what to do with a very itchy horse... help!

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hannahw94

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My mare has only just turned 4 and was completely fine until last summer, she started scratching her tail to the point that it looked like a toilet brush at the top, she then continued until it was raw. She was also scratching her mane but nowhere near as bad, she still had a full mane it was just a bit thinner.

This summer she's back to having no tail and the top and she has now basically hogged herself from the withers up for about a third of her mane. We've tried all the creams, washes.. she's wormed regularly and I just don't know what to do with her anymore. She's a cob and had the loveliest mane and tail until this started! no showing for me!

Now the first thought was sweet itch, we do have a few horses at the yard who suffer from it but from what I gather the symptoms should begin in spring? she's been fine until now when the other horses have been scratching for ages! With her being young could it just be learned behaviour?

any thoughts on what it could be and what would help would be very much appreciated!
 
My first action would be to take a skin scraping, it could be that there is a problem with mange mites or similar. It is not learned behaviour.
I would be very careful not to use anything which might irritate. Micronised linseed will help skin hoof and so on, but this is a veterinary problem.
 
I would also put on a fly rug, to cover the area. Apart from anything else it will protect your horse from the strong sun. Either that or bring in during the day. Sunburn on raw flesh is not funny.
Once the skin is this bad though accept that you will have the fly rug trashed, as to be really effective they have to be on before the flies start.
 
Sounds like it could be allergy related, maybe sweet itch, maybe some other allergy. Either way I would put a sweet itch rug on and use topical treatments and consult the vet if you see no improvements
 
You're right in that sweet itch would usually start earlier in the year...it is an allergy to midge saliva and so would start as soon as the midges are about. However, if there are a few horses there with sweet itch then it could be a particularly bad area for it and perhaps it's not an allergy as such but just her reacting to the environment.
In this case, perhaps a change of field and a fly rug may help.
First thing I would do though would be to ash her with a medicated shampoo and treat for lice.
I would get her a good sweet itch rug and electric fence her field or an area for her so she can't trash the rug as she'll be very itchy for another week or so.
If it's sweet itch it is important that you protect her from being bitten so fly rug and a good repellent. Premier equine do a great rug and I use Net Tex Stop Itch cream. If you can move to a field that is away from water sources ie streams and is as exposed as possible ( midges can't fly well in wind) that will help.
Having said al that, a simple diet change may help too...many horse react to high sugar/ cereal feeds or excess grass by itching. You could try restricting her grazing and or changing feeds to see if that helps...
 
Last summer, this summer... It is more likely to be sweet itch that anything else. Horses do not always all start rubbing at the same time. Get a good rug and insect repellent on her and make sure she is in an electric fenced area where she can't rub. Next year get the rug on early in the season so she doesn't get in this mess.
 
It may well be sweet itch but our horses don't have sweet itch but do occasionally have a fit of rubbing tails & manes. We normally wash the top of the tail & mane & then treat with Benzyl Benzoate. It used to be easy to buy at chemists but now it's easier to buy on line from Hyperdrug.

Many years ago it used to be used to treat scabies so if you go into a chemist to get it the assistant may step back & look at you strangely. ;)
 
Just be careful about what you put on broken skin. I don't think benzyl benzoate is meant to be applied to broken skin and anything too oily may make matters worse unless covered up.
 
I'd also get the vet out to do a scrapping. There are injections for sweet itch that might help for next year- think they need them before it starts. I'd also bring in during the day for a week or two to allow the skin to heal a little and them use nettex and a sweet itch rug like a boett blanket.
 
Do you feed her alfalfa?

My gelding went like this one year. We worked out that it was due to starting to feed him alfalfa. As soon as we stopped feeding it he recovered and I have heard of a few other horses reacting in a similar way.
 
hannahw94 said:
My mare has only just turned 4 and was completely fine until last summer, she started scratching her tail to the point that it looked like a toilet brush at the top, she then continued until it was raw. She was also scratching her mane but nowhere near as bad, she still had a full mane it was just a bit thinner.

This summer she's back to having no tail and the top and she has now basically hogged herself from the withers up for about a third of her mane. We've tried all the creams, washes.. she's wormed regularly and I just don't know what to do with her anymore. She's a cob and had the loveliest mane and tail until this started! no showing for me!

Now the first thought was sweet itch, we do have a few horses at the yard who suffer from it but from what I gather the symptoms should begin in spring? she's been fine until now when the other horses have been scratching for ages! With her being young could it just be learned behaviour?

any thoughts on what it could be and what would help would be very much appreciated!
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I would call the vet, it might be pin worms, it may be sweet itch the beginning of. It also my be sarcoptic related. Might be mights or even an allergy.



Vet definitely to do a skin scrape and examination would be my first call.

Soya Oil also helps with skin conditions
 
_HP_ said:
Just be careful about what you put on broken skin. I don't think benzyl benzoate is meant to be applied to broken skin and anything too oily may make matters worse unless covered up.
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I agree about the benzyl it will sting like crazy on broken skin, gold label do wonder gel its very mild and great for itchy or sore skin use until it is healed, It sounds like sweet itch to me, I would get her washed in a medicated shampoo get the itching under control then buy a sweet itch rug, its the only thing that worked on my horse although she only gets it mild, rug goes on in March until about October.
 
Obviously at this point you need to involve the vet.

And, as others have said, benzyl is never to be used on broken skin.
 
We've washed her with Dermoline Insecticidal Shampoo, and just been using antiseptic cream on the cuts on her tail. She's had numerous fly rugs but she's completely trashed every one! I'm on the hunt for a new one just now. Her field is near a river but they don't seem to have many midges about while they're out, it's mainly flys, plus it's an open field that always gets a breeze. All we feed her is a scoop of cool mix at the moment as she's not doing a lot of work.

As I said, I'm going to try and get another fly rug for her and I was considering Benzyl benzoate if I can get her to stop scratching enough for her skin to heal. Literally at wits end with her as every time I go up she has less :( if that doesn't work I'll get the vet out.
 
You need to keep her somewhere where the field is set up correctly for sweet itch horses with electric tape and nothing to rub on or you will be forever facing a losing battle.
 
I'll get that sorted as well, from experience electric fencing isn't the best for containing her.. she's a pretty decent escape artist haha, I'll get something sorted out though :) thanks for your help guys! I know it sounded like a silly question but everyone I asked kept telling me it couldn't be sweet itch but didn't know what else so I'm glad I'm not the only one who things it is.

if you've have any more suggestions etc I'm all ears :)
 
I think I would get the vet out - if nothing else they can give the pony an injection or cream to calm the itch and recommend a pin worming strategy if applicable. Only once the itch has gone have you got a chance of getting a fly rug to stay on undamaged.
 
My cob was just the same, never seen him so itchy. We bathed him in dermoline (you have to leave it on for quite a while) then bathed him in selsun shampoo a few days later. When he was dry we slathered his legs in pig oil and sulphur. He's stabled during the day so we also put the po and s on his tail, but you have to be careful with this stuff in the sun. Not itching at all now.
You can get Selsun shampoo in Boots, it's for dermatitis and contains sulphur which the mites hate.
 
Gloi said:
You need to keep her somewhere where the field is set up correctly for sweet itch horses with electric tape and nothing to rub on or you will be forever facing a losing battle.
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It will stop her rubbing but it will NOT stop her itching. Imagine having a bad itch you cannot scratch!
It could well be sweet itch. Not all midges appear at the same time of the summer and not all horses are allergic to the same ones. A few horses actually are at their worst in September/October. Treat as sweet itch (boett rug, keep in dawn and dusk, if possible move to windy and grazing away from standing water) until proper diagnosis. Aloe Vera is soothing and can be used on broken skin. Good luck to you both - it's a horrible condition and seems to be worse than ever this year because of the mild weather last winter/spring.
 
hannahw94 said:
I'll get that sorted as well, from experience electric fencing isn't the best for containing her.. she's a pretty decent escape artist haha, I'll get something sorted out though :) thanks for your help guys! I know it sounded like a silly question but everyone I asked kept telling me it couldn't be sweet itch but didn't know what else so I'm glad I'm not the only one who things it is.

if you've have any more suggestions etc I'm all ears :)
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If you put the electric tape a foot or two inside the field boundary you aren't just using that to keep her in so if she'll stay in the field without it she'll stay in with it. Then you can use your rug without it ripping. Maybe you could get together with the other people there with SI horses and sort it out together so they can all use it.
 
cobgoblin said:
My cob was just the same, never seen him so itchy. We bathed him in dermoline (you have to leave it on for quite a while) then bathed him in selsun shampoo a few days later. When he was dry we slathered his legs in pig oil and sulphur. He's stabled during the day so we also put the po and s on his tail, but you have to be careful with this stuff in the sun. Not itching at all now.
You can get Selsun shampoo in Boots, it's for dermatitis and contains sulphur which the mites hate.
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I'll give it a go! It was suggested that I tried washing her tail and mane with either TGel or Polytar but I wasn't sure if it was a good idea or not. I'll get some selsun and see how it goes. I don't really want to leave her in but if it stops the itching I'll try anything. How long did it take for him to clear up?
 
oldjumper said:
It will stop her rubbing but it will NOT stop her itching. Imagine having a bad itch you cannot scratch!
It could well be sweet itch. Not all midges appear at the same time of the summer and not all horses are allergic to the same ones. A few horses actually are at their worst in September/October. Treat as sweet itch (boett rug, keep in dawn and dusk, if possible move to windy and grazing away from standing water) until proper diagnosis. Aloe Vera is soothing and can be used on broken skin. Good luck to you both - it's a horrible condition and seems to be worse than ever this year because of the mild weather last winter/spring.
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I know what you mean, they just end up demented if they can't itch.. If I can get the itching controlled with a rug etc (that she'll keep in one bit) I'll fence off a bit but I'm pretty sure she'll find a way out if she's still as bad. thanks!
 
He stopped itching immediately after the Selsun and pig oil, did these on the same day. Will probably redo the pig oil and sulphur weekly now. We also cleared all the bedding out of his stable and put new in, in case the mites were living in it.
Hope it works for you, btw the Selsun smells lovely.
 
cobgoblin said:
He stopped itching immediately after the Selsun and pig oil, did these on the same day. Will probably redo the pig oil and sulphur weekly now. We also cleared all the bedding out of his stable and put new in, in case the mites were living in it.
Hope it works for you, btw the Selsun smells lovely.
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I'm on a mission now haha! the pig oil and sulphur is ordered and I'll go get the Selsun tomorrow :) if it's not sunny do you think i'd be okay to put her out with it on her mane and tail? or should I keep her in anyway?
 
Please do a patch test with the pig oil and sulpher before using it. And again, it must not be used on broken skin.

And again, at this point, you need to involve your vet.
 
Just be careful if/when you get the vet out as they may suggest steroids which can, in some cases, trigger laminitis.
I would be wary of trying too many things at a time.
Once you have established that it is definitely not lice/mites or some other nasties, then I would get her off the mix and onto something low cereal/sugar like fast fibre with some good minerals like pro balance plus, T.E.N.S daily balancer or dengue vits and mins, get the electric set up, then buy her a rug. There is no point rugging her while she can wreck the rug as you are just wasting your money.
If you are near a river/ stream then you will have midges....
I have a severe sweet itch sufferer who is managed this way and another who came to me almost bald having had no protection and a diet of just grass last year and is now happy and healthy and shiny and almost itch free from having his grazing restricted and a diet as above .
Good luck....
 
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