So how has she done this?!

[chaps89]

Slightly grim post so apologies in advance.
Grooming madam this morning, went to lift her tail and it felt like it was stuck o her bottom.
Looked a bit closer and she has some sort of sore/her skin is peeling under her dock and around the top of her anus. And it was indeed all stuck together.
Very gently lifted her tail away and I've cleaned it best I can with cooled boiled water with some salt in and put some aloe Vera gel on. Is there anything else I should do?
I've no idea how it's happened or what it is - she's not been rubbing her bottom, she's up to date on worming.
It definitely wasn't there on Sunday as she had a really thorough groom and the bottom of her tail washed. I did then very loosely plait the bottom of the tail Sunday/Monday whilst it was wet but took the plait out morning and night for a bit so really don't think it was that.
I did tail pulls and carrot stretches on Tuesday and I didn't notice it then so it's been in the last 48 hours?
Icky photo:

 

[Pearlsasinger]

Poor girl! Does she normally lift her tail out of the way when weeing/pooing? Could it be that for some reason she hasn't been lifting the tail up sufficiently? I think I would put some Flamazine on it - that usually works a treat.

 

[SEL]

It could be a urine burn - you haven't changed rugs have you? For some reason my mare doesn't lift up her tail properly in her 50g rug and it ends up disgusting because she pees everywhere when its on.

 

[PapaverFollis]

Ouch! It's quite high up to get hit by urine? Unless she hasnt moved her tail at all and its kibd of squished it upwards? Has the fillet string got caught up and rubbed somehow? I like Filterbac for everything. Everyone has their favourite thing though. But it's a really odd place and to happen so quickly.

 

[PapaverFollis]

Has it been windy? As her rug blown up at the back and been held in place by the fillet string right under her tail?

 

[chaps89]

Poor girl indeed.
It seems too high up for a urine burn? Her droppings are all normal, no mess in her tail and the few times I've seen her do a dropping recently she's lifted her tail fine. She doesn't lift her tail great when worked but that's fairly normal for her. Maybe sweat? She's not been worked very hard lately or sweated anywhere else though.
She's still naked at the moment so not rug related.
I don't have flamizine, is it available over the counter?
I have aloe vera, sudocrem or Vaseline to hand and a chemist nearby if there's anything else that might be better.
She was, unsurprisingly, a bit fidgety when I cleaned her up so will have another go later when someone can be at her head with a distraction. I managed to get quite alot of the peeling skin off but it was all very pink and sore looking!
Took her temperature to be on the safe side and that was ok and she seemed bright and perky in herself.

 

[dixie]

Is she rubbing or itchy at all - is so, it could be pin worms.

 

[chaps89]

I wondered that but she's up to date on worming and I haven't seen her itching at all. The hairs on the top of the tail aren't broken or messy either, which I'd expect them to be if she was rubbing?
I'm genuinely quite baffled! I really wouldn't have known it was there if I hadn't actually lifted her tail.

 

[SEL]

Udder cream is helpful if its easier to get hold of - cheap and soothing!

 

[whiteflower]

I've had similar with one that had pin worm. He was scratching himself on the 'shelf' at the edge of the stable, no damage to to tail hair or bottom just under the tail where it sat on the shelf. Pin worm can be very difficult to get rid of even if you have wormed recently and you need to use the right wormer so may be worth sending a sample off for testing just to rule that out

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I agree that udder cream is useful. I think Flamazine is POM from vet but you might be able to get silver cream from a tack shop.

I reminds me a bit of the eczema like skin problem that my Draft mare had has a reaction to Brewer's Yeast. Has she eaten anything new, or had increased amounts of anything?

 

[Pinkvboots]

That looks like a rub to me one of mine did similar travelling home in the horse box once, his only ever done it once never has happened again I washed it and put antiseptic on it and it healed within a few day's

 

[chaps89]

I will go on a tack shop jaunt tomorrow morning then for udder cream
She could have maybe rubbed along the top of the stable door (it's actually a field shelter so has a gate), it's the only horizontal surface I can think of that she could have rubbed on and I'm not sure the corner of the field shelter in the field could have done it, maybe I guess.

Please excuse my ignorance but I thought pinworm was also usually associated with a sticky discharge and excessive rubbing? I will absolutely bear it in mind though.

Absolutely no change in diet etc - we moved yards 3 weeks ago but there's been no other signs of issues? (Appreciate change in routine and hay supplier is a change but I'd have maybe expected to see something before now or for it to manifest differently to this? I bought some of our previous hay and water with us to move over with over the space of a week which we did. Her token gesture feed for supplements etc is unchanged though. She did start a new tub of equimins advance at the weekend if that could be linked? Feel like that might be clutching at straws a bit though!)

I will continue to keep an eye on it and clean it- if for any reason it gets worse or doesn't clear up then I'll ask the vet to take a look but I'm not that concerned at this point in time.

 

[ester]

Frank has done this sometimes though usually in summer iirc, it tends to be sweat/friction burn based though I'm never entirely sure how as he doesn't rub either. He tends to start with cracking either side of the tail head which will then spread if not spotted quickly. - I got used to spotting just the loss of skin pigment before any soreness.
Sudocreme always sorted it for us.

 

[Gloi]

Did she have a tail bandage on a week or two ago? It could possibly be damage from that where it is now healing and and the damaged skin now peeling off.

 

[chaps89]

Nope, no tail bandage. She had a Velcro tail guard on when we moved yards but it was a 10 minute journey so not on long at all and only on quite loose.
However she does wear a hi vis tail thing for hacking but again not on for long or overly tight? We hacked yesterday and I didn't notice anything then. So maybe?

Definitely no signs of it previously although I admit I don't check it overly closely I guess - I will be checking it more thoroughly and often now though I have to say!

 

[Rowreach]

Nope, no tail bandage. She had a Velcro tail guard on when we moved yards but it was a 10 minute journey so not on long at all and only on quite loose.
However she does wear a hi vis tail thing for hacking but again not on for long or overly tight? We hacked yesterday and I didn't notice anything then. So maybe?

Definitely no signs of it previously although I admit I don't check it overly closely I guess - I will be checking it more thoroughly and often now though I have to say!

It does look like a pressure sore - or a reaction to something - have you washed the hi viz thing recently, or is there a crease in it or anything? I'm sure a couple of days of treatment and it will be fine, but it would be far better if you could work out how it happened.

 

[ester]

fwiw F used to get his going nowhere, wearing nothing. It was bizarre!

 

[chaps89]

It was washed a couple of weeks ago along with everything else. No difference in detergent and I always do an extra rinse. And I've used it plenty between now and then.
It's sore underneath her dock on her actual bottom as well though which wouldn't tie in with it rubbing or a pressure sore? Admittedly the underneath of her dock is the sorest part.
I'd definitely like to work out what it is if I can but I'm genuinely a bit stumped as nothing obvious is springing to mind at all!
Ester - She can join Frank in the bizarre club if we can't work it out then! As seemingly done going nowhere doing nothing too 🤔

 

[Rowreach]

You'll probably find it never happens again and in years to come you'll still be wondering

 

[PapaverFollis]

Both mine got similar peeling skin about 10 days to a fortnight after their journey up here... not on their docks but on their bums where they will have lent back while on the wagon. Not as sore looking but just largish patches of skin flaking away. But they were on the wagon for about 14 hours in the end so it's a bit different... but pressure sore would be on my list of possible.

 

[chaps89]

I do hope it doesn't happen again. I feel like a bad mummy that something I've done may have caused it.
Certainly I know I'll be much more vigilant checking her all over anyway as it shows how easily these things can happen.
I'll let you all know how we go anyway

 

[chaps89]

Just an update - it seems to be getting better. The underside of her dock still looks sore in places but nothing like it did. I've just been cleaning with cooled boiled water and aloe Vera gel (I was worried bedding might stick to anything sticky like sudocrem and then cause more problems)
The physio is out on Thursday so I'll get her to check there's nothing physical going on in any other way that would mean she's not using her tail properly or something.