Severe bout of Mud fever at wits end!!

[dyl]

Hi wondered if anyone could help me im at my wits end. my horse, she has had mud fever since august. We have tried every product available udder cream, tee tree cream, antibacterial, antifungal, hibiscrub etc we have called the vet out and he prescribed us with some antibiotics which made a slight difference however once she came off them it came back. the vet also gave me some cream which they make up themselves but same again worked slightly.

everytime we get on top of an area and it clears up it just spreads aroung the area or higher. we have been keeping her in and off the grass however, she is so fed up we have started putting her out when the weather is dry. She is intermittently lame on it depending on the swelling. we remove the scabs everyday but she is quite fed up with it now, as she has it on all 4 legs around the fetlock and canon.

if anyone has any ideas need it clearing up before winter really

 

[Solstar]

i am having this problem too.
currently, this is what is working-
-sol is in at night, so when he is bought in, his legs are washed with cold water, and a shampoo called 'malaceticEQ' it is from the vets and costs 12 pounds a bottle (it has boric and acetic acid in) this is left on for 10 mins and then it is rinsed off. i dry this with a towel, a clean one everyday, and the scabs literally fall off. the shampoo makes his skin warm-this is the acid 'working'.
-then, i plaster a cream on, again from the vets, called 'flamazine'. this is the cream they use on burn patients injuries, it soothes, kills the infection and generally does a good job of clearing the infection, but it must go on the actual wound that is under the scabs.
-sols legs are then bandaged for the night.
-in the morning, i put equimins mud guard barrier cream on- loads of it.
-this cycle is repeated everyday. its tedious, but so far, so good. sol now only has one scabby leg, he previously had 3.
at the beginning of every week, i give his pasterns and heels a good squirt of babyoil- this helps make an almost water repellent barrier on them.
oh, and he goes out in the only mud free paddock on the yard, and doesnt go out if the land is excessively wet- but then he doesnt like been out anyway.
i hope this helps, good luck.

 

[dyl]

ah yes sounds very similar!

we have just got some cream off the vets which they mix up themselves. we have also got her some trimedizine antibiotics to help her out!!!

I will enquire about that cream and shampoo, baby oil is a very good suggestion which i havent thought of. she is costing us a fortune in vets bill ..... bit fed up with it to be honest + the fact i can not afford all these bills.

thanks for the advice

 

[custard]

Has the vet taken a swab? If not ask the vet for a specimen pot and a swab from the surgery. Gently remove one of the scabs and stick it in the pot, then use the swab to get a sample of the gunge underneath.

My old mare had this once, turned out it wasn't the bug that causes mudfever but one called Pseudomonas (sp?). Apparently it lives on the skin anyway but is very resistant to antibiotics and so once all the other nasties have been killed off it gets a grip and hey presto you have another infection that looks very similar. Having a culture done isn't all that expensive especially if you get the sample yourself and worth a go before you shell out on any more treatment.

 

[Solstar]

i know, the cost is terrible! solos got so bad that he ended up with cellulitis, that was another 300 quids worth of vets bills, and another course of trimedizine antibiotics. if shes fussy about eating her feed with them in, make it into a paste and then put it in an old wormer syringe and then squirt it into her mouth- i had to do this!

 

[AmyMay]

I see that you have used lots of creams - which often don't work as they don't help with healing, or act as a barrier.

The one thing we have found to be absolutely 110% the best is udder salve. It promotes healing, and gives fantastic protection in even the wettest weather.

 

[milliepup]

How long were the courses of antibiotics? I have a mare that got it bad in Aug this year and tried everything but ended up getting the vet. A 7 day course of Dupratrim and twice daily washing with hibiscrub then sudocream and it cleared up quickly. She was very bad and like you ended up lame due to the swelling. Touch wood it hasn't come back.
Maybe she needs a different antibiotic and a longer course so it has a chance to clear completly.
Good luck.