cobs/feathers/heel mites/showing-AArgh!!!

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miggy

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May 23, 2004
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Ok-title just about covers it :)
Novice cob owner so be gentle :D
I think the lovely Robbie has heel mites (pah!) am going to try dectomax swabbed on but if all else fails might have to clip them. I was planning on doing some coloured cob classes but a schedule I just looked at said natural with mane and feathers or hogged and feathers clipped.
Obv will clip feathers if I have to but does that mean I cant show unless I hog him-No way in a million years could I bring myself to do that!
Thanks
 
I had to clip Kia back to the woodwork last year due to straw mites :mad:

He looked ok though as he has nice legs anyway. Didn't make any major breakthroughs at show tho but he was plaited and his mane was short so looked ok.

Nikki xxx
 
If you search for feather on here you will find lots of useful stuff.

Mites in the feather are hard to get rid of. Most peple use Frontline. Its not liscenced for horses, but talk to your vet about it. I use one Frontline on each leg. Repeat in a few days to get anything that has hatched out in the meantime. You can also use topical ivermectin sp? (same stuff as wormer, but you rub it in to the feather.) This seems to be very popular too. As k your Vet about both these things.

I then use loads of Pig Oil (see previous posts on here) as mites hate an oily enviroment. It also gets the feather nice for showing.
 
If it is motes there is an injection that is registgered for cattle. Ivomec, not sure whether you vet will administer the injection though but it is worth speaking to him/her about it. Then there is the option of smothering the blighters in sudocrem. Apparently this works for fox mites. And of course as Alfie's Slave has mentioned loads of people use Frontline.

Didnt Robbie come clipped though?? Maybe I am wrong, but if he did are you sure its mites?? It could be that cobby heel thing that many of us are constantly trying to find the magic potion to...:rolleyes:
 
All at my yard had injections for our feathered cobs last month, cant remember the name, might have been ivomec, just called it 'a mite injection' :D We get it every year and it sorts them out pretty rapid. Try ringing your vet and asking if they do an injection.
 
My horse has just had a course of 4 injections to treat mites. It's cleared them up a treat. I've also been advised to use a lice killing wash (carr Day&Martin stuff, not expensive at £8 for a big bottle). The only way to get rid of them is clip the feather back, treat with the wash and the injections. Sudocream is excellent for softening up the scabs so you can remove them. If you have to clip the feathers off then so be it.

Also, avoid applying leg wraps/bandages for long periods of time. The mites like warm conditions so i've had to stop stable bandaging my horses legs up overnight.
 
the dectomax is a cattle insecticide similar to ivomec, its a pour on and the regime is dab liberally once a week for 4 weeks (my tame horse vet said better than frontline-so we shall see :) )
I cant see anything on the skin, even parting the feathers but I have noticed him stamping his feet. He did it just after I got him once in the stable, but I thought he was being impatient but have since noticed him doing it more, just standing in the field thumping his back feet up and down.
Will hose off tonight, dry overnight and stick stuff on.
May use pig oil if all clears up (where do you buy pig oil?)
NN-he was/is clipped body and head but legs left on.
He has fab feathers and the nicest mane-would rather not show than hog it!
(me few months ago-"really hate feathers-would clip them off straight away" :eek: )
 
Alfies-slave-he has lovely feather like fig 3 and a long mane thats thick, silky and bicoloured.
Mehitabel-will try ivomec if this doesnt work-bit scared of ivomec injections and allergic reactions.
 
miggy - I've heard that some horses can have quite nasty reactions to the injection, we were advised by our vet to use frontline to treat heel mites first rather than risk the injection. Then again you have to use a lot of frontline and it is rather costly! I understand your unwillingness to hog your cobs mane, I much prefer long manes on most cobs even if traditionally they should be hogged!
 
I'm not sure quite how fast this would work on feathers, but it may be worth browsing this website and looking at the restorer, I've heard some very good things about it.

http://www.tailgator.co.uk/index.html

If you had to clip the feathers off tomorrow, I don't think it would be the end of the world.

Daffy rubbed the feather off his forelegs in April last year. He now has more feather than he's had in the last three years, and it grew back fast, although he's welsh so would have less than your cob. I found that fleece bandaging over muddy legs and brushing it off in the morning has stopped his feathers breaking.

I think in your position I would take the risk of clipping before the end of the month, if you haven't gotten rid of the lice, rather than finding out in March that nothing has worked and he needs shaving.
 
The mare I used to share had the stamping thing going on last year - it was summer, so I think might have been harvest mites (or possibly chorioptic (sp?) mange mites).

Thanks to great advice on here, I tried using "Spot On" - intended for dogs, two treatments, 7 days apart. It seemed to clear up the mites/scabbiness a treat, overnight and had the added benefit that all flies steered away from us while hacking for 2 or 3 weeks :) It was great, meant we didn't have to clip feather off her pretty fluffy legs.

It is similar to Frontline (cypermethrin vs permethrin IIRC), but comes in little vials. You need to put it somewhere the animal can't reach, though, because not very nice stuff for them to ingest or for another horse grooming them to ingest.
 
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Thanks all.
The plot thickens-washed him all off tonight and cant see any sores etc under feathers but just behind his knee on both sides theres a little scabby cluster of creamy thick dandruff (bit like baby cradle cap), and you can pull the hair out fairly easily.
Just thought what it reminded me of-mange in rabbits
off to google :)
 
Sallenders and Mallenders.

One is the excess grease behind the heel, the other is the grease behind the knee. It that cobby thing that we are all looking for the magic potion I am afraid...:mad: Captain stomps his feet constantly. Lucky for him the new YO thinks he needs food so she wanders over and gives him an extra leaf of hay... :p He isnt stomping for attention. He is stomping because it itches. :rolleyes:
 
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this sounds interesting...........

"Researchers at Tanat University in Kafr in El-Sheikh, Egypt, said in recent study that moxidectin oral gel is an "effective and good alternative for treating chorioptic mange (also know as leg mange) in horses." The study, which included 117 draft horses, was published in the June 16 issue of Veterinary Parisitology.

According to The Merck Veterinary Manual: "Chorioptic mange is common in heavy breeds of horses. Lesions caused by Chorioptes equi (a species of mites) start as a pruritic dermatitis affecting the distal limbs around the foot and fetlock. Papules are seen first, followed by alopecia, crusting, and thickening of the skin."

Veterinarians in the past have used oral ivermectin to treat horses with mange, but fears of drug resistance from long-term treatments of ivermectin prompted researchers to examine other medications.

Researchers stated: "Complete clinical and parasitological cure for mite infestation were obtained within two weeks in both moxidectin and ivermectin treated groups with 100% recovery rate."

Topical treatments for mange include organophosphate insecticides or lime-sulfur solution that can be applied by spraying, sponging, or dipping, according to Merck."
 
Daffy Dilly said:
What's that extortionately priced stuff that comes in a small tub... begins with C? Camrosa I think. Anybody tried that on it?
Click to expand...


Camrosa and it didnt work on Captain's legs. He has scurf all the way down all four legs. Thick grease and scabs behind his knees and behind his heels. I have take the area off woth scissors. Hibiscrubbed and rinsed it. Then plasteres it with Naf Mud Gard as it contains the sulphur that many people mention in infections like this.
 
Scabby dandruffy stuff is what is looks like, it's basically chorioptic mange, though 'mites' does sound far less minging :)

My welsh coblet got a few little patches on the backs of her pasterns. I read those articles saying oral moxidectin can kill it off and worked out it's a half dose of equest, but it needs doing again after 3 weeks which is not really the recommended way of using equest. Since coblet was due for worming anyway I used equest and kept an eye on the itchies afterwards and they did heal up nicely but came back after a few weeks, guessing because the eggs weren't killed off by the equest. So once the 3 months from the equest I've already given her is up I'm going to try two half doses 2-3 weeks apart.

They really don't seem to like being drowned in MSM cream either, especially if you mix in a bit of wormer so next time I do the equest thing to try to get rid I'm going to make a MSM and equest mix to put on the scabbier bits as well.
 
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