Toothpaste experts please......

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Triskar

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My 5 year old had a small round hairless discoloured patch on his nose last year, which the vet said not to worry about. This year, he said it was an occult sarcoid and to put toothpaste on it, because we couldn't use Liverpool cream at this time of the year due to flies, which I have been doing for 2 weeks now. The patch has now changed in that from being black with a few slightly raised bumps it now has raised and sore looking pink patches where the toothpaste has been sticking. I originally started picking the toothpaste off, but he resents that, so I've just been adding more toothpaste and just pulling off the flaking bits whenever the opportunity presents, then adding more toothpaste. He's just rubbed his face in the haynet, and pulled all the toothpaste off, and one of the pink patches has a tiny pinprick of blood in the centre, although this could be a prickle from the hay, I suppose.

Since all the vet said was to put toothpaste on it, I don't know how long I should be putting the toothpaste on for - I've read on other threads that the toothpaste only sticks to the sarcoid, so do I keep putting toothpaste on until the skin underneath is black again, or what? And should I persist with picking it off, or just wait until he knocks it off again?

Help please!
 
Well that's a helpful reply. Op have you tried ringing the vet to ask for more advice? When I started putting toothpaste on my horses sarcoid the vet didn't think it would do anything other than act as a barrier cream but he said it wouldn't do any harm either.
 
Well, helpful replies would be better, AmyMay. I was asking for opinions from people that had used toothpaste, and might have some useful input. It was administered under veterinary advice, as I stated. It hasn't reacted enough yet for me to get the vet out to have another look at it - maybe I should give it another week or so?
 
Okey dokey.

I'd be inclined to leave it absolutely well alone in that case. And follow up with some advice from your vet.

My comment was based on the fact that as you hadn't indicated a change in it prior to applying the toothpaste it would most likely have been better left well alone.
 
I'm not an expert but have been using toothpaste on my horse's sarcoids (also under vet advice) for about a month now. I've not been picking any off - just slapping fresh on every day.

One dropped off after 3 days and the other two are shrivelling and shrinking in at the edges on a daily basis - I have lots of photos on another thread in this section if you're interested in seeing the progression and comparing to yours to see if the reaction is "normal".
 
Thanks KaiserChief - I've looked at all the other threads, but couldn't find any occult sarcoids or anything that looked like his. There isn't really anything to drop off as yet. I started just adding layers of toothpaste, but I read on one of the other threads about picking the toothpaste off and it sticking just to the sarcoid. I'll go back to just layering it on, because it does keep the flies from investigating it.

The toothpaste is definitely having an effect, and it may be that it is drawing the sarcoid out, which is why it has pink patches. It's really odd, because between the pink there's still black skin. I think I'll photograph it this evening before I slap more toothpaste on - I can always send the photo to the surgery to ask if it's progressing the way they expect. I think it's because he's so warm and itchy, even though they are in during the day, that he's rubbing his face on the haynet and knocking the toothpaste off - it was staying on all right when I first started doing it.
 
Not being a smart arse weebarney. I think it would be an excellent idea for the op to speak to the vet again, and perhaps discuss the wisdom of starting a treatment on an occult sarcoid that was inactive - and which now shows signs of the opposite.
 
I only pick off the bits that come away easily. If it's quite well stuck I leave it and just stick more on top. My horse has a patch on his chest that sounds a bit like yours-black skin, no hair and a couple of tiny pinkish bits that some times bleed a pinprick.

I'm in the fourth week now and that sarcoid, although it seemed to start doing something really early on, has been overtaken by the progress of the others and is remaining static. I wonder if the bigger ones absorb more, so reduce faster?

Next update is Friday.
 
This is the size and location of the sarcoid


and this is the sarcoid itself


Sorry the photos aren't very good - I tried to use the zoom but it was difficult to keep him still - he's very nosy.

This evening it looked a lot less swollen, and more like when you've picked the scab off a scratch a bit too soon, so that most of the area is new pink flesh, but sometimes the deepest bit is still a tiny bit open. I'm now thinking that the sarcoid really wasn't very deep, and the toothpaste has lifted it off. There's still a chunk of toothpaste a bit below the main part, so I've sent him out covered in toothpaste again. I'm going to persist with the toothpaste until the weekend (although it seems like he can wipe it off this new pink bit really easily, so it only sticks to the one bit that hasn't peeled off yet), because if nothing else, it keeps the flies away.

I'll keep you updated, but I was quite encouraged this evening!
 
No, I won't pick at it again! I think that he'll knock the last bit off when it's ready to come off, anyway. I've decided that it's toothpaste or nothing on it now...
 
I've been using it on my horses occult ones as they started growing. The one seems to have been peeled away with the toothpaste leaving behind a sore patch of pink/red skin. So I had to put sudocrem on it. Reddness has now gone and it seems to have healed nicely. Just waiting to see if the hair grows back now
 
Thank you so much Soulfull - I was a bit concerned about the pink skin - it's so nice to hear that your horse has healed nicely now. I hadn't really thought about the hair growing back - I do hope it does!
 
Soulfull, have you seen the report on the use of Aciclovir cream, seems from the study which you can find on google with 'sarcoid aciclovir' that it is also very effective against sarcoids, when I mentioned trying it on our pony our vet said to give it a try.
It seems particularly effective when the sarcoid is not to thick, so may work well once the toothpaste has done it's job of exfoliating the area.
 
Soulfull, that is great news, hopefully we will have a successful outcome, just waiting for delivery of the 'Crest Original:)
 
I know this is nothing to do with toothpaste, but my vet recommended Sarc-Ex. Have only been feeding it for 2 weeks so cant report either way yet!
 
I'm really curious about this - one of mine had a flat-ish dormant sarcoid, until he bit it because of the flies, now it has developed an angry bulge which the flies are loving. I'm using camerosa on it, but it doesn't last long, and doesn't seem to make much difference.

Which toothpaste works best?
 
I'm using crest. It's not the original as I couldnt get any. It's working anyway. Had nearly a week off applying it tho as I had bathed him and had two dressage competitions, being black it stands out a mile lol
I will be starting again tonight
 
This is the sarcoid today

I'm just putting acyclovir cream on it at the moment - I think that the toothpaste removed the various parts of the occult sarcoid when the toothpaste came off (or was rubbed off!). Soulfull do you think that this is okay as a strategy, or should I go back to applying toothpaste? The pink bits are shrinking, and, apart from the odd bits of flaking skin, it feels quite smooth - when the occult sarcoid was there, it had tiny bumps in it.

He had another discoloured patch on his neck that looked the same as this sarcoid did last year - just a darker patch of coat, so I've been rubbing the acyclovir cream into that as well.

MontysMum - I used Crest original, because people on here said it was best, but my vet recommended Morrisons own fluoride toothpaste. I think you just go for the cheapest brand with the most fluoride!
 
Tbh I'm not sure. I started putting sudocrem on it as it went very sore. However now it's all healing there is a suspicious mark same size and shape as original sarcoid
Others are continuing to peel off but these are different so I am hoping the outcome will be better
 
Update on my toothpaste v sarcoid thread.....

Here are the latest photos:





I applied toothpaste until it came off/was rubbed off. It only seemed to stick to the sarcoid, and when it came off it revealed fresh pink skin underneath. I reapplied the toothpaste once the skin had turned black again; I did this for about 4 goes until there was nothing for the toothpaste to stick to. When I had fresh pink skin, I applied acyclovir cream well rubbed in, and I've continued to do this (the Austrian study was for 6 months, so I'm keeping going!)

He had another dark patch on his neck, that looked the same as this sarcoid a year ago. I've just applied acyclovir cream to this, and did it for almost 3 months, until I couldn't tell where to apply it any more, since the skin and hair had all reverted to the same colour and texture and length as the rest.

Incidentally you can get acyclovir cream from a Thai supplier on Amazon one hell of a lot cheaper than buying in a UK chemist - bigger tubes, too.
 
Hi Triskar, my horse had an occult sarcoid in exactly the same place as yours, I left it alone for some time, but when he started rubbing it on the stable door frame it began to change and bleed. I started putting Crest on it, it looked fairly grim, had a lump on it which was often bleeding through self trauma, but I persevered for about 3 months. At first there was no improvement, it got worse, bleeding and sore, the toothpaste acted as a barrier from the flies and gradually he rubbed it less. It now looks pretty much the same as your last pic, the area has healed and the skin is slightly uneven, but I am so relieved.
 
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