Washing legs?

[Angus' yard]

I deep litter on straw and I just pop in all muddy and they come out in the morning clean!! She must have employed a mud-fairy or something...

This!

 

[Pigeon]

I hose them off before riding, and usually ride before putting him to bed. He's a thoroughbred with clipped legs and never had any issues like mud fever etc.

 

[tallyho!]

I hose them off before riding, and usually ride before putting him to bed. He's a thoroughbred with clipped legs and never had any issues like mud fever etc.

That's good! It shows that your horses skin integrity is intact, functional and serves it purpose! Keeping nasties out.

The bacteria are always present. You can't get away from the grime actually present in mud... Well, earth. Good for plants and all that.

However, when a horses immune system is compromised through diet or illness, that's when it can take a hold. That is why diet is so important and why much attention is paid to what goes in. You are what you eat applies to our equines.

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

What do you all do regarding washing legs when your horses come in for the night with very muddy legs? I generally try and hose the worst off with the view that clean and wet is better than muddy and wet and that they will dry faster. I don't dry them off but will run a towel over the leg to soak off worst.

We don't wash them any more not on, for the obvious reason:

Leaving horses with wet legs
causing mud fever
mud clogging the drain

To us its pointless washing legs as most just go back out the next day when owner did not come up.

Most horses legs are dry enough for the owner to brush when they come up

Use no pig oil nothing, 5 days week mine goes to bed muddy the goes back out in am dry mud, never had chapped skin, never had mud fever.

If I was riding I would not wash him off as by the time we would come back through muddy woods, he is as muddy as he was before.

 

[Kitei]

Often leave Harry as is, but on nights with really cold forcasts, I do hose him off. Occasionally it's been too cold for the mud to dry, and his legs are still wet and cold to the touch in the morning, but rinsing the mud out does ensure that they dry.

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

What i do when he comes in with wet legs is put his stable wraps, by morning he has warm dry legs/ no rubs no chaps.
IMO I would hate cold water on my legs so don't feel right soaking his legs unless injury.
After all its not a natural thing for their legs to be washed, been there done it and it served no real purpose unless medical reason.

Each to their own, you do what you feel right.

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

I hose down my two every night before they come in (they're in overnight). And then bung them in their stables in deep chippings to dry off.

They have been having Micronised Linseed, Brewers Yeast and a smidge of Cider Vinegar; they're out mostly in a bog by daytime during the week; Friday pm I'll bring them in and sort them out properly, then they stand in the "holding pen" for the weekend as they're ridden and its soooo much easier!!!

Trad-lad has got mega-sensitive legs and can react very easily to clay/soil etc on his legs, which is why he's hosed down every night before standing in overnight. My logic is that if you've got clean legs, you can SEE what's happening, and if there's something nasty developing you can deal with it, whereas if their feet are just a muddy mess, then you can't see properly what's going on.

That's my logic anyway.

 

[Tobiano]

people who say dry the legs with towels - does this really work? I have never thought towelling gets them fully dry - perhaps I am just giving up too soon!

 

[Dowjones]

Clean the mud off. Mine are on deep straw beds so the legs dry quickly.

 

[Becca-84]

The one year i decided to wash his legs he got mud fever. Now i leave it and brush off next day. He goes out every other day so has a whole day on nice deep bed to dry feet and legs and touch wood had no probs this year. The only horse suffering with mud fever on our yard this year is the one who washes legs, hibiscrubs, dries, bandages and generally faffs about.

 

[mynutmeg]

It depends on the horse. On a fine coated horse the legs might be wet to the skin in which case there's no harm in washing them off, but a horse with a lot of feather could easily be coated in mud and yet have dry skin underneath all the mud in which case it's better to leave it to dry off most days so you aren't wetting the legs unnecessarily. You can then give them a good wash and oil at weekend so you can give them a proper check over.

Compeltely agree about horses with feathers - ours have a fairly muddy gateway and my moderately feathered girl is never wet down to the skin. I did wash her legs off when she came in last weekend as she was clareted up to the armpits (had been galloping around) and she was a lot wetter than when she's left. I did towel dry her and she was still wetter than if I'd left them (but it meant when they were dry in the morning I could put mud away spray on)

people who say dry the legs with towels - does this really work? I have never thought towelling gets them fully dry - perhaps I am just giving up too soon!

It definately helps and makes them damp rather than sopping wet but won't get them totally dry, even if not feathered.

 

[montanna]

Does anyone know whether the thermatex leg wraps are better with the cordura covered outer, or without? To be left on all night.
Also, do they do a pretty good job of drying the legs? Rather than just trapping in the warm / damp conditions?
Thanks

The cordura just stops the shavings sticking to them. £10 might sound a rip off but not when you are constantly brushing and de-bitting the blinkin things!! They are wonderful, you can put them on soaking wet legs, leave them on all night and when you take them off in the morning both the wraps and legs are bone dry.

 

[Gazen]

tallyHo! I found your comment interesting about mud fever, the immune system and diet being linked. Last winter I had a horrible time. Mud fever, every little cut was getting infected, she had sceptecaemia (sorry about spelling) from one cut and various other lesions. After lots of tests the vet was still stumped as to the reason. I think from November to March we kept the local vet and the pharmaceutical industry in business with anti-b's and steriods. In March, after a lot of research, I changed her diet from being cereal based (generic pasture mix) to alfalfa and sugar beet based. Within 2 weeks the infections disappeared, the coat went from being really coarse and dull to silky smooth and shiny. In fact she became a much happier horse in general. I carried on with a single hard feed every day all the way through the summer. This year the little cuts are healing cleanly, there is no mud fever, despite 4 white legs with pink skin that are washed down every night before bed.

 

[hotpointshowjumper]

Our horses only go out 2/3 times a week at most at the moment; this weather is a complete nightmare!

I wash their legs off after being out and then rub them down with straw to take most of the moisture off. I leave the feathers on over winter, so even though they look a little untidy, I believe the serve some protection against mud fever.

After riding in our arena (sand and strip rubber mix) I wash their legs off, because the surface makes human skin very dry unless washed straight off, so can imagine it does the same to horse skin as well.

Never had any issues with the washing causing mud fever, and -touch wood- not had any mud fever this year!

 

[Jazzy B]

The one year I was on part livery, my mare got her legs washed when she got brought in - she had horrendous mud fever. I never washed since, deep litter straw bed, touch wood, we have never had mud fever since ... But its still raining and the mud is getting worse, knowing my luck at the moment after posting this, we will probably get mud fever :-(