Puffy legs and mud fever!

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Ok well i got my mare in August, she is a gypsy cob. In the past she has been fully clipped, hogged and no feathers. When i got her these were in the process of growing back. Her legs were massive, just big chunky cob legs .Anyway about a month ago I clipped her again, took her feathers off and hogged her again, this made her legs look very small!. To get to the point basically she goes out everyday and comes in at night, I oil her legs up then leave the mud on, then in the morning her legs are lovey and clean and i apply more oil. Tonight i decided to give her legs a really good clean . While hosing them i saw the dreaded scabs. I have cleaned and died them and applied some womb cream till i can get something better for her tomorrow. First off i would like to ask whats the best way to PREVENT it in the first place. I thought I was doing an ok job :( obviously not. Secondly whats the best way for me to treat it, shall i leave her in now for a few days with clean dry legs ? I know i need to get the scabs off. And thirdly , her feathers as now growing back , and this is making her legs looks large again . A few people on my yard have mentioned how swollen and sore they look! I know if i just clipped them again they would look tiny but now im not so sure and I'm worried about them. I have a picture of her legs with the feathers but I don't know how to post it on here . I am really worried . shes not lame and loves her hacks etc but i just thought her chunky legs were part of her breed. Thanks in advance xx
 
Tbh you will get as many different answers on here as there are posters! In 30 years I never had to treat mud fever until this winter when the new horse arrived so this is what worked for him:
His mud fever was quite nasty so first off I washed thoroughly with muddy buddy scrub,left on for 10 mins then rinsed with an iodine and water mix. Then dried, then plastered in sudocrem and wrapped in clingflim then vetwrap. Kept him in, and removed after 48 hours. This dissolved the scabs. I then kept his legs clean and dry for another 48 hours on hard standing, but let them open to the air.
He now goes out plastered in muddy buddy grease, although anything water resistant will work.
Some people will say use nizoral, I havent tried it as mine has cleared with the above but if might be worth a try. I would definitely clip though. If you are washing legs you must get them completely dry afterwards, use kitchen towel, a hairdryer, whatever. Try not to wash too often though, thorough grooming dried mud us better once you have it under control. Also review her diet, she may have a deficiency somewhere.
 
I agree about not picking the scabs off. And the clingfilm treatment can reallywork.

However if she's sore and her legs are puffy, you may need to get some antibiotics from your get.
 
Mmmm think you need to ask the vet to have a look at this TBH, just to be sure.

You say you are applying "oil"........ is this Pig Oil??? Coz sometimes this can cause an allergic reaction, esp when applied with Sulphur. A lot of people on forums and FB trot out the standard advice of "pig oil and sulphur" - but I've seen the damage it can do, it can be very very caustic and cause a nasty red, hot, rash on legs, especially white hair with pink skin underneath.

My trad cob can tolerate pig oil on its own and/or with a few drops of tea tree and/or Neem in it, BUT not with sulphur mixed in.

But think that you need to ask the vet to have a look at yours in the first instance TBH.
 
My TB mare has suffered terribly with mud fever this year. I was using heel to hoof but to be honest I don't think it was much cop.

I used 'clean round' for horses to clean with rather than hibiscrub as it is better for a sensitive horse like her. Her leg was big,fat and hot when the infection was at it worse. I just kept cleaning and wiping away scabs when possible, they have all come off and now i am treating with antibiotic creams and they are looking 100%. Don't force the scabs off but they need to come off to make treating the infection efficient. Best to keep her in and keep her legs dry and clean in my opinion
 
I find that stabling for a few days willl stabilise the condition, always make sure you get the legs dry overnight, use wraps [easy] or wooly bandages overnight every night.
Do not wash the legs when bringing in if you can avoid it, every horse in the yard with mud fever will have an an owner who does this. Hibiscrub will kill all skin bacteria, the good and the bad, so it is not great for this condition, it must be weak never strong.
 
To improve skin health feed 100gms micronised linseed and a full mineral supplement. This can be a serious condition requiring vet intervention, if you are not sure about it, then call the vet and ask them to explain what to look for, there is always something a vet can do at the same time even if it needs no special treatment.
 
I had a horrible experience with mud fever and associated cellulitis with Kali for a good three/four months one winter and the ONLY thing that worked (and we tried everything - oral antibiotics (twice), flammazine, wrapping in cling film, not wrapping in cling film, keeping him in and working him from his stable) was a hefty dose of Cobactan (an injectable antibiotic).

Now I never hose muddy legs off - I leave the mud to dry and brush off as best I can. I stay on top of any teeny, tiny little cuts and treat them as soon as I see them - a little hibiscrub, and then something topical and antibacterial that also acts as a barrier when he goes out. I also don't bandage his legs unless they are clean and dry - bacteria just loves a dark, warm, moist environment. Yes, he gets cankles, but I'd rather that (and they go down once he starts moving/working anyway) than chronic cellulitis.

I also second those who recommend feeding linseed - it's great for promoting good skin/horn, etc. health.

P
 
Nizoral shampoo is your friend.

You can buy it from the chemists - dilute with hand hot water, lather up well into the hair - leave 10 - 20 mins then rinse off. If you use a towelling face cloth ot will help dislodge any scabs ready to come off - don't pick!

Usually it only takes a couple of washes for the Mud Fever to go completely. Just make sure that you wash well beyond the affected area as mud fever has a habit of creeping away from the original site.
 
Hi, I had the same problem when I first got my lad. Washed and soaked scabs with Hibiscrub etc. Managed to remove the worse of it but couldn't quite shift the swelling and final scabs, partly because I think he'd had it for so long before I got him. Got the vet out who gave me her special potion, flamazine with some antibiotic/steroid and other stuff in it. Luckily it's mid way up his cannon bone so stays dry when I clean it. Vet said I was doing everything right but sometime these things are just hard to shift!

How long do you thing the horse has had it?
 
HenleyRider said:
Hi, I had the same problem when I first got my lad. Washed and soaked scabs with Hibiscrub etc. Managed to remove the worse of it but couldn't quite shift the swelling and final scabs, partly because I think he'd had it for so long before I got him. Got the vet out who gave me her special potion, flamazine with some antibiotic/steroid and other stuff in it. Luckily it's mid way up his cannon bone so stays dry when I clean it. Vet said I was doing everything right but sometime these things are just hard to shift!

How long do you thing the horse has had it?
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I too used to use the Flamozine/anti-biotic/steroid potion on my boy's legs - it was the only product that really worked when he had a flare up. Pig oil & sulphur blistered him, as did Sudocrem. For day to day care, when his legs weren't too bad, I used Eucerin lotion with 10% urea (it's an over-the-counter product for eczema/psoriasis in humans).
 
B
Cobbytype said:
I too used to use the Flamozine/anti-biotic/steroid potion on my boy's legs - it was the only product that really worked when he had a flare up. Pig oil & sulphur blistered him, as did Sudocrem. For day to day care, when his legs weren't too bad, I used Eucerin lotion with 10% urea (it's an over-the-counter product for eczema/psoriasis in humans).
Click to expand...

Flamazine is great, but expensive. The Nizerol is so quick and easy it makes treating Mudfever a breeze.
 
Only thing that has seemed to work on my oldie is Imaverol - almost immediately stopped it spreading and then cleared it, took the whole bottle though. I clipped legs too - easier to keep dry and get scabs off if needed. I softened scabs with germoline before removing. My other horse (not mud fever related) had a bad reaction to pig oil and sulpher - huge swollen legs, and lumps on neck after applying to mane area for repelling mites.
 
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