Can a rug rub really cause this?

Ginger Bear

Ginger Bear

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I've posted a couple if times about our newbie pony that we got for my 11 year old cousin.. We had him on a 2 month loan & then bought him. He was a bit nervous/spooky to start with but soon settled down & they were doing great together. All of a sudden over winter he started getting stroppy in the school, ears flat back when asked to trot, kicking out, falling in or out on a circle, Standing with his hind legs under him. It got to the point where he was refusing point blank to go forward..so gave him a rest as he was clearly screaming at us & booked him to go to an osteo/vet my mum uses for her ex racer.(he doesn't go till tues.Got his teeth done & had his new saddle double checked - both fine. Even put him on an ulcer supplement as he was even tender round the belly area..Had chiro out, found him to be very sore pretty much all over, he was a bit better after but still not perfect. 2 weeks ago I was checking over his back & he was really angry about me running my hand along the top of the bone of his withers.. As I did this his hair came out on a patch & was raw underneath, put saddle on him to see where it sat & it wasn't even close to being touched by saddle & he was happy to have saddle put on.. Checked where his heavy winter rug sat & it was right on the sore spot.. Bathed it & put antibac gel on - one that forms a protective barrier.. It's almost completely healed. My cousin had been just walking him in hand & free schooling him whilst it healed. She got on him Wednesday but with just a saddle & no numnah incase it rubbed the areA & she said he was perfect. He's now back to standing square rather than his legs under him, he's happy & alert.. Has Nyone had an experience like this? Could a rug rub cause all of these behaviours - perhaps if he was trying to compensate when ridden to keep saddle pressure away from the back muscles near the wither sore, maybe if he was moving oddly whe turned out to stop the rug rubbing the sore area? Thanks
 
If the animal is in discomfort its the only way of telling us something is wrong particularly if the behaviour isnt the normal behaviour.

Yes rugs do cause sores and do rub. Always try to take them off and either reposition or change for another rug(spare). It only takes a bit of water/sweat or the rug to shift(they do roll) and if its not checked it will rub. I know we have had bad weather but if it wasnt raining the rugs came off first thing and were put back on in the evening to AIR the horses and rugs. Its my pet bug bare to see horses still rugged when the sun is up on a dry day.

I met a cob recently with neck hood and full rug in this cold weather and it was sweating underneath in all its pink glory. I dont think the young girl realised. It clearly was a well loved horse.

But yes the places usually around neck/shoulders as they pull on them. Hope you have found the cause and it all goes back to normal being ridden etc. PS My cob had rhinocerous skin and if a fly landed on his mamouth woolley coat he knew it was there. Horses are sense animals. I think the horse was trying to tell you something was wrong.
 
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Yes it can. Two of my ponies on my yard has had it. You probably cant see it now but there is a possibility that with the rug rubbing the wither that puss has built up under the skin causing pain, if rubbed enough it can break through causing all the puss to come out. Vet usually comes out with antibiotics to sort it out. Good luck x
 
hi my old tb had a rub on his wither from a rug ,it just looked a bit bald to start with but then a huge scab came off but it healed up eventually and i didnt put that rug on him again so it didnt happen again .but for ever after if you touched it when riding he would shoot forwards at a gallop so i think it must have been very sensitive,so yes i think some of the behavior you are describing could be to do with the rub but i would say getting the back checked would be my first thing ,and then after the backs been done get the saddle re checked
 
Thanks for your replies.. I have 2 high withered tbs & have never had a problem with rugs but this little fella is a welsh d x trotter he has a wither but he's quite slender so we had all his rugs taken in round the shoulders except the heavy one (old fashioned fleece lined worldbeeta) as it looked a pretty good fit.. This is the one that's rubbed.. He is never left in a particular rug day & night, he's always changed into stable rugs at night, groomed & checked over but with the cold weather & snow he's been in the heavy one a lot. We don't layer rugs on him. Since finding the sore he has had his rug off now we are getting sunny cold days & his clip has almost grown out.. He's such an honest willing little man he was 100% trying to tell us something - it was so out of character! When I found the hair was loose & it came away it looked sort of like a skin burn like a burn if u skidded on carpet (best way I can explain!) lol, it didn't look pussy or scabby just red & a little damp. It's now just white skin with a small scab left.
 
After high wither tb got rubs and sore last winter, I got a padded wither relief pad, and a med weight rug with satin pad over wither area, weather beta and masts work for her..
It sorted it but I did hunt for few weeks to get right rug.
 
Hi, I bought a pony once that had been rubbed raw on her withers by the rug. We bought half neck rugs for her so there wasnt any pressure on the withers, We found a stable quilt which is just square and has a surcingle for in the stable and it soon healed up.
 
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