Buying a pony with a mark on his side

Pip Burns

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Hi so I really need some advice on what to do. So I have been loaning a pony for a while and he’s amazing and he’s just what I’ve wanted and he’s got so much potential but there is a slight catch.
They got him from Ireland like all my horses are!! But he came to the person with a mark on his side and it’s just skin on his side with no fur! Just skin, I’ve been told that it happens when some people buy large amount of horses and they don’t have time or the money to get horse wormers so they use cow wormers and apparently only 1 in a few horses gets it and I’m going to do some big shows hopefully like qualifiers and he will be judged on how he looks and as he has this mark on his side I will be put down on my marks but I was wondering if it will fully go away or is there anything I can put on it that would help it grow or will it not grow at all ❤️If you need a picture to see what it properly looks like just ask as I feel like I have hit a dead end. Thanks
 

minesadouble

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It could be an explantion, cattle wormers are 'pour on' so it's a possibility. Never experienced it myself but never used the cattle stuff on a horse either. Doesn't look like rain scald to me.

Edited to add not sure how confident I would be about the hair growing back, how long has he been hairless? Some people swear by megatek for hair regrowth.
 

ihatework

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That’s cosmetic.
I’d be surprised if it was down to wormer as I’ve never heard of that, but it doesn’t really matter either way, it is what it is.

As for buying the pony, if the pony is good like you say it wouldn’t stop me buying for anything other than decent level showing, in which case it will likely be a problem. But for jumping/dressage it’s not.

If it were mine and getting regrowth was important I’d be going for grade 4 laser. A friend of mine has had miraculous results regrowing a tail they all thought was pretty much dead from too tight a bandage (years before she purchased the horse)
 

The Fuzzy Furry

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Looks like a major trauma from a long time ago, accident/injury. That is not caused by a wormer!
You'll need to be very careful with saddle fit and any cloths under, in case of rubbing, or if any granulation of tissue under which could rub.
What does your vet say? You will get him at least stage 2 vetted?
You might never get hair to grow back on old scar tissue, but unless you are showing, I wouldn't worry.
 

PapaverFollis

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Oh he's cute! Unless you're going to HOYS just get him if he's perfect for you otherwise. Get him vetted and get the vets opinion on it but that wouldn't stop me buying a horse that was otherwise lovely.
 

Pinkvboots

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It almost looks like some sort of burn so it could have been chemical? Year's ago I used Radion B on my Arabs shoulder and all his hair fell out completely a bit like that and in almost the same place, it did grow back perfectly and you definitely can't see it now.
 

ycbm

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I thought showing rules were that accidental damage had to be ignored?

OP that looks like a chemical or heat burn, and nothing like I would expect from a pour on wormer gone wrong. It wouldn't worry me at all, I've seen far worse scars under more weight bearing areas of the saddle.
 

whiteflower

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You say you want to show him in qualifiers, so if you are referring to qualifiers for the big shows, hoys, rihs etc then yes it probably will be an issue. It looks like a burn of some sort to me as well.
Even if you do ridden classes he will need to be stripped for conformation so the mark will be seen.
I suppose it depends on how much you want to show and be successful and at what level. There is nothing to stop you entering him he just may not do as well as he might of without it
 

be positive

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Looks like a major trauma from a long time ago, accident/injury. That is not caused by a wormer!
You'll need to be very careful with saddle fit and any cloths under, in case of rubbing, or if any granulation of tissue under which could rub.
What does your vet say? You will get him at least stage 2 vetted?
You might never get hair to grow back on old scar tissue, but unless you are showing, I wouldn't worry.

I also think it looks like an injury, there are marks that appear to be from stitching, I have seen similar from what I thought was probably a fall onto a road/ yard, skin removed leaving bare areas and appearance of a rash where the gravel/ grit was embedded, if for showing at a decent level then it will be an issue but for anything else if the vetting goes well it wouldn't bother me.
 

ycbm

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I believe that's possibly true for ror or veterans but I'm not aware of that being the case in other classes, happy to be corrected on that


I was told it by the seller of a horse a friend bought who shows at quite a high level. The horse has a very noticeable scar from an injury on its bum. Might be compete rubbish, though, as friend doesn't want to show and doesn't mind the scar anyway, and seller was trying to sell, of course!

Hopefully a showing person will tell us.
 

ycbm

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I also think it looks like an injury, there are marks that appear to be from stitching, I have seen similar from what I thought was probably a fall onto a road/ yard, skin removed leaving bare areas and appearance of a rash where the gravel/ grit was embedded, if for showing at a decent level then it will be an issue but for anything else if the vetting goes well it wouldn't bother me.


You might have it spot on there - friction burn with gravel. That would account for it completely. Well spotted Sherlock!
 

conniegirl

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I was told it by the seller of a horse a friend bought who shows at quite a high level. The horse has a very noticeable scar from an injury on its bum. Might be compete rubbish, though, as friend doesn't want to show and doesn't mind the scar anyway, and seller was trying to sell, of course!

Hopefully a showing person will tell us.

Complete rubbish unfortunatly, even small but noticable scars have ended show horse careers.
 

windand rain

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It is supposed not to make a difference and some big winners have small scars from injuries but when it gets down to the wire the one without scars will beat those that have one. He is perfect in every other way (a rare beast indeed) then he may well place in qualifiers over unscarred but badly put together versions
 
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We have had a couple of horses at work that have bald patches. They have never been injured or damaged, they were born that way - we got sent pics of one as a foal and the baldness is there clear as day. Its never bothered them and one is bald where his girth would sit.

It will be an issue for showing above riding club level.

Veterans ignore accumulated scars/blemishes/injuries provided the horse is sound. ROR do in the amatuer classes but the big qualifying classes they have to be as clean as a regular show horse.
 

Zero00000

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A knew a pony with an almost identical mark, caused by a mounting injury. (by another horse) never caused any issue with ridden work, did need extra protection from sun etc.
 

EventingMum

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That's very similar to marks a pony we had had on both her stifles, coincidently she was dun. My vet had known her with her previous owner and said she had been pretty ill as a youngster and been lying in dirty bedding for quite a while and it was a fungal type thing that had left the scars. We didn't manage to get rid of them completely but got a little more hair growth using cornucrescine. They didn't give her any problems except she was a little sensitive being clipped over them but would have certainly counted against her for showing.
 

Dynamo

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He looks absolutely lovely. Don't let the scar put you off if he's right for you in every other way.

You need to establish for sure whether it is a scar, i.e. not active, or something like a fungal infection, i.e. still active and therefore treatable. The absolute best thing is to ask a vet. Then you can proceed accordingly.

Whatever it is, here's some advice from a very experienced showing person and judge, and please don't take it amiss; it's well intended. If you were an experienced showing person you wouldn't be asking the question above, so I am guessing that you're not, and I'm also guessing that you're not being trained/advised/produced by an experienced showing person or you'd be asking them, not us. In which case, you have quite a journey ahead of you before you are likely to be in a position where, if the hair doesn't grow back, it's going to prevent you from doing as well as you might otherwise. There is absolutely nothing to prevent you entering any qualifiers you like, provided you satisfy the entry requirement, but realistically, if we're talking top level qualifiers for things like HOYS/RIHS, and even BSPS/NPS, you'll probably not be at the top of the line with or without the hair growth until you've got a lot more experience. There are lots of classes you can do with a pony like this at club level, and lots of things you can qualify for like Equifest and all sorts of unaffiliated championships, where you will have a wonderful time, learn a lot and enjoy this lovely pony. At the club and Equifest level it is FAR more important that a pony is well-behaved, goes sweetly and that pony and rider are in harmony, than whether it has the odd blemish here and there.

If it's definitely a scar I recommend trying Megatek. Do a patch test first. I had a dun Connemara who had a horse-fly bite on his cheek about ten days before a major showing final and rubbed his face from ear to mouth completely raw; when the redness had gone down I used Megatek and by the time of the show the hair had regrown and you would never have noticed. I've also had success with long-standing hairless patches by treating with Cornucrescine, which used to be the old-fashioned go-to for hair growth.
 

Dynamo

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He looks absolutely lovely. Don't let the scar put you off if he's right for you in every other way.

You need to establish for sure whether it is a scar, i.e. not active, or something like a fungal infection, i.e. still active and therefore treatable. The absolute best thing is to ask a vet. Then you can proceed accordingly.

Whatever it is, here's some advice from a very experienced showing person and judge, and please don't take it amiss; it's well intended. If you were an experienced showing person you wouldn't be asking the question above, so I am guessing that you're not, and I'm also guessing that you're not being trained/advised/produced by an experienced showing person or you'd be asking them, not us. In which case, you have quite a journey ahead of you before you are likely to be in a position where, if the hair doesn't grow back, it's going to prevent you from doing as well as you might otherwise. There is absolutely nothing to prevent you entering any qualifiers you like, provided you satisfy the entry requirement, but realistically, if we're talking top level qualifiers for things like HOYS/RIHS, and even BSPS/NPS, you'll probably not be at the top of the line with or without the hair growth until you've got a lot more experience. There are lots of classes you can do with a pony like this at club level, and lots of things you can qualify for like Equifest and all sorts of unaffiliated championships, where you will have a wonderful time, learn a lot and enjoy this lovely pony. At the club and Equifest level it is FAR more important that a pony is well-behaved, goes sweetly and that pony and rider are in harmony, than whether it has the odd blemish here and there.

If it's definitely a scar I recommend trying Megatek. Do a patch test first. I had a dun Connemara who had a horse-fly bite on his cheek about ten days before a major showing final and rubbed his face from ear to mouth completely raw; when the redness had gone down I used Megatek and by the time of the show the hair had regrown and you would never have noticed. I've also had success with long-standing hairless patches by treating with Cornucrescine, which used to be the old-fashioned go-to for hair growth.
 

Pearlsasinger

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I was told it by the seller of a horse a friend bought who shows at quite a high level. The horse has a very noticeable scar from an injury on its bum. Might be compete rubbish, though, as friend doesn't want to show and doesn't mind the scar anyway, and seller was trying to sell, of course!

Hopefully a showing person will tell us.


Working hunters can get away with some scarring, so long as they jump well.
 

windand rain

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You dont have to be a professional producer to win HOYS qualifiers but you do have to have the knowledge and determination of one. And deep pockets
 

Pip Burns

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It could be an explantion, cattle wormers are 'pour on' so it's a possibility. Never experienced it myself but never used the cattle stuff on a horse either. Doesn't look like rain scald to me.

Edited to add not sure how confident I would be about the hair growing back, how long has he been hairless? Some people swear by megatek for hair regrowth.
They had him 2 years soon and I have know him the whole time and he’s always had it and it has slowly been growing back and is gaining hair but not sure if it will all gain hair
 
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