mud fever

jenbleep

jenbleep

Well-Known Member
Joined
9 November 2005
Messages
14,674
Location
North West
Visit site
how do you deal with it?

i have noticed that Frankie is getting scabby on his near hind pastern......i have checked his other legs and he has a few scabs but nothing to major. I told his owner and she said 'not to worry, it's only mud fever'. Well I know that but i just wanted to let you know!
smirk.gif


The she said 'whatever you do, just don't pull the scabs off'.
confused.gif
confused.gif
I have always dealt with it by pulling the scabs off, (after softening them) then applying some cream to guard against it. (Usually udder cream or something like that). Whenever i go to ride him, his legs are always covered in wet mud, and I (most of the time anyway) wait until it is dry and brush it off. I don't know what she does with them in the morning, i think she just turns him out but i don't think she brushes the mud off pr anything.
crazy.gif


She said he gets it every years, and an old sharer used to pull the scabs off and made him really pink and sore, and he bled a little, and apprently it made it worse. She didn't like that, so the year after she just kept the scabs on and he was fine, and the scabs went away in the spring.

Obviously i am not going to do anything that she doesn't want me to do, but i was wondering does this work for some horses with mud fever? Or is she talking baloney?
smirk.gif


Or indeed am i talking baloney?
grin.gif


How do you deal with your horses that have mud fever?
 
according to the vet you can take the scabs off if they are ready to come off on their own but don't go picking them off otherwise
 
My pony gets mud fever and usually I use a barrier cream and pick off soften scabs when they come however, this year I have changed tact and its working so far (touch wood). I hose his legs when he comes in, don't leave any mud to dry off, hibi scrub a couple of times a week and honestly he's still good at the moment.

I have always heard u shouldn't leave the mud to dry and the scabs should come off as that's what holds the bacteria.

Hope that helps.
 
I personally give it a really good wash with hibiscrub and water. Then dry off and apply keratex mud shield powder which is fantastic with none of the mess of creams. I try to get the scabs off when I am washing with hibiscrub.
 
i heard (or read in a magazine, can't remember!) that the bacteria is in (grammar?) the scabs, so you have to get rid then barrier against them.

Still I don't think I should pick away at Frankie's legs if his owner doesn't like it........it just doesn't make much sense to me!
crazy.gif
crazy.gif


Udder cream can be bought at any farm yard store
 
[ QUOTE ]
Amy were can you get Udder Salve

[/ QUOTE ]
We get it from our local Agricutural store. It's wonderful stuff, and I wouldn't be without it.

A tub costs around £17 and will last one horse almost a life time!
 
Well one thing JBJ - you are getting a lot of useful experience with this horse on how not to do things.

TBH - if he is a little prone, and always get's a bit each year, but doesn't get it severely then I wouldn't worry too much.
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Amy were can you get Udder Salve

[/ QUOTE ]
We get it from our local Agricutural store. It's wonderful stuff, and I wouldn't be without it.

A tub costs around £17 and will last one horse almost a life time!

[/ QUOTE ]

Is there anywhere on the net that sells it ?
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Amy were can you get Udder Salve

[/ QUOTE ]
We get it from our local Agricutural store. It's wonderful stuff, and I wouldn't be without it.

A tub costs around £17 and will last one horse almost a life time!

[/ QUOTE ]

Is there anywhere on the net that sells it ?

[/ QUOTE ]

Try Here

Type in Udder Salve in the search bit.
smile.gif
 
I use sublime sulphur (from chemist) and veg oil, mix together and paste on legs, is fantastic as cure or preventative. I swear by it. Only thing is horse has nice yellow leg's!!!
 
[ QUOTE ]
i heard (or read in a magazine, can't remember!) that the bacteria is in (grammar?) the scabs, so you have to get rid then barrier against them.

[/ QUOTE ]
Yes that's correct. MF is anaerobic, so the minute you open the sore up to the air, the bacteria is killed. Hence the importance of removing the scabs.
 
Don't disregard what your owner told you out of hand, it can clear by itself easily.
If you look at any unhandled horses that are out all winter as a herd, either turned away youngsters or even wild ponies, most of them will have mud fever at some time. Without it being touched, yes, it does go away in its own time, usually from start to finish will be about two months, depending on whether weather conditions of course. Because they are always moving around, the joints don't stiffen up for the scabs to set solid as they can do if the horse is stabled. It's quite rare for it to make them (the unhandled ones) lame too in my experience. As long as the horse is healthy in itself, particularly the condition of the skin so it can re generate itself, then the scabs will have rubbed off themselves due to the hair regrowing underneath so I wouldn't be too bothered about them but because most of you have riding horses which you want to use, then you need to keep on top of it.
It also depends to a certain extent which soil you have and the conditions it causes as to how you handle it. With our soil here, I've found the very best way is to let the mud dry, brush off and then smother with Protocon or zinc and castor oil and don't PICK at the scabs but use a gentle circular massaging which will gradually - and more importantly, gently, rub the scabs off when they are ready. There is no way that here, I would ever wash the legs off, it makes them worse but for some of you, you might be able to get away with it.
 
[ QUOTE ]
don't PICK at the scabs but use a gentle circular massaging which will gradually - and more importantly, gently, rub the scabs off when they are ready.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thats what i would do, i wouldn't just drive right in and pick them off but rub them until it breaks off. It makes me cringe anyway if i had to pick any kind of scab!
crazy.gif
crazy.gif
 
Having seen a horse at our yard get dreadful lymphangitis as a follow on from mud fever we do everything to prevent it.

If the horse gets mud fever the best thing to do is cover the scabs in Sudocrem, udder cream or similar. Wrap the leg in cling film and then pop a bandage or leg wrap over the top. Leave for a few hours, and then you will gently be able to wipe the scabs away without causing any discomfort to the horse.

We don't ever hose legs off, we use Thermatex leg wraps and when the mud is dry and we brush it off. Touch wood ours have never had mud fever, whereas lots of horses where the owners do hose every night do.
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
don't PICK at the scabs but use a gentle circular massaging which will gradually - and more importantly, gently, rub the scabs off when they are ready.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thats what i would do, i wouldn't just drive right in and pick them off but rub them until it breaks off. It makes me cringe anyway if i had to pick any kind of scab!
crazy.gif
crazy.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

Not being pernickety (and I might have read your post wrongly!) but can I suggest you don't rub them UNTIL it breaks off because that could make the horse sore; they should just roll off if they're ready. If it's not ready to come off then, don't carry on rubbing then; wait until the next day and try again.
 
don't worry you are not being picky! you're just helping, which isn't a bad thing
grin.gif


what i should have added, was that i would only get the scabs off when they are soft.......if i was going at the scabs and it was pulling at the skin i would leave them.

that is probably why he was sore and bled when the old sharer picked them off
frown.gif
 
Beau had what someone said looked like Mud fever, so I washed his legs and gave them a gentle scrub with a body brush and shampoo for greasy horses - then dried them really well. The next day his legs felt a bit 'crusty' stuck on some baby oil and rubbed it in and the scabs/hard skin started to come off. He got baby oil massaged in daily - loads of it. And within about 2 weeks anything scab like or raw was gone. He now jsut gets protective Salve on them. Also found that vinegar seems to work on scabby/rough bits - but I dont know why - I was 'advised' to put some on when I spotted a raw bit one day.
 
I agree I think hosing makes the legs worse. It removes the horses natural oil/ barrier from their coat and makes mud fever more likely. I let the mud dry and brush off and my horse is one of few on my yard who has not yet had mud fever.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top