for those with hairy legs! (pref welsh)

[ester]

Hopefully will not be too long.

my welsh cob has all his feather and is reasonably hairy on the back of the knees but is typical welsh fine hair. He doesn't have very good skin, he is never dandruffy but odd scabs will appear at all times of year and he is prone to girth rubs (just received a string girth for that after forum recommendations) Behind his knees he is really scaley about 2cm round area. If i don't cream there he gets a big crease in them where he bends his leg which looks really pink and sore. If his legs sweat a lot the sweat does tend to collect around here but I will always wash them if this happens. I keep the area clipped now so I can keep an eye on it and actually get the MSM cream to touch the skin but there has been no summer to winter improvement (I think it is normally better in winter) He only wears front boots if absolutely necessary, prob once a fortnight and he has no mud fever or anything so its not that. Have tried leaving it completely alone and letting hair grow but gets worse

On his 2 white back legs he has 2 huge ergots and lots of feather in the summer he can get quite flakey and sore there which I put down to him sweating but they are fine all winter.

Anyone have a similar issue with theirs? If so any ideas

He is rubbish at being a hardy cob

 

[iluvcobs]

I have had the same problems with my cob............now its solved!! Ok so I was advised to feed her Flax Seed Oil 1000mg daily all year round, secondly feed garlic, all year round. In the meantime to solve the problem I bathed the area in iodine - yes it stings but it has worked and she has been free of her scabbyness since November.......

Hardy and Welsh Cob - indeed she is the same, first at the gate to come in on a bad day - LOL!!

 

[josiesmithuk]

Our fells used to get this.

We used to keep the area free from any build up of gunk and brush daily with a fine nit comb. THis prevents the build up of scurff which leads to the skin being starved of oxygen and cracking. Feeding an oil/supplement will also help.

Its a lot more common than you think x x x

 

[SpruceRI]

PM Teresa_F for her pig oil and sulphur recipe.

She has hairy cobs and Shows them, so uses this stuff to stop them getting exactly the thing [on the back of the knees] that you describe.

Sorry - I've only got the info in hard copy now.

 

[Slinkyunicorn]

I think the proper name for them is sallenders on the front legs and mallenders on the hind. Very common in anything heavy with feathers and also very difficult to get rid of. Inca has them and have tried different things with varied success. The only thing that has worked was when she went on the Formula 4 Feet supplement as part of her laminitis recovery diet. Have now gone with no extra cream or lotions or potions from me - result!
I think they look worse and bother us more than it bothers them.
Inca also a big wuss - refuses to behave like the rock hard cob that she looks!

 

[ester]

Thanks everyone, you have been very useful again. It has a name! Should have got the internet ages ago rather than a month ago. I will give those a go and get hold of that recipe

 

[piebaldsparkle]

This is Theresa's Pig Oil and Sulphur PM -

Feathers can take some time to look after to keep nice and the skin not getting mites etc, but in my opinion it is worth it. One good thing is that in winter you won't be freezing washing legs like those without feather often do.

This PM is based on my experience (I have now had hairy horses for 7 years after having TBs since my teens) and what I have learnt by talking to the old boys with their heavies. I have done long PM this as there was no real information easily found on how to put the stuff on and how to look after hairy horses legs.

If you want more info on skin conditions in hairy horses, this is an interesting article.

http://www.completerider.com/pasterndermatitis.htm

and so is this, though they do not mention using P&S

http://www.englandsequestrian.co.uk/index.pl?cat_id=22&issue_id=2&art_id=919

Pig oil and sulphur - I get mine from Heavy Horse Supplies - http://www.heavyhorsesupplies.co.uk.

Last order I did was for 25l of oil and 10k of sulphur which was about £70 with postage but lasts ages even with my two very hairy lads. For me this is cheaper than a 30 mile trip to the nearest supplier. You can of course buy smaller amounts -I think 10l of oil and 3k of sulphur with postage is about £40. It is cheaper than pig oil on ebay.

Now to the dark art of applying

First remove any white gold - it will go black. You don't have to use gloves - actually you do get nice soft hands but you may find white gold still goes tarnished for a few days if there is P&S left soaked in your skin. Yellow gold actually goes nice and shiney.

Next I like to have the legs dry and any mud combed out. I also inspect the legs for any lumps or scabs.

Then take a small container - old feed supplement pot will do. For one horse use about 1/2l of oil and then add sulphur until it looks like a thick milkshake - about 6 tablespoons is probably right - sorry I do it by eye. Mix well. If you have a horse with a tonnes of hair you may need more for the intial application.

Then take paintbrush and paint legs from just under knee/hock to the floor (if your feathers go down that far). Rub well in, the feather should be oily but not dripping then apply a little more oil as a "top coat" in winter for hair protection.

Best done in the stable as oil can end up everywhere - little drips do come down. It soon soaks up in the bed or in rubber matting though. To be honest you can wash it away but my YO is a little fussy about keeping the yard spotless.

In winter I do this every 10 - 14 days and may top up with a little more oil between if the mud is really bad - but this is for show condition rather than prevention of mites.

The oil keeps mud from really sticking - leave the horse in overnight and most of the muds has dried and slid off come morning.

Another tip - unless you need white legs, ie showing, in winter do not wash out the legs. I do not wash out from mid September to April (unless doing a show) most I do is a little cold water and brush on the end of the feather if really clogged up with mud. Whatever you do, do not soak the hair/legs. Washing can cause more problems than it solves. Ignore the dirty oily top layer, pull back the hair and the underneath is clean, dry and white.

When you do wash out, hot water and grannies soap flakes (from Tescos) are a gentle and effective method. For the first wash out of the year after winter, I prefer fairy washing up liquid and then use the grannies mixed with a little equine blue which gets them snowy white.

The main thing to remember is to keep with the P&S and to go over the legs regularly looking for anything brewing. Once a week is normally fine.

Summer is easy - every couple of weeks, wet the legs and rub a handful of sulphur into each one, again getting well into the hair and skin.

Do not worry about the yellow - it soon fades.

Finally if you do have some scabs, Cairo does occasionally - just in two places below the back of his knees - he is one who you can never totally get it banished, try mixing 1 tablespoon of sudocream, 1 teaspoon of sulphur, 5 drops of teatree oil together and then rubbing into the area. It makes an awful mess but ignore it. Do this daily for a week - do not wash.

At the end of the week then wash with warm water and hibiscrub. Gently rub the scabs do remove the top layer - do not pick. Then repeat process. Cairo is normally back to normal within two weeks.

I have done this for my three very hairy horses - Cairo and Jemima - after the initial frontline treatments never have had the problem return (apart from Cairo's two little patches) and Chancer never has had mites to date.

In the summer I also like to lightly spray the feather with megatek every other day - you can get this from tailgator.co.uk - they do some wonderful grooming products including tailbags and manebags which I developed with them. I mix the megatek 50-50 with water and spray feather, tail and mane lightly to encourage the hair to grow and keep strong. If you don't show then it is probably not worth the effort and expense, but I do.

Hope I have covered everything and sorry to go on - anything not clear, let me know.

Having seen pics of your mare, she will look lovely in her natural hairy state - Chancer is bagged now his mane and tail are so long and thick - if you are going the whole traditional way, let me know if you want to know about keeping the mane and tail in perfect show condition.

Theresa the guru of P&S.
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