Leg hair at base of leg breaking off??

[SpruceRI]

Bit of a weird one this.

Initially it was just my youngster who's a hairy legged Welsh Cob, and during the latter part of the winter I noticed that the hair around the front of her leg just above the coronet band looked like something had chewed it, or it had been hacked with a pair of scissors.

Now all her legs have gone the same way, just the hair around the coronet and slightly above it. On the black legs as well as the white.

During winter I thought it was the wet and mud, but now we're dry it looks worse.

The same has happened to my older mare, though mostly on the white bits, not the brown legs.

My grey Shetland's leg hair is all intact.

Is this a bacterial infection of some sort or are the rabbits nibbling my horses?

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

My hairy girl's legs have gone like this too, and another livery's hairy youngster. I was under the impression that it was indeed the mud that "burns" it off as my girl's legs (now you can see them!) actually look as if someone has neatly trimmed all the front hair off and left the long stuff at the back. Are you sure it's still going on or just that you can see it better now?

 

[YorkshireLass]

Don't panic! It is nothing nasty. It is calle 'Bog Burn' and it is very common for featherd horses to suffer from it. It is simply caused by wet grazing.... and prety much all grazing is wet during the winter

Bog burn looks like someone has chopped off the feather using a pair of scissors, it is easy to tell it apart from a horse that is simply poorly featherd or one that is loosing hair for some other reason.

You can prevent it by using Pig Oil on the dry feather every 2 weeks throughout the winter. You don't use pig oil in the summer because it will fry the skin. If you can't get pig oil, baby oil will do. You can mix sulpher powder with it fo extra protection against mud fever, cracked heels, grapes, salnders & malanders etc.

At this time of year the best thing to do is simply leave the feather, it will look great again in a few weeks. Simply brush out any tangles and use a little mane and tail detangler/conditioner on it.

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

Thanks for that info YL. I'd never heard of Bog Burn before but it pretty much says it all! So glad it's a recognised condition. My girl's legs already look nice again, except that the front feathers have defo all gone - look neatly trimmed TBH! Back feathers still look amazing. I'll remember the baby oil tip for next winter - thanks again xxx

 

[Theresa_F]

All as Yorkshire lass says, very common and P&S is the way to go.

In summer, my gypsy cob can scrub the insides of his hinds where he gets mild SI and humps the ground to itch his belly.

I have found using some watered down megatek on the feather helps to preserve it and encourage fast growth.

This year, touch wood the Skratch is doing the trip and he is not rubbing, even though he smells like a mixture of cat and fox pee - he truely is a Stinker.

 

[teabiscuit]

mine looks like that too

where do you get pig oil and sulphur powder from?

 

[YorkshireLass]

Millers oils make it http://www.millersoils.net/ (despite the fact they don't mention it on their webbie!) and any garage who sell Millers products can get it for you. You can buy it from Heavy Horse supplies people like Mathew Burkes or Ron Brewster http://www.heavyhorsesupplies.com/ I can't find the link to Mr Burkes pages but I am sure someone else will have it! Buying it from a horse supplier costs much more than a garage. If you have a good agricultural suppliers they might stock it. It is used for showing all sorts of farm animals.

Sulpher can be got from good garden centres. It is used to stop bulbs going mouldy. Again, much cheaper than the horse suplies people.

 

[Theresa_F]

Heavy horse supplies are normally cheaper that Mathew Burks and Tom is a lovely chap to chat to.

I normally get my P&S from them and get 25 l of oil and 10 k of sulphur which is the cheapest way of doing it and lasts me ages with my two chaps.

 

[teabiscuit]

thankyou