Very itchy scabby dock

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catherine22

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My mare had very itchy patches on her skin at the start of the year, no idea what caused it or what eventually made it go. It used to fluctuate and some days it would be fine and others she would literally throw herself at you to scratch her.
Her skin has been fine now for about 2 months, no scabbyness or itching, the one bit that is still being affected really badly is her dock and the last few days it has got really bad. she will turn her bum on you as soon as you walk in the field so that you can scratch her. Vets aren't sure what caused it originally but she has been on a vit B suppliment to help her skin, which it has but not her dock, and I have no idea what I can do to help her. Going to phone vets again in the morning and see if they have any new ideas. Hibi scrubbing doesn't seem to help. using tea tree spray doesn't seem to help and I have now run out of ideas.
Help please!!!
 
I wouldn't use hibiscrub on sensitive skin - my vet recommends products for babies instead as they're less irritating.

I'm assuming that you can't see any eggs in the dock then? Is she on a worming programme, any new horses to the field, change in feed etc?
 
This may or may not help, a gelding on our yard took to holding tails in his mouth quite firmly, not biting but did break the skin when the recipient objected, causing horrendous scabs on more than one tail, as the wounds scabbed over they became itchy.
We stopped him by using baby oil on tails which he didn't like the taste of, the oil also softened the scabs making them easier to remove, you may have two seperate issues here, I hadn't seen this behaviour before
 
No eggs, she was pramox'ed in march and is worm counted clear the rest of the time, no change in feed, shes a really good doer so only gets a tiny amount of happy hoof to have her suppliment in, no new horses, same field
we tried hibiscrub to try and kill off anything that could be there, now she just gets it washed in in baby shampoo but still no difference. luckily her field is electrifyed otherwise i think she'd have no tail left
since she became itchy she has been asking my gelding to groom her around her dock, but the itching came first, as he has had a couple of grazes under his tail where she has obviously done it back to him as well
 
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If all your other serious bases have been covered, which it seems they have been, try applying Listerine (the "original" yellow formula) to her dock, rubbing a fair quantity of it really well into the hair and skin. It's an old "farmer's remedy" and I presume it works because of its anti-bacterial properties, but it's often surprisingly successful. Plus it's cheap and cheerful. :)
 
TarrSteps said:
If all your other serious bases have been covered, which it seems they have been, try applying Listerine (the "original" yellow formula) to her dock, rubbing a fair quantity of it really well into the hair and skin. It's an old "farmer's remedy" and I presume it works because of its anti-bacterial properties, but it's often surprisingly successful. Plus it's cheap and cheerful. :)
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listerine as in the mouth wash????
im very interested in this topic cos i think my gelding has it - ive used baby oil up to now xxx
 
Yup. The really foul stuff you'd never use on yourself. :) I've known people use the flavoured versions but I was told to avoid them because the sweetener can attract flies, although who knows, it's not exactly an exact science!

Obviously it doesn't work for anything major that needs a vet/medication but for general itchiness/tail rubbing it can often do the trick. Someone I suggested it to here used it on the horse's itchy mane as well and had good results, so might be worth a shot for that, too.
 
TarrSteps said:
Yup. The really foul stuff you'd never use on yourself. :) I've known people use the flavoured versions but I was told to avoid them because the sweetener can attract flies, although who knows, it's not exactly an exact science!

Obviously it doesn't work for anything major that needs a vet/medication but for general itchiness/tail rubbing it can often do the trick. Someone I suggested it to here used it on the horse's itchy mane as well and had good results, so might be worth a shot for that, too.
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wow ty so much - so listerine does it - ty so so much xxx
 
There are, of course, lots of situations where it's WON'T work - if the horse has pinworms or a significant skin condition or something else that needs a vet - but if it's just the general itchiness that some horses seem to get, it's what I'll always try first. I do usually try to wash the tail really well, too, but if it's too cold/not possible I just brush out any dirt I can then go with the Listerine.
 
Try washing her dock & tail with Nizerol - you can buy it from the chemist. My mare is prone to having an itchy tail, and being a Clydesdale can wreck the fence posts fast. As soon as she starts itching I now wash her tail well with Nizerol and hand hot water and she is fine after.

Have you also checked for pin worms, they can really cause them to itch badly.
 
Thank you for all your advice and tips, I will try the listerine and Nizerol. Going to speak to the vet again this morning and see if he has any bright ideas as well. it's just horrible seeing her so uncomfortable when there seems to be no reason for it
 
I'm going to try the listerene on my boys mane as got a similar problem there! Itch stop does seem to sooth it but at £20+ a pot I'll try listerene! Thanks!
 
We use benzoyl benzoate (spelling could be wrong)... white lotion stuff, order online as chemists now don't seem to stock the stuff. Its a lotion to help scabies originally in humans, but has a very good cleasing and soothing effect on horses too. Been using it for years.
NB - Don't get it in or near your eyes!!
 
Our mare had a very itchy tail and it turned out to be pin worms. Pin worms don't show up on worm counts (our worm count came back clear) and my vet said they have been having a few cases of pin worms that are resistant to wormers. We used a pyrantel based wormer and this solved the problem.

I use Benzyl Benzoate on my sweet itch mare and this stops her itching.
 
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