Bloody horse - What to do with this wound ?

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niagaraduval

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Just noticed my boy has a nasty wound on his withers, he hasn't been ridden for weeks due to his recent illness and didn't notice it there yesterday so not the saddle, his saddle also fits him properly,it's also open so new, I think it is due to the rug I left on him last night.

What should I put on it ? I have just sprayed purple spray on it at the moment, not sure what else to do because it is very hot here atm don't want to dry it out too much putting all sorts on it. It's a real bummer I got the all clear to ride him again this week, I don't want to put a saddle on him though now, also had a small ride planned with a neighbor..

I know the skin on this area is very sensitive so am hoping it won't take too long to heal.. Has anyone had this injury before ? How long did it take to heal ?


 
Manuka honey and keep it as clean as possible and try and stop the rug from touching him there...

Be careful- it's prime infection area I think, as rugs will always touch it...
 
I would give it a wash with salt water and then let the air get to it. Unfourtantly the flies are back now its warmer, so I would also be putting fly spray around it. Don't ride until healed, if you rug I would cover it first so the dirt from the rug doesn't get into it. Keep an eye on it.
 
It does look like a rug rub and should scab over in a day or so.
As your saddle and saddle cloth should never touch that area of the withers anyway I would be tempted to ride once it has scabbed over as long as you lift the saddlecloth right up and make sure it isn't touching the wound. As he is only coming back into work I'd guess you are only walking anyway and can keep checking to make sure it's not being aggravated by riding.
 
Thanks for the replies, he's not letting me get too close, almost got trampled putting purple spray on it but it's for his own good. I'm not rugging at all now, just had a chilly night last night so put a fleece on him. He spends all of his time under his shelter, out of the flies so not hugely worried about that although will def put some fly spray around it.

Is there any thing else I can wash it with apart from salt water ?
 
Are you certain it isn't fistulous wither? Is there any discharge or swelling or heat? If you think it is you should be very careful with it, bathing in salt water at least 4 times a day...and get a vet to look at it and give you antibiotics to help clear it up.

Hopefully it isn't but it is as well to be aware just in case.
 
Don't have any hibiscrub, haven't found anywhere that sells it over here. I could look down the shop for some manuka honey though.

He's going rugless now anyway so won't be rubbed in that area. I'm worried about infection more than anything though and how long it will take to heal ? My ride is in about 10 days, Will I still be able to go ? It will only be a short walking hack as he has been out of work for a few weeks.
 
LaurenBay said:
I would give it a wash with salt water and then let the air get to it. Unfourtantly the flies are back now its warmer, so I would also be putting fly spray around it. Don't ride until healed, if you rug I would cover it first so the dirt from the rug doesn't get into it. Keep an eye on it.
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What she said. I'd not want anything keeping the air from it so it can dry/scab over.
 
It looks like it's started to scab over so I'd leave it alone. It will heal naturally. Maybe I've seen and dealt with major wounds so am immune to getting worked up about little scratches like this and so long as your saddle and pad aren't touching or pulling at the withers then no reason to not ride in a few days.
 
That's good news. I won't be riding him until next week anyway but wanted to be sure that it would be ok. So no saddles or pads or rugs going on it for another week at least.

Thank you for all your replies :)
 
Please don't wash with Hibiscrub. Its very strong and will sting. If your Horse is reluntant to let you near, he deffiently won't let you come near him if you put hibiscrub on it.

Manuka honey is great stuff, but I prefer to let the air get to it and let it scab over and then apply the honey as it will aid the healing process and prevent scarring, also it acts as an antiseptic so will help keep infection out.
 
Spring Feather said:
It looks like it's started to scab over so I'd leave it alone. It will heal naturally. Maybe I've seen and dealt with major wounds so am immune to getting worked up about little scratches like this and so long as your saddle and pad aren't touching or pulling at the withers then no reason to not ride in a few days.
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I agree that it really isn't worth getting worked over 'little scratches' and I also have some experience of both major and minor wounds. The whole point with this particular one is where it is and the possible cause?

Fistulous withers can be a very painful and hard to clear condition that is actually quite serious. So well worth pointing this out to the OP just in case she might miss something in the early stage when it will be far easier to treat and clear up.

But perhaps in all your time dealing with major wounds you have never come across this condition so therefore wouldn't recognise the risk when it presents itself?;)
 
Basically it is a deep seated infection that can be caused by several factors,the most usual could be an old injury (as in a rub from badly fitting tack or rugs), and in some cases it might even need surgery if antibiotics and bathing the area fail to clear it up. It could be lying there dormant under the skin for a longtime, and then suddenly open up - almost like an abscess does , a long cut like opening?

But most important is that it could (as in true fistulous withers) be caused by brucellosis (SP?) bacteria that carries risk for both humans and the horse. So extreme cleanliness would be wise when OP is treating the wound just in case. Especially if the horse has any contact with cattle or grazes in fields that cattle have grazed on.

But Im sure if you do a search on here or goggle it will be far more informative than my description is.
 
Thanks for explaining MrsJingle, I am sure it's my rug because that's the only thing that I put on him because it was chilly, doesn't normally have one on. He does however have white hairs on his withers, no doubt from ill fitting tack. He already had them when I bought him at 4 (ex racer). He's now 10 almost 11, do you think there could still be a connection from his old ill fitting tack scars and his current wound ?
 
niagaraduval I really wouldn't even hazard a guess as I'm not a vet and certainly would not want to mislead or confuse you or anybody else. To put it into perspective, it is an unusual thing to see, especially in recent years.

But I have had a horse about 25 years ago who did most definitely have it and sadly it wasn't a good outcome, hence my reason for not dismissing a seemingly small wound on the withers as insignificant.

Since then I have known of one other similar wither wound, that the vet did eventually seem to think it probably was a fistulous wound, although no tests were done to confirm this. In this case with a long course of antibiotics it did eventually clear it up, for as long as I had knowledge of the horse anyway.

In view of my experience I would always have a vet check out a wither wound that doesn't clear up completely very quickly. But I think we all base our decisions on our own experience, and others would perhaps not bother.
 
MrsJingle said:
But perhaps in all your time dealing with major wounds you have never come across this condition so therefore wouldn't recognise the risk when it presents itself?;)
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Actually I have come across fistulous withers; it's a grim condition, so yes I do know the difference between fistulous withers and a rug burn.
 
If its starting to scab and it does look clean I would try to keep flies off it but otherwise fresh air. If you start Over cleaning it you will just wash away the healed stuff. Have they rolled on a stone ie in the field or something sharp. Good luck. Looks quite superficial and if its scabbing it must be healing. Some good advice so far.
 
Flamazine gel in the wound which will keep it moist to heal from the inside, then tetcin spray on top to dry out and create a scab, firstly wash with salty water, do not rug until healed, manuka honey is also good but i would say more for infectious wounds or deep wounds, that looks like just a rubbed sore.
 
Id use a good fly repellent to keep flies away, if you cant spray him pour some on a body brush and brush it on and leave rugs off, for the wound I really cant recommend Sudocrem enough, it is soothing, aids healing and will help protect from infection. xx
 
Don't panic!

Give it a wash with salt water, slap on some makuda honey and leave rugs off as long as you can.
Make sure you tuck your saddle cloth up into the gullet of your saddle and it shouldn't rest on it :-)
 
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