Melanoma on girth?

[travelmad]

Following on from my earlier thread, vet couldnt really say much about buying a horse with melanoma. Just it's a basic risk, most of the stuff i already know, its an older horse so less risky than buying a young horse with them, he would not recommend treatment on these specific ones, but one is by / on the girth and that I should be aware that if it's rubbed it would rupture.

Really struggling with defining how risky this would be? anyone know of a rubbed melanoma that did burst or get rubbed?

Would it be easily manageable with Vaseline and sheepskin over girths and has anyone done this?

Really like the horse and would buy without question otherwise. It's older so we would not be looking to sell on afterwards, would home for life.

 

[galaxy]

Having lost a horse at 17 to melanomas that pretty much got so bad in just a few days he had to be PTS I'd say walk away.

The only thing predictable about melanomas is they are unpredictable. Within days that melanoma may get so big/spread that you may not be able to ride her again.

How many other melanomas are on her body? If there are a fair few you have to consider how many may also be inside.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

What does the current owner do to prevent rubbing?

 

[travelmad]

There are about 4 others.

It's being brought back to work after 2 years off so can't say what owner did to prevent rubbing

It's so hard, every time we find something suitable something goes wrong!

 

[Gloi]

If you could get the horse on free loan or for a nominal price then I'd risk it but otherwise I wouldn't touch it. You could rub the one on the girth and set it off spreading or it might have an internal one that will kill it next week, you just don't know.

 

[pipsqueek]

I had a horse which had an old sarcoid site on the girth line, managed well by applying vaseline underneath a professionals choice girth. What I would worry about is if you had to sell on - this put off people in my case so just be wary!