Itchy horse?

brighthair

brighthair

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YO away on holiday. There's a horse on box rest (has been for 14 weeks) and he's really itchy. He's got thrush in his hooves which I'm treating. Yesterday he came up with a large lump on his belly which looks like a swollen fly bite. He's got little lumps on his face which look urticaria like. He's now stood in the stable scratching his head on anything he can find, and the walls are rough breeze blocks so you can imagine what his face looks like
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I've sprayed him with fly repellent and put aloe vera on the open wounds on his face, but he's already started scratching again and is now bleeding
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Help?! Have tried ringing vet for advice as I don't want YO to come back to a huge bill. I have a stocked medicine cabinet, anything I can use? I'm going to stuff him with my antihistimines at this rate
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Sounds like an allergic reaction my old horse had terrible urticaria thatwent all weepy the vet gave a shot of steroids and anti-inflammatories I then had to bath in something called Hexocil I beleive but they went down in no time. It came up around April each year
 
Poor you, that's a bit of a responsibility! has anything changed, diet etc? has he just started itching? it sounds like an allergic reaction but if nothing has changed?

Could you give him a bath with medicated shampoo? could he not go out on restricted grazing? one of our liveries is turned out in a small square of grass just so that he is out in the fresh air and can see the others.

My horse always scratches his tail off when he is in, he is fine when he is out, I think he is just bored!
 
nothing has changed at all except the midges and flies seem to have increased with the warmer weather
I've actually got 18 to do including him, he's a really good boy and happy to be sprayed/have cream on
He can't go out until YO gets back and he is sedated as he's been on box rest for so long. He's also the best part of 18hh and likes to pretend he's in the Spanish riding school :-)
Vet just rang and gave me some advice. I've saturated him in fly spray and put dermoline wound cream on the weeping bits as it's thick and less likely to rub off
Going to nip to the chemist and get some steroid ointment for him. Ideally I could do with washing his head but not sure how crazy he is about soap and water!
 
Can the vet recommend something for the bumps - sounds like a reaction and you may be able to get something for hayfever from the chemist is they say so.

I would if you can bath - or at least a good sponge down. If you think it is flies and midges, can you put a summer sheet or fly rug on. I used to have to keep my TB with one on in and out in the summer as she was so sensitive to flies.

If it keeps on, then I would have the vet out as he may need steriods or somethiing strong it if is an allergic reaction to put him right.

Do you think he has got too hot in the recent hot weather we have had - that can bring up bumps and itchy skin too.
 
give him a good bath in tea tree oil shampoo put some stop itch salve on his sore bitten areas and put himon D&D itch free!
 
Give his face a good wash with Nizeral - a human shampoo from the chemist. Dilute with warm water and lather up well with a face cloth. Leave to dry - don't rinse.

I have just been advised by another poster that it is a behind the counter shampoo in the UK so don't tell the chemist you need it for your horse!! Weird as it is on the shelf at the chemist and Supermarket in NZ.
 
get a bottle of the killitch stuff.. i cant remember who its made by.. it has a blue lable.

i suggest this, as it contains a % of the same stuff used in anastetics (sp) so it will numb the area that is itching, therefore prevent the itching.
 
My young fella suffers terribly with the flies and his skin last year got so bad that we even had a dermatologist out!! rediculous i know. Th ebest advice he gave us was to invest in a boett rug which touch wood has worked brilliantly. He wears it all the time and for some reason it has worked where other fly rugs havent.
Best of luck i know how annoying this can be but i would definately recommend the boett.
xkx
 
Sounds like it is an over-reaction to insect bites. Can you get some dermoline shampoo and wash him with that or use some Coopers Spot -on? That will kill any lice which may be causing him to itch and will also stop any midges biting in the future.

Good luck.
 
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