Gosh, it's been a minute since we've featured our good friend Charlie here on ye olde blogge!! Which is criminal considering he's obvi the biggest star around <3 <3
The truth is, Charlie's out here living his best life. Getting his daily grooms and scritches and cookies.... Just being a downright pleasant horse to spend time with and be around.
He's just... Not particularly sound.
Still. I was legging him back up for a while, but then he got pretty sore again after a recent shoeing appt.... And I dunno. I kinda backed off completely. Probably not permanently, tho. I'll probably start riding hacking him around again, even if it's just to help him maintain a good enough baseline condition to support his massive frame.
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| his group finally moved out to the lusciously grassy summer pastures! |
In the meantime, his group finally started the transition to grass. Honestly not sure why it took so long this year, and honestly probably wouldn't have even happened yet if I hadn't gotten them started on the first day myself. But it's done, and everyone is much happier for it. Thoroughbreds + grass are a match made in heaven, imho!!
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| scrub-a-dub-dub |
Well. Except, ya know, there are a few downsides!! Like all the bugs and gnats that are chewing up poor Charlie's belly!! That'll get partially resolved when they switch to overnight turnout instead of daytime... But for now, it's a real pain for him (literally lol).
Also, all that dewy grass can wreak havoc on hooves and legs. Charlie is notably prone to mud fever, aka scratches, aka pastern dermatitis, on his one white sock. It's a nasty scabby persistent painful skin infection that is a pain in the you-know-what to clear up, but that you don't really want to leave brewing lest it explode into a larger systemic infection like cellulitis.
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| i washed the leg with regular shampoo first to get it mostly clean, then did a proper scrub with the betadine cleanser |
I've tried to be proactive over the years with keeping Charlie's legs clean and clear of all scurf, and routinely treating with MTG to get ahead of any scabbing or small abrasions...
But honestly? I think 100% prevention is probably a losing battle. At least for horses with white legs. Maybe there's some sort of special secret sauce I'm missing (in which case, lmk!), but, eh, Charlie seems to get an infection about once a year, like clockwork.
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| the infection kinda just looks like an innocuous scab. these things are stubborn and persistent, tho, and can take a bit of determination (and strong drugs) to clear up |
So we focus on treatment. Skin funk in horses is one of those areas where opinions vary
widely. I have seen and heard of folks using
so many different topicals on this type of skin issue.
MTG, That Blue Stuff, Coat Defense, Krudzapper, Furazone, Desitin (yes the diaper rash cream), Vitamin E, Silver Honey...
Not to mention all the various cleansers and scrubs, like chlorhexidine, betadine, Listerine, apple cider vinegar, etc....
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| they're usually a bit painful too. this issue is the main reason why i don't put fly boots on Charlie's hind legs |
The lists go on and on
and on. Please definitely add in the comments if you swear by something I didn't mention!
And while I've had better luck with some of these treatments vs others, in the end I've come to the conclusion that.... the most important distinction in which treatment works vs which doesn't is... Your time, attention, and dedication in actually doing the treating.
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| a few more scabs on the other side --- and all those slightly deeper pink spots are potential eruption sites |
At least in my experience, this is not the type of skin funk that you can treat once or twice and then be on your merry way. For Charlie (and Isabel before him), it usually takes about two weeks of consistent near-daily attention to completely clear the infection.
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| this has been my go-to treatment since the isabel days. always handle with gloves. will test positive on horse show drug tests too |
The "standard of care" method that's been recommended to me by a vet involves first scrubbing carefully and continuously with a betadine solution (I like the surgical scrub product, personally). Then let the leg dry completely, before applying a steroidal antibiotic ointment Animax (also known as Dermalone or Panalog Ointment).
I get the ointment directly from the vet. It contains steroids, so always handle with gloves and be thoughtful about using it if you have imminent recognized/rated competition plans.
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| unrelated -- found another lone star tick, this time on charlie. photo for future reference in case i need to know dates... ugh |
A lot of folks consider this medical grade treatment to be the "nuclear option," tho, and prefer to start with using either natural or less medically intense remedies first. Again, I don't necessarily think there's a right or wrong way -- so long as you're attending to the treatment regularly.
This seems to work for us, tho, so hopefully Charlie's socks will be all nice and bright white again in short order!
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| at least Icee's cute <3 <3 |
And hopefully I'll be better about grabbing more pics of the handsome guy (maybe from actually taking him out for rides???) in the near future. Can't keep going so long without updates on him, right?? Doozy is cool, and all, but Charlie is still my favorite haha <3
Anyway. Anybody else dealing with skin funk or other seasonal ailments? Discover any new tools or techniques in helping the horses adjust to summer??
Fun to see a Charlie (and Icee!) update. I think you hit the nail on the head about the most important treatment for skin conditions is consistent attention. It's not a "set it and forget it" kind of thing. Charlie looks handsome in his red fly boots, by the way!
ReplyDeletewe love our shoo fly boots!! almost every horse at the barn has a pair, they just seem to fit easily and do their job. now if only i could convince charlie to wear a fly mask too... doozy, for her part, is 100% on board with ALL the fly gear lol!
DeleteI’ve used the mud fever powder by Keratex with good results. But it was part of the overall treatment plan.
ReplyDeletei keep forgetting that keratex has all these other great products beyond just the hoof hardener that i use... will have to look into that one of these days!
DeleteUGH we've had one pop up with scratches just last week - it's that time of year and super wet around here. Just a lot of staying on top of it for treatment
ReplyDeleteugh lots and lots and LOTS of staying on top of it, that's for sure!
DeleteOh man, scratches are such a pain to deal with! My trainer mixes up a vat of diaper rash cream, triple antibiotic ointment, and antifungal cream and applies it liberally and it seems to work pretty well.
ReplyDeletenice!! a mixture like that was the go-to for the barn manager at Isabel's barn too, my only complaint was that it's so messy!! like, the diaper rash cream is so sticky (which, obvi is great) but it made it hard to get in and really clean the scabs in between reapplying more schmoo...
DeleteDesitin is a good way to go. I will also treat orally with SMZ's because scratches tends to be a symptom of a bigger system imbalance.
ReplyDeleteha yea... tho charlie's been so pumped full of drugs for so much of his life, i try to reserve antibiotic treatment (beyond topical) for cases where it's definitely required for recovery. like, if the leg tries to explode into cellulitis, then definitely. but for just a mild case like this, we'll see if we can't get the job done with just the topical medicine.
DeleteYes, that definitely makes sense!
DeleteNice to see that sweet face again! I have nothing to add to the regimen though. Fingers crossed it stays localized.
ReplyDeleteit really is the sweetest face <3 <3 <3 even if it comes complete with gross icky skin nasties haha
DeleteOpie had his first ever case of scratches in March on just one leg. It blew up like a balloon and refused to respond to any topicals or antibiotics. We finally hit him with 3 days of a mid-level dose of dex and it cleared everything right up 🤷🏼♀️ it is funny how everyone has their own treatment and they all work differently on each horse!
ReplyDeleteoooof yea, ugh, i'm always grateful that charlie doesn't seem to do much more than get scabby. izzy had an awful terrible infection that lasted for ages... i can't remember if we ended up putting her on any actual medication, but maybe we did? glad Opie finally responded to the treatment tho!
DeleteI too have been using diaper rash, swat, and clay as a cocktail to offend bugs away from Remus's crotch area (what else can we call it) Luckily his white socks are not affected but it is annoying. Hope Charlie feels better soon!
ReplyDeleteAs you know, I've always sworn by Krudzapper, but I have a new favorite for when Krudzapper isn't cutting it. Or for when you're not sure if the particular ailment is fungus or bacteria or what. It's this stuff:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.bigdweb.com/e3-medicated-wound-care-cream-with-insect-barrier-6-oz?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw3ZayBhDRARIsAPWzx8rN-P0CYtr1xDVn9nRxRUWJfsMkzINIDar0X5gfI2yUYZa0DOx4ISIaAuAGEALw_wcB
I've used it on all kinds of weird stuff that's popped up on each of my horses and it's cleared things up in a matter of days. I haven't (knock on wood) had scratches for it yet, but I feel like it's worth trying. I agree with you though, Animax is probably the most dependable.
Sorry to hear Charlie is still unsound. I hope he's feeling better so you can get back to enjoying rides together.
We have two thoroughbreds and 25 random others (mostly mongrels, to be honest) at the yard. All summer long, I only had two mud fever horsies, with most of them living out in deep grass. Both the thoroughbreds! In seriousness, I follow pretty much exactly the same protocol you do. If we can't get hold of the steroid/antibiotic cream, we make our own by mixing milking cream with injectable steroid and a splash of Betadine mouthwash. Works like a charm!
ReplyDeleteMy vet recommended the exact same treatment as your vet, but added clip the hair first
ReplyDeleteEnjoying your blog! I think horses get a wide range of Fungal based infections, that go un-confirmed. (For lack of a better term). The creme you showed for heel scratches has 2 anti-fungals ingredients, and I'm glad it's working for him. Some friends also say dig, pick and pull, with your finger nails, after washing and after picking and after dry, add creme. Fungal are tough to truly remove, kill. Use borax in the wash with barn towels. It's an anti fungal. Best wishes!
ReplyDeleteScratches are the worst - do you sunblock his white sock? UV can trigger it and make it worse.
ReplyDeleteIn my last summer with him, I finally found some secret sauce that worked for Goose - Equiderma skin lotion. It was positively MAGICAL on his sweet itch spots on his belly and face, and helped a lot when his leg funk went from "omg is this infected" to very clearly on a path of healing - it makes that transition to hair growth again much faster. I also really like coat defense paste, and some good ol' ACV + brown Listerine + splash of betadine combo.
ReplyDeleteWhat worked for me might not work for everyone, but hey if it helps, it helps! Regardless, keep fighting the good fight, I commend you on your efforts and totally sympathize!
-Alyssa from Goosebackriding (blogger hates me and won't let me sign in)