your horse a bath in either betadine (provodine iodine solution) or sometimes we use lysterine it should clear up. Even if it isn't rain rot, a bath in betadine will help keep the scabby parts clean. If you use lysterine though, make sure you wash it all off, and you might want to test a bit on your horse first to make sure it doesnt have an adverse reaction to the alcohol content.
Also, last year when my horse got rain rot, he also rolled on a ground bees' nest. He was covered in be stings that after a day or two didn't bother him but he still had the bumps.
And sometimes horses get bumps from an increase in protein (like suddenly eating lots of clover.)

[ladyrose]

Hives (or urticaria to be exact ;)) must be at least the size of a 50p piece, and can often be as large as dinner plates!! If your horse does have these then I feel very sorry for him, I get them in summer sometimes and they are NOT very pleasant!!!!
It could be any one of a number of things so I would ask your vet - allergic reaction, mange mites, lice . . . . it could be anything