RINGWORM - Can you help?

[johnboy]

Hi, my mare on her left shoulder had a small rash, bumpy under skin which then broke through the skin & was a little crusty! She is out alone at present but suspect COULD be ringworm. Bit freaked out at the moment, if it IS ringworm things I've researched look scary.
Have you any experience with ringworm? Anyone have any recommended products they have used or home made remedies worth ago. Thanking you in advance for any suggestions.x

 

[Daisychain]

Get some good purple spray with the anti fungal agent in it, and spray with that twice a day, dont brush it and spread it, and keep away from the others!

 

[kirsty 1]

dont be scared i work in a racing yard and every year when we get the babies in they all seem to get it at some point just make sur eyou dont use other horses brushes on ur horse and wash any rugs they had on as the fungus can lay dormant we use canasten cream from over the counter at the chemist works like a dream

 

[Spinal Tap]

My mare had it in June. My advice is get the vet asap & get some antifungal treatment off them for the horse - I was given Imaverol for P. My vet didn't bother doing a skin scraping because it takes as long to culture the fungus as it does to treat the horse, and you can get false negatives anyway. I got some Virkon off the vet and washed down the stable walls & floor (had to chuck away the bedding). I soaked all tack that had been near P in virkon and washed my horsey clothing at 60 degrees or soaked in virkon. I rinsed all her buckets/skips out with boiling water. A couple of the horses that P gets turned out with also had lesions so all of her herd were treated with Imaverol before they were allowed out again - that was good because it meant she didn't need to be isolated.

Once treatment started P didn't develop any new lesions apart from some very tiny ones on her back which didn't get to anything like the size of her original ones. In just over a week she was starting to heal, I didn't take her anywhere until 3 weeks after the last lesion appeared on vets advice. I called the vet on 29 June & she was out & about competing again on 24 July so we did pretty well considering - it was nothing like the nightmare I thought it would be

Here is what her lesions looked like if it's any help - they first appeared as raised bumps & then the fur and top layer of skin sloughed off to leave this

She almost certainly caught it off some scabby calves at the farm

 

[johnboy]

Get some good purple spray with the anti fungal agent in it, and spray with that twice a day, dont brush it and spread it, and keep away from the others!

Thank You - appreciate your comment.

 

[ofcourseyoucan]

wash the horse in imaverol (POM) and wash all his stuff in vircon e.keep him separate from others, and all his stuff separate from others. his tack, grooming kit headcollar rope immerse in virkon e and keep seperate. wash his stable and fencing in strong virkon e. you can work him lightly but if you work him hard, make him stress he will be covered in lesions.. you could get grisolV granules to add to his feed if it is confirmed that it is ringworm. sunlight is your best friend.

 

[johnboy]

dont be scared i work in a racing yard and every year when we get the babies in they all seem to get it at some point just make sur eyou dont use other horses brushes on ur horse and wash any rugs they had on as the fungus can lay dormant we use canasten cream from over the counter at the chemist works like a dream

Feelin better now! Your brain goes into panic mode when you love them so much, you sound very calm |& collected thank you for sharing your knowledge.

 

[johnboy]

Pardon the pun - but spot on!! Well Done, your pics have really helped (what a great way of sharing info) Her sores are closer together but identical, already put the vet on speed dial for tomorrow. H & H is brilliant, its reassuring to know 'friends' are there when we all need help. Cheers.x

 

[kickandshout]

my horse had exactly the same as photos posted here just as the fields were being harvested they were bites. OK my horse is super sensitive but they were the same they didn't spread and they've cleared up.
my horse has had ringworm when he arrived in the UK and it let very diff scars it usually circular ( polo shape) not a spot.
try not to worry and if you treat it as it is ringworm then you're covered.

 

[Tnavas]

Hi - don't stress too much - it is easily treatable so long as you are vigilant. It's not the dreaded afliction it was a few decades ago.

Go to the chemist and buy a bottle of Nizeral preferably 2%. Dilute with warm water and work well into her coat, especially over affected areas and all over and leave to dry. Wash the affected areas preferably twice daily with the shampoo making sure that you cover at least double the affected area. Riingworm spores explode outwards making the area bigger each time.

Wash covers with Nizeral or at least rinse with Canestan In Wash liquid to kill fungus in the covers. Same for yoour grooming kit, saddle blankets, girths and tack. In the past I've made a solution of the Nizeral in a bucket with tepid water and dunked my bridle and headcollars in it after they have been used. To make keeping covers clean putting a thin summer sheet under her autumn covers will help as they are easier to wash.

Ringworm can be passed on to humans so it's advisable to have a second bottle of Nizeral shampoo and wash yourself all over with it several times a week until your horse is free of any new patches. My kitten gave me a lovely Xmas present one year of several patches of ringworm - it itches like crazy but the Nizeral knocked it on the head really fast.

 

[Spinal Tap]

my horse had exactly the same as photos posted here just as the fields were being harvested they were bites. OK my horse is super sensitive but they were the same they didn't spread and they've cleared up.
my horse has had ringworm when he arrived in the UK and it let very diff scars it usually circular ( polo shape) not a spot.
try not to worry and if you treat it as it is ringworm then you're covered.

My YO tried to convince me that P's lesions were bites but when I saw the scabby calves, and realised there were other horses with lesions (one of the other horses has a lesion on her face that looked exactly like the scabby calves), I was very dubious about the bite theory. What swung it for me was when I got a UV light source and shone it on the lesions, & I could see them glowing - that is a characteristic of ringworm - so even though P was never tested by the vet, I'm 100% sure it was ringworm

 

[Tnavas]

If you have calves it's more than likely ringworm - typical carriers

 

[johnboy]

Thank you everyone!!

 

[brucea]

And make sure that you're feeding a good mineral supplement that gives adequate zinc.

That will relly help

 

[Spinal Tap]

Interesting - I feed my mare a human zinc supplement (Boots zinc capsules, 1 a day), she has always been prone to skin issues & her Bowen therapist advised supplementing her. I wonder if this helped her get over the ringworm so quickly

 

[mcnaughty]

Only thing I would add is be careful yourself! Extremely contageous and you do not want to catch it too!

Keep the horse away from everything else until clear, wash everything (tack, rugs) and completely clean out the stable and scrub with Jays Fluid or similar and creosote all woodwork in stable, outside stable and fencing too.

My horses managed to catch this twice and it is a total pain in the arris - oh and if you are thinking of clipping do it before you have to scrub and dry off a hairy monster!!

 

[ImogenBurrows]

...you could get grisolV granules to add to his feed if it is confirmed that it is ringworm.

Wow, I'm impressed by all the accurate advice on this thread. I would second it all.

My only comment to add would be that it is rare to need GrisolV granules, that have been mentioned. I have used them is a big yard breakout problem when either washing all horses, rugs, tack etc etc is never going to get done, or when my initial treatment has not worked (fortunately that's not that common!!)

I would just remind you that if GrisolV (or Equifulvin) granules are used, women of child bearing age should not handle them, predominantly this is really only a problem for pregnant women. Also you should use a mask a gloves....

Anyway, all the advice has been so good, you'll have sorted the problem and are v unlikely to use them!!!

Imogen