Buttercup burn

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electric_circus

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My pink-nosed horse has been suffering from what I initially thought was a quite bad and very fast onset case of sunburn... After several days with a UV nosenet on, it doesn't really look any better and some new blisters have developed on his lips; buttercups have recently erupted in his field so I am inclined to think it may be buttercup burn rather than sunburn as it should be getting better with the nosenet in place. He won't let me touch it to put any sudocrem or anything on; it looks and clearly is very sore indeed.

I'll be speaking to the yard owner tomorrow to see if either the field can be topped or he can move paddocks, but does anyone have any idea for anything I can do to help the poor chap and his sore nose that doesn't involve putting sudocrem on it??
 
Doesn't help your situation I'm afraid but our pink nosed mare is plastered in sudocrem daily as well as wearing a UV resistant full face mask 24/7 -this works no problem. Masks and nose nets are never 100% UV resistant and they can also fold up/move to expose skin. You really need to get some sudocrem on him- whether it is the sun or buttercups, whilst he may resist at first (my mare always resists at first but once we have had the initail battle she does improve) they find it very soothing once it is on and it does form a really good and effective block to the sun!!
 
Thanks serenityjane - I've managed (with help!!) to get some flamazine on it today before he completely lost the plot, which should help with the burn more than just sudocreme at this stage. I think once it has healed and is less sore he will possibly let me put on some suncream or sudocreme to supplement the nosenet. Maybe! He wears the nosenet 24/7 and does so every summer and doesn't usually get sunburned at all; hence my thought that this was buttercup-related rather than just the sun on its own.
 
It could well be a combination of things- buttercups, other plants and the sun, photosensitivity also increases with age and exposure, I have always found sudocrem to be the best for actually blocking the sun as suncreams are just not thick and long lasting enough, Sudocrem goes on and stays on, even after rain, eating and grooming with other horses. We play the 'how high can I get my nose without actually rearing' game every morning until I eventually get a few blobs on and then she quite happily lets me rub it all over her muzzle (I wouldn't mind but she is 16.2 and I am 5ft 3!!!!). Ironically, my bay mare (no sunburn) who is also much smaller loves sudocrem so much that she would lick the pot if I let her!
 
Mine just rubs anything that sits on the surface of his skin off on his legs, assuming you can even get it on in the first place..! Despite having a very pink nose, he just hates it for whatever reason and despite usually being quite obliging in every other respect in life it quickly escalates to full rears. I use P20, which he will let me put on - it is a liquid sunscreen rather than a cream (like an oil), but goes up to factor 50, lasts all day and is waterproof and sweat-resistant. It's not cheap to buy, but lasts and lasts.
 
I found filtabac to be even better than sudocrem as a sunscreen. IME, sudocrem can "melt" off in warm temperatures. Filtabac goes on thin, but stays white/blocks UV. You literally can't get the whiteness off your hands unless you wash thoroughly with soap. I used it on a grey mare with pink skin on her legs who got scabby from photo sensitivity every summer. Applying it every 2-3 days was enough.
 
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