Advice- Itchy/Scratchy horse

AlDestoor

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Hi all,

Just wondering if you could give me some advice.

I have owned my yearling since he was 4 months old, he is now 21 months.

When i got him, he was riddled with Lice, i treated this with louse powder and medicated shampoo, and all was well. Then i noticed he has almost like cradle cap (the kind you see in babies) on his white bits (hes a coloured).

He has also been very very itchy in the stable all the way through the year, even in the winter when we had a foot of snow. Now he only does this in the stable and not when he is tied up inside the barn outside his stable (they're internal)

When he first goes in, hes itches like crazy for 10 minutes then settles. He does groom in the field and scratch but its nothing that im concerned about. eg, Went up tonight, was stood there still, then when i touched him he started scratching. There were no flies around at all.

He scratches his sides, his head and his bum mainly. There are no sores or loss of hair, and i no longer can see this cradle cap like substance. The crest of his neck is hard but his bum isnt. He also has a long mane and tail.

So i rang the vet today to ask for some advice, Told him everything from the above. He said it could be one of 4 things; an allergy to something, Photosensitivity, Microscopic mites or habit from when he came to me as a foal riddled with the lice. He advised me that he doesnt think its Sweet itch as it happening throughout the winter and there are no sores. He is coming on Wednesday to take some blood and do a skin test but he thinks in his oppinion it could be photosensitivity with him being mostly white.

However i have researched the symptoms of this, and it states hair loss, yellow dandruff (which he did have, but hasnt anymore) and mainly on the legs.

What do you guys think?
 
Are you sure he hasn't got lice again?

I have a rescue coblet and it is proving very tricky to eliminate them completely. We have powdered him, clipped, bathed with insecticide, powdered him again, tried another powder, and now we are going down the FrontLine route (it's not licensed for horses but apparently it does work and isn't harmful).

I think mine has such thick hair especially the legs that we never really get rid of the lot, plus the eggs rematch on a 3 week cycle so you have to keep at it for 6-7 weeks.

How about trying another course of lice treatment? Or treat for mites too?

Mine rubs a lot but I have noticed him biting at his legs again so I am going all out with FrontLine this weekend. It doesn't sound like photosensitivity to me as you would get hair loss etc as you say.
 
I'm pretty sure it's not the live again, as it never ceased and had vet check too, althought bet did say it could be microscopic mites, will try the front line, how many would you get for a 14.3?
 
I have an itchy horse and have come to the conclusion that he does it because he likes it. Think about it, isn't a good back scratch just great, you start with a little itch and then you end up scratching your whole back. I think its the same with horses, some enjoy a scratch more than others.
 
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