Washing legs? Hose them off everyday?

[dogatemysalad]

Never routinely washed legs until we moved to a clay soil area. Clay burns legs, so legs get hosed off with slightly warm water which works better than cold water. Use a drying cloth to press out excess moisture. Haven't had mud fever in years.

 

[webble]

I wash them as part of a routine bath in the summer.

Winter I mostly leave them alone. Once a week I brush the dry mud off and oil them but that's all. I keep the skin as dry as possible

 

[Follysmum]

Always leave to dry off in stable then brush.

 

[JennBags]

I cold hose mine off when caked in wet mud, but mainly just the hooves unless his legs are disgusting.

I believe that mud fever comes from a bacteria in the mud, so if you don't have that bacteria you won't have mud fever.

 

[Roasted Chestnuts]

I pig oil my rising three yr olds 3 white and one roan leg. He gets them washed once every couple of months along with his tail to have a good look at them and freshen them up then I re oil them. It’s preserved his feathers and kept him mud fever free. Washing their legs too much encourages issues IME.

He’s been shown since he was 8 months old so he’s used to baths. He stands fine to be washed and bathed.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

If the mud is skin deep then there is no reason not to wash off as the water is already at skin level. If Its just mud on the hair then it's best to leave it on to dry as the skin underneath is still dry and warm. You soak the skin daily without drying throughly you are softening the skin and asking for mud fever to set in.

 

[iknowmyvalue]

I usually wash mine when he gets ridden, think the yard sometimes hose them when he comes in too. But the mud is very wet and his legs are clipped so legs are wet to the skin anyway. His legs are usually dry by the time I’ve ridden, and if not his stable has a deep straw bed which dries them off pretty quickly! He’s not had any problems with mud fever this year, despite being a grey with 4 white socks who can be prone to it.

 

[MissTyc]

I only wash off every now and then to give me clean legs to reapply pig oil ... I DID wash them off in anticipation of beautiful snow photos. Then it didn't snow, so I pig oiled the next morning so now they look like they have grimy grey legs ... now it's snowed and they look awful lol. No snow photos this year!

 

[Carlosmum]

I'll wash hooves if they are covered in sticky mud, might wave the hose up his pasterns but always done before he is in for the night so a chance to dry before going out again.

 

[Annagain]

3 greys and no leg washing here unless they're going to a competition - which they're not so dirty legs it is! We're lucky in that we only have about 8 inches of soil before you hit bed rock and it drains very well so very little mud here although it's rock solid in summer. Even in the gateways it only reaches their hooves but if they did have muddy legs I'd leave them muddy. It works for us, none of mine have had mud fever in my 30 years of owning horses.

 

[Scotsbadboy]

Grey horse here and no washing as a general rule of thumb. Stabled overnight and allowed to dry, then brushed off in the morning and mud protection applied every week.

 

[AFB]

Only for lessons or if it's hideous, so probably once/twice a week at most. And then he's in for the night to dry out.

 

[Birker2020]

I hose mud off and then towel dry. I've only started doing this recently as before now the weather was fairly dry and the mud was only up to the top of his pastern, now its up his cannon bones and beyond . By the time she's stood outside her stable for an hour whilst I do jobs they are getting drier. Then I get kitchen roll and dry them more with that before bandaging overnight.

I don't see any benefit in leaving legs and feet covered in mud. Not only is it cold on the legs it also comes off in your bed which causes it to become damp. The legs would barely be dry the following morning if I just left the mud on.

 

[paddy555]

I spray the hoof only with a hosepipe if the they are muddy and towel dry if I want to trim or hoof boot them. The only other time I hose the legs is when we get home after riding through bogs which are acidic (in our area) If I can find a stream to do the job for me on the ride home I do that instead.

 

[sportsmansB]

I wash mine if hes being ridden as I need to boot
I wash (just hose) and towel dry

If hes not being ridden I just leave mud on

 

[tiga71]

I only wash legs if going out to a show or something.

 

[Leafcutter]

I just use a dry towel from knee to hoof to remove the worst of the mud and let it dry overnight. Legs are clipped and the mud is pretty bad now. So far, no mud fever, but he has had it quite badly at another yard where he was hosed daily. Hoping this is going to work better, the towel washing though is a nightmare!

 

[exracehorse]

Never. Mud stays on all winter. I don't mess about with it whatsoever.

. Never ever washed mud off. Just put straight into stable.

 

[poiuytrewq]

Luckily for me my horses don’t have deep mud anywhere. They get muddy legs but it’s mainly where they roll, that brushes easily but tbh I don’t bother too much. The farrier comes every 4/5 weeks and they are given a really good wash for him as I think muddy legs are just rude.
The ponies get muddier as their field is a bit wetter, it should be resting but they have decided not to be caught anymore in with the boys so I end up with all 4 doing circuits!
Again I only really was for the farrier and occasionally to check for scabby bits.

 

[Kat]

I don't wash legs daily, only after hunting. On a day to day basis I let the mud dry in the stable then brush off. I have never had mud fever.

 

[Sealine]

I only wash legs in winter before/after hunting (four white legs ). I leave feathers to grow in winter and I use pig oil. Horse is stabled overnight and a quick rub over with a cactus mitt in the morning removes any remaining mud.

As soon as the mud dries up in the spring his legs are clipped and I wash them as and when they look grubby or if we have an outing.

He's never had mud fever but there are horses on the yard who do suffer unfortunately.

 

[Shysmum]

I NEVER wash Shy's legs! I use pig oil and sulphur (patch test first!) , and any mud just slides off. Using water and shampoo decreases the skin's natural defences, avoid, can lead to mud fever unless you can dry the skin 100%.

 

[Kaylum]

I dont wash legs unless necessary. Hibiscrub is terribly strong and should only be used very very diluted and when I see people using it it makes me cringe.