Mud fever - losing the will to live, any more ideas??

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Arniebear

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My lad has mud fever in both front legs, its not hurrendous just 2 patches just above his heels on both front feet but it wont go away!!!! He hasnt had it all winter but since chucking him out its reared its ugly head!

So far i have tried:

1) sudocreme
2) red horse honey heel
3) hypocare - the mudfever one

Ive tried washing twice a day with hibiscrub, drying and then applying one of the 3 above (not at the same time!)
Ive tried not washing with hibiscrub and just reapplying the creams/ sprays

Its not getting worse but its not getting better either :(

He doesnt seem too bothered by it, isnt lame and will let me touch it, but its been 3 weeks and im running out of ideas!

Anyone have any ideas or shall i just phone the vet?!!
 
its distressing for both horse and owner. The only thing I found which works is to keep the horse in for a minimum of 8 hrs each day to enable the area to dry thoroughly. sudocreme for loosening the scabs or plain runny honey worked for us but it does leave a sticky mess. the honey also soothed the condition. hope this helps.
 
I was always told never to wash mud off horse when it comes it as that can do more harm than good, mine has never had mud rash either.

Have you thought about ringing the vet and getting them to prescribe you some flamazine? I know a few people who use that and have great results. In another subject I use flamazine on my boys wounds from laser surgery and its fabulous
 
Don't bother with any over the counter treatments, speak to your vet.

My vets (Bourton Vale Equine Clinic) make a steroid mud fever cream, it's even been mentioned in a H&H column before. Super effective, my old TB was so fed up with the mud fever that it was getting difficult to handle his legs without him trying to kick you off, this stuff I just used to slather on over the scabs and it cleared it up within a week. I'd probably been battling that particular patch for 6 months. When ever I saw even the smallest start of it I would shove this cream on and it would clear it.

I think the cream cost about £30 but it lasts for ages and once you add up how much you spend all lotions and potions that don't work it was super value for money.
 
TBH I think keeping it dry for a few days would be the answer. The old boy had it last year for the first time ever, his immune system is compromised by cushings so I thought it would be tricky to clear up. I washed with dilute hibiscrub, dried it off completely and put some sudocreme on when it was completely dry. I have a little wood chip turnout area that he was able to go into and in a couple of days or so,it cleared up. However, I think keeping it dry was what did the trick.
 
My vet made my horse a cream with what I am pretty sure was penicillin in it. I don't have it to hand, but I remember him saying it had to be applied with gloves as some people are allergic.

Either way, it cleared it up pretty well, then again, we had a period with no rain and so I think that helped.

Good luck, it's a nightmare and this was my first dealing with a not very bad case. :(
 
Dizzle said:
Don't bother with any over the counter treatments, speak to your vet.

My vets (Bourton Vale Equine Clinic) make a steroid mud fever cream, it's even been mentioned in a H&H column before. Super effective, my old TB was so fed up with the mud fever that it was getting difficult to handle his legs without him trying to kick you off, this stuff I just used to slather on over the scabs and it cleared it up within a week. I'd probably been battling that particular patch for 6 months. When ever I saw even the smallest start of it I would shove this cream on and it would clear it.

I think the cream cost about £30 but it lasts for ages and once you add up how much you spend all lotions and potions that don't work it was super value for money.
Click to expand...

Think this may have to be the route i take! Dont have money to waste on products that clearly arent working! That hypo care stuff was £17 a bottle and i was told would clear it up in 2 days.... it hasnt!!

Carrots&Mints said:
I was always told never to wash mud off horse when it comes it as that can do more harm than good, mine has never had mud rash either.

Have you thought about ringing the vet and getting them to prescribe you some flamazine? I know a few people who use that and have great results. In another subject I use flamazine on my boys wounds from laser surgery and its fabulous
Click to expand...

Think i will give my vet a call tbh!

FairyLights said:
its distressing for both horse and owner. The only thing I found which works is to keep the horse in for a minimum of 8 hrs each day to enable the area to dry thoroughly. sudocreme for loosening the scabs or plain runny honey worked for us but it does leave a sticky mess. the honey also soothed the condition. hope this helps.
Click to expand...

I think may have to cave and start bringing him back in at night to combat it!
 
My boy had really nasty mud fever once and even Flamazine wouldn't shift it. It had actually become infected so he needed cobactan injections. He's also suffered from terrible photosensitivity before and after overhauling his diet (removing alfalfa and putting him on the 'barefoot diet') his skin has been so much better all year round.
 
Aroma heel....brilliant stuff. Cleared up a friends horse scabby legs, not mud fever, after trying all the vets treatment that didn't work. You plaster it on and leave it, it brings the scabs off its self and leaves everything healing underneath.
 
Slightlyconfused said:
Aroma heel....brilliant stuff. Cleared up a friends horse scabby legs, not mud fever, after trying all the vets treatment that didn't work. You plaster it on and leave it, it brings the scabs off its self and leaves everything healing underneath.
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Another vote for Aromaheel, my mare had it quite bad on her off hind and around the heel area. All that remains is a small bit on the side of her leg. I've never washed her leg in the time I've had her just allowed scabs to fall off or help ease them off and then reapply.

Edited to add that her skin is lovely and bright pink and healthy underneath allowing good regrowth. We're almost there now.
 
we use flamazine, and if really bad antibiotics.
have used steroid mud fever cream from vet which is also good.
keeping them in is the best thing to do i think. we box rest untill clear. he has it at the moment, and had it the same time last year too
 
My boy can suffer with this occassionally. I swear by baby oil. I wash his legs off every few days and re-apply the baby oil. My YO also uses it on her race horses. In fact it was my YO owner who suggested I try it and Ive never looked back
 
Bring him in for couple of day, brush mud of as soon as dry. Plaster in sudocrem and wrap cling film over the top and then bandage to keep in place. Every 12hours remove and re-apply, scabs will just all fall off. Once all scabs come away keep in for further 24 hours for skin to dry and then use pig oil and sulphur to stop re-occurring
 
I have a 16.3 warmblood with horrendous mud fever, he gets really bad scabs and they are very painful.

I bring him in and wash his legs, then apply DERMOLINE to the scabs and rub it in really well, then put him in the stable for an hour or so, until his legs are fairly dry and the cream has really soaked in.

Then I remove any of the scabs that are soft enough (if he lets me).

I then put PIG OIL & SULPHUR all around the lower part of his legs and rub it in really well to act as a barrier before I put him back out.

We do this daily and it tends to clear after a week to ten days.


n.b. This year we built a concrete hard-standing around where they gather at the gate, so he doesn't stand in the mud for long periods of time.
 
Faracat said:
My boy had really nasty mud fever once and even Flamazine wouldn't shift it. It had actually become infected so he needed cobactan injections. He's also suffered from terrible photosensitivity before and after overhauling his diet (removing alfalfa and putting him on the 'barefoot diet') his skin has been so much better all year round.
Click to expand...

Same. Flipping hate mud fever.

P
 
Don’t wash – only once/twice a week!!!! The more you wash, the worse it will get.
Wash the area (warm soapy water) then dry. Buy a big massive tub of Vaseline (or cheap petroleum jelly) and smother over the area and msaage it in - then stick him/her out. Next time you bring in, let the mud dry on the legs (it’ll prob be a bit gooey but that’s fine) then brush off and reapply jelly. Keep doing this – will take a few days but when you then brush off, the scabs will come off and no redness!!
Ive tried everything as my grey arab with lovely white mudrashy legs gets it every soddin year and this is the only thing that works for her! x
 
thanks everyone for your suggestions, he isnt actually coming in from the field covered in mud, we have fen soil so its not muddy in his field as the lands drains really well. I cannot keep him 24/7 he can come in overnight but has to go out in the day as wont stay put in the box/yard on his own!!

will bring him back in overnights for the bank holiday weekend and smother in sudocreme if they arent looking any better by tuesday will give my vet a call
 
I did a thread asking for help a couple of months ago as I'd tried pig oil / sulphur / sudocreme etc to no avail. Only one that worked was nettex muddy marvel (contains calendula and tea tree oil), applied daily and horse brought in at night (which happened all winter, didn't make other creams any more effective). If it's infected then you need vet assistance.
 
Yet another thumbs up for aromaheel. Made by a company called aromese. It's excellent stuff, smells good and I've used it in the past to plug abscess holes in a hoof and it seemed to help that heel well too - my vet took note of it.
 
I wouldnt wash or wet the legs unless you really really have too - and towel dry if you have to!
In your case i would bring in at night and let legs dry, but not put anything on the skin - if the mud fever is really bad then keep in for a week and let the mud fever clear (try botanica, very good!). I think that would be the most effective:)

I've been very lucky this winter - bill lives out with access to his stable/yard and at night he sleeps in what can only be described as a mud pit!! But no mud fever, and i never wash his legs unless I really really have too & they must be bone dry before going back out.
This is the mud pit
F9EC00F7-E6C8-452D-B626-FAE0F753CB97_zpszksmnb0h.jpg


And this is how deep the mud is
289C5C36-AA23-43BA-8FBC-62F54C758E05_zpsbjdz3zlj.jpg


I even got stuck in it today after checking how deep it had got - now it's been fenced off so he cant get stuck lol. As you can see i have been very lucky that he hasn't got mud fever!!
 
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