# Scratches and Rain Rot and Sweet Itch OH MY!!



## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

Ok so my mare has these crusty little scabs on the back and front of her lower leg on her right front leg. The pastures have been quite muddy lately, especially around the water trough, so every day when I get to the barn she's got dried mud caked on her legs. I either brush it off or hose it off daily, but last week I had to go out of town for 5 days. I had some friends keeping an eye on her but I wasn't going to ask them to groom my horse daily, I think they did most days but some they weren't at the barn and didn't have time to, which I totally understand. Anyway, that's when these crusties showed up...I feel like such a bad horse mommy for leaving her so many days in a row  

Anyhow, someone else at the barn mentioned that her horse has "mud fever" so I started looking into it online and found that there seem to be about a million different names for the same thing, or similar skin infections/irritations that are different but that people confuse.

So can anyone clear up for me what each of the following are/whether any are just a different name for the same thing, and how to treat each of them? And what does it sound like my mare has? I was thinking mud fever from what I could find and what others were telling me, esp because of the location, but wanted to get some more thoughts from my favorite bunch of educators on here! 

*Mud fever*
*Scratches*
*Rain rot *
*Sweet itch *


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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

Haven't had time to read your post.

*I JUST WANT YOUR MUD!!!!!!*


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## Arksly (Mar 13, 2010)

This is a good website for rain rot: http://www.equusite.com/articles/health/healthRainRot.shtml

"Rain rot is one of the most common skin infections seen in horses. It is also referred to as "rain scald" or "streptothricosis". The organism that causes rain rot appears and multiplies in warm, damp conditions where high temperature and high humidity are present. This condition is not life-threatening, so don't worry. However, while the horse has rain rot, any equipment that may rub and irritate the infected skin (such as saddles and leg wraps) should be eliminated."

Here's a website for Mud Fever: http://www.hintsandthings.com/kennel/Mud%20Fever%20online%20veterinary%20advice.htm

"Mud Fever occurs during the wet winter months and is principally caused by the bacterium Dermatophilus congolensis.

Mud fever is essentially a form of dermatitis which affects the skin on the heel, fetlock and pastern. All horses can be affected, but particularly those with long hair around the fetlock. Back legs are more prone to mud fever than front."

I think Scratches is just another term for mud fever.

And for Sweet Itch: http://www.localriding.com/equine-sweet-itch.html

" 
Equine Sweet Itch is a seasonal allergic skin condition caused by fly bites."


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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

Ok so sounds like rain rot then? Anyone have any tips on what works best to get rid of it?

Last night I just brushed her legs really well with a rubber curry then a stiff brush to remove the dried mud, rather than hosing them off and making them wet again. I sprayed Banix on it since I had some handy and I believe it said it gets rid of Rain Rot. My friend also mentioned doing a betadine scrub every other day and just generally keeping the area clean and dry. Any other remedies out there?


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## Arksly (Mar 13, 2010)

I found that Vetricin works very well but it is incredibly expensive.

Jesse had rainrot on the base of his forelock and he lost over half of it. Within two days of putting Vetricin on the area the hair stopped falling out and the scabs lessened. I think it only took a couple weeks for it to completely heal. Good luck!


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## StormvaleQHStud (Dec 16, 2010)

You are supposed to soak the scabs and peel them off (and then burn or dispose of safely the scabs) because the organism won't completely come out otherwise. Be sure to treat a horse nowhere near wood as the organisms have a knack for wood things and can easily reinfect horses as they will live in the wood untill a horse appears. Horses also lackin body condition seem prone to it as well. Then after you pull scabs off wash it with betadine or other antibacterial spray like cetrigen (purpke spray) or pink spray and do that daily. Yes you can use all that saddle blankets etc brushes but you will need to wash and disinfect them after every use untill it has completely healed up or else you risk spreading and reinfection again.
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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

Oh thanks for the info!! I just thought it was some annoying skin irritation, guess I never realized there's actually an ORGANISM you need to KILL! eeeewwwwww


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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

If it is rain rot, it will be wet under the scabs. It is a common fungus that is in the soil and it only affects horses that do not have healthy immune systems and are deficient in Vitamin A. That is why it is seen most often in the late winter and early spring just before green grass.

We have quit treating it altogether in incoming horses (like new purchases and visiting brood mares) and just correct the nutrition deficiency. 

We feed a loose mineral that contains 150,000 units of Vitamin A per pound of it and feed a pelleted grain ration that has Vitamin A added to it. There are supplements out there that have high levels of Vitamin A without having high levels of the Vitamins that make a horse high like a race horse. 

Or, to correct it quickly, you can buy a 100cc bottle of injectable Vitamin A (usually with Vitamin D & E) made for giving shots to cattle. DO NOT give your horse a shot, but you can squirt 5 cc in your horse's mouth once a week at first and later once every two weeks.

[And I still want your mud. It has been 1 year and 2 weeks since we have had enough rain to have water run off and run into our ponds. We have no grass, ponds are drying up and the only mud we have is in the drying up ponds.]


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## ErikaLynn (Aug 3, 2010)

I found that M-T-G works the best for rain rot. It smells bad, but I used it on a small rain rot spot and it cleared up in a day. 

I really wouldn't pick and scrape at the scabs. Just brush normally...but be gentle, rain rot can be very painful. 

After you brush her, apply the M-T-G, I usually put it on a towel first then dab it on the area. 2 times a day. Once it OK too if you dont have time. 

You can also give her a bath with Vetrolin medicated shampoo. Then put the M-T-G on after that.

Just remember whatever brushed you use on her, you MUST sanitize them after. Either soak them in bleach and let them dry in the sun..or throw them out.


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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

Interesting on the nutrition thing...she's on a couple supplements from SmartPak...one is their Smartvite performance grass pellets which is her multi vitamin, then she's on Smart Omega and also Tri Amino. She's allergic to soy and molasses products so she gets rolled barley to mix in with her supplements. 

She also has a mineral block and himalayan salt block in her stall that she uses. The barn where I board feeds good quality hay, usually a mix of orchard grass and timothy. She has been standing in the pond out in her pasture I've noticed, because she comes in every day with mud caked halfway up her legs lol! 

I'll have to go check her supplements to see about vitamin content.
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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

I checked and her SmartVite had 34,000 IU apparently.
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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

...and another 10,000 in her SmartOmega3.
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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

Does this horse have access to good green grass? Vitamin A in hay, even in alfalfa, does not stay after 6 months of storage. During the winter, I like to get 100,000 IU of Vitamin A into a horse. This time of year, part of that is usually furnished by green grass. Penned and stalled horses need a lot more added Vitamin A than horses that run out.


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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

She did at the last barn but at this one there is very little grass so they feed hay out in the pasture as well, and she is out all day, just stalled in the evening/overnight.

This is the first time since I've owned her...which had been almost 3 yrs now...that she's had this, and it's only on one leg.
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## Appyt (Oct 14, 2007)

I have always used Desitin baby ointment for rain scald, scratches, etc.. Almost any skin irritation.. Works very good and I do not scrub, wash, etc.. I slather it on, it stays there.. I replace as needed and will pick off what comes easily. I dont' burn it or sanitize anything.. Too lazy.. The horses who got it the most often are not living here now and nobody has it. Oh, we've had no rain to speak of in months either. crap... Anyway.. That's what I use and also I've heard great things about veterycin. Spensive yes.. but you do not have to play washy scrubby with it either if you dont' want to.. spray it on 2x daily if possible. Desitin is easier and cheaper tho.


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## Ladytrails (Jul 28, 2010)

I've had really bad experiences with rain rot/mud fever/scratches on my TWH mare and now Vetericyn is the one thing I swear by. If you use mineral oil you can loosen the scabs so they come off easier. Use very gentle techniques because if you irritate the skin the fungus will spread like wildfire. And, you have to use enough gentle shampoo to get all the oil out or it traps the fungus. 

Vetericyn isn't painful (my girl could NOT tolerate MTG on her skin) and it kills or inhibits the fungus and bacteria on the skin. Plus, it dries up those scabs and seems to help the healing. It's pretty awesome. It costs about $26 for a small bottle, but it works in 2-3 days and it's going to prevent the stuff from spreading. 

Before I knew about Vetericyn, I spent a fortune (over $1000) curing my TWH of scratches and a nasty infection that took hold after I used a everything else under the sun for fungus and bacteria; it took 7 months in a stall and IV antibiotics to cure her. After she got it again, Vetericyn was the only thing I hadn't tried because it was expensive; I got a bottle and stopped the mud fever in its tracks in 1-2 treatments. I am a believer.


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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

Thanks for the input all!! I went to the barn last night and ended up scrubbing it with betadine, then sprayed some BlueKote on it for now since I haven't had time to get to the store. I've heard that stuff works pretty well though, and dries things out too! 

The area affecting her is so small - it's just on the back below the fetlock joint on her right front leg, and a couple tiny scabs on the front of that same leg. The other legs are fine. So whatever category this thing goes under, I would think it should be gone soon!


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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

The Vitamin A will clean up and prevent further Rain Rot. It will not do a thing for Sweet Itch or Scratches.

But, I have found that if the Scratches start out on the front of the hind pasterns and back of the front pasterns on studs and geldings and is worst or at least starts on the back of the back pasterns on mares that it is caused or at least started by urine that is 'too hot'. If your barn smells like Ammonia in the morning (can't tell when horses are kept out in the open), you are getting the scratches from the strong urine with a high acidity. This is caused by feeding too much protein. This also causes horses to drink much more water and have a lot wetter stalls. Horses eliminate excessive amino acids (the substances that protein breaks down into) by flushing it out of the horse's system through the kidneys in the form of Uric Acid and Ammonia - both being caustic. 

You not only waste a lot of money on the high protein feeds and extra bedding, you also get health problems, wetter stalls, the strong Ammonia smell in barns and skin and hoof problems from the wet bedding and splashing. Strong urine does not cause all cases of scratches, but it is responsible for an awful lot of it in stalled and penned horses on high protein diets.

And Desitin and a wrap will clear it up better than anything I have found.


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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

^^Our barn doesn't smell like amonia at all and the only place where these little scabs are at are here, just on her right FRONT leg...


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## Appyt (Oct 14, 2007)

Just slather on desitin regularly, really.. It is just that easy.


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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

haha thanks Appy! glad it's not as complex as I was beginning to think LOL ;-)


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## FoxyRoxy1507 (Jul 15, 2008)

the best stuff i ever found was called Muck Itch! it works phenomenally for rain rot. a couple of years ago when a lot of hurricanes hit FL our paddocks were wet for weeks and so all of our horses got rain rot really bad esp on their legs and back of the heel, sprayed this stuff on them and w/in a couple days it was gone.


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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

FoxyRoxy1507 said:


> the best stuff i ever found was called Muck Itch! it works phenomenally for rain rot. a couple of years ago when a lot of hurricanes hit FL our paddocks were wet for weeks and so all of our horses got rain rot really bad esp on their legs and back of the heel, sprayed this stuff on them and w/in a couple days it was gone.


I know the people who created that stuff! No idea why I didn't think of it before!!! :lol: Oh wow I'm a bad friend LOL!! I'm giving them a call


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## nicole25 (Jun 24, 2011)

So my horse either has rain rot or some other type of fungus on the front of his fetlock on his back legs. After reading this thread i have found a few good ways to treat it. But i was wondering how I could tell if it was rain rot or not. He doesnt seem to be in any pain and i can scrub it and scratch at it without him making a fuse. My BO isnt to sure what it is either and she thinking its just dry skin, I have my doubts on that one though.


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## nicole25 (Jun 24, 2011)

after looking at very detailed pictures of rain rot i believe that I can cross it off the list. Rain rot makes my skin crawl looking at it, and he doesnt have any signs of puss on his leg or anything like that.


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## Appyt (Oct 14, 2007)

nicole, treat it with the desitin anyway. It will help heal whatever it is.. Scratches, bug bites, Rain rot, nicks and bite marks.. Doesn't really matter.


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## nicole25 (Jun 24, 2011)

Okay thanks! That's like diaper rash cream right?
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## Cherie (Dec 16, 2010)

Yup! Desitin and Preparation H both work for a LOT of things besides what there were intended for.


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## Appyt (Oct 14, 2007)

yes it is.. You can get the store brand and save money. It works just as well. My hub recently bought the creamy desitin. I was not thrilled, but it works just as good and is a bit easier to smear on without having to rub as much. Happier horses.


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## MaggiStar (Mar 19, 2010)

My girl is very very prone to mudfever.
What i do is first clip that leg and get all the hair off it to make it easier to deal with and so the mud can try and doesnt stay trapped in fetlock hair remaining moist on the skin..
I then soak the elg to soften the scabs pick them off but only the ones that are ready dont pull at the firlmyl attached ones. I use tea tree oil on the scabs and the ones i pulled off or if i havent tea tree oil handy a salty water mix is good either. I then use either towels or an old hair dryer and have the leg bone dry after treatment if you cant get it very dry some baby powder does the trick then tpa it off.
If you dont get on top of it fast you will get a bad infection which needs antibiotics to clear it up


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## garlicbunny (Apr 30, 2009)

*ls*

Hi Hoofprints, When Dillon got it last year I used a number of things on him, first betadine, and MTG, baby diaper rash ointment, also I have heard you can use vaginal cream and jock itch cream (Just easier at checkout buying the diaper rash, well less embarrasing anyways) , let me check my caddy to see what else i used, it took more like a couple of weeks to get rid of it on my boy. They say too once they get it they are prone to it (Dillon had it on his lower legs down t the hoof, can't remember how may limbs though.


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## garlicbunny (Apr 30, 2009)

Hoofprints, look down a few posts to farm pony on 8/23. There are quite a few things you could try..good luck. btw, did you know we got a new bucksking mare?


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## Hoofprints in the Sand (Nov 23, 2008)

Thanks  it cleared up after I brushed the mud off every day and sprayed Banix on it, which I already had around so that's a plus haha! Good to know so many things work! 

And a new buckskin?? Yay!! Pics please 
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