# sheath infection suspected or stones?



## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

Did you check for a bean?


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## KigerQueen (Jun 16, 2013)

could be a bladder stone


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## rookie (May 14, 2012)

Is this horse a grey horse? I am thinking it could be a squamous cell tumor or cancer of some sort that is being constantly irritated resulting in the infection. I would bite the bullet and find a way to get him to the equine vet.


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## trailhorserider (Oct 13, 2009)

rookie said:


> Is this horse a grey horse? I am thinking it could be a squamous cell tumor or cancer of some sort that is being constantly irritated resulting in the infection. I would bite the bullet and find a way to get him to the equine vet.


Paint horses (and I would imagine any horse with pink skin inside the sheath) can be prone to skin cancer down there. I had a Paint with it but he was close to 30 and died of something else. His symptoms where a swollen, itchy sheath that bled when I cleaned him. :-(

Grays generally get melanomas, and their sheath smegma is usually dark because they are dark skinned down there. So I would be surprised if it was that, unless there was some kind of infection going on.

The other symptoms, hay belly, anus, farting, etc, may not be related to the sheath issue. Horses fart a lot anyway. And if he was farting more than normal, I would wonder if something in his feed wasn't agreeing with him. But generally, that's a healthy horse sound. :wink:

So I don't know. But pictures would help. When you post on here, down below there is a "manage attachment" button. If you have the photos on your computer and click that button, if you can locate your files you just click to add them one at a time.


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## Goldilocks (Jan 30, 2015)

Honestly, here, we would just leave it. That area naturally protects and cleans itself. It is frowned upon to clean it much.


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## KigerQueen (Jun 16, 2013)

Ummm no its not. horses who dont get cleaned enough can get beans that can stop urine flow and cause infections and pain.


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## Goldilocks (Jan 30, 2015)

I have had a horse for 15years and i cleaned his "bean" for the first time about a year ago because of all the hype. It was about 3mm maybe less. He never had any bother peeing, nor had any discharge on his penis. They pass them themselves, frequently. Too much cleaning makes the soap and stuff bbuild up, causing larger beans and upsets the bacterial composition. Same reason that ladies and gents should not use soap on their own personal parts.


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## trailhorserider (Oct 13, 2009)

The thing is, we don't know if what's going on with the OP's horse is normal or not. Obviously they are concerned about it, so I assume it is not normal smegma. Or it could be. But we just don't know, especially without pictures.

And I am a firm believer that some horses need cleaning. I had a gelding that couldn't pee easily out riding unless I keep the smegma around the opening of his sheath cleaned out every couple of months. Some horses collect smegma and not necessarily beans and vice versa. 

I also have a neighbor who never cleaned her gelding until about 15 years of age. He had a hard bean the size of a walnut that the vet had to lay the horse down to removed. It was huge. That can't be comfortable. 

Maybe stallions keep cleaner, I don't know, I've never owned one, but some geldings can definitely benefit from it. I've seen it with my own eyes. If you're lucky enough that your gelding doesn't need it, more power to you.


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

Goldilocks said:


> I have had a horse for 15years and i cleaned his "bean" for the first time about a year ago because of all the hype. It was about 3mm maybe less. He never had any bother peeing, nor had any discharge on his penis. They pass them themselves, frequently. Too much cleaning makes the soap and stuff bbuild up, causing larger beans and upsets the bacterial composition. Same reason that ladies and gents should not use soap on their own personal parts.


Yikes to the last sentence!


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## chinoerika (Jun 10, 2013)

Goldilocks said:


> I have had a horse for 15years and i cleaned his "bean" for the first time about a year ago because of all the hype. It was about 3mm maybe less. He never had any bother peeing, nor had any discharge on his penis. They pass them themselves, frequently. Too much cleaning makes the soap and stuff bbuild up, causing larger beans and upsets the bacterial composition. Same reason that ladies and gents should not use soap on their own personal parts.


Last sentence , I hope your kidding.


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## Angele (Jan 29, 2015)

for the checking bean part....yup those are the first step we took and nothing, he is a grey Appaloosa and yes he got pink skin........the more i read about different cases the more it looks like the cancer type, which i told the owner i would rule out.....but maybe it is  the vet is coming here again next week and I think she will ask him to have some blood test which is what he should of done in the first place but anyways......and i guess this should tell us if it is cancer or infection but there is definitly something wrong :/ as for the farting part, yes horse fart a lot and its ok but the way he is just tells me that some fermentation in the hind gut is not doing so well....but i thought it might have something to do with everything....yeah.....just trying to make sense of all this.
As for the pics , i will ask the owner if she can put some up she is way more computer friendly then i am lol horse are easier to manage then computers for me lol thanks for all different replies....will keep you posted on the results of the blood test.......


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## KigerQueen (Jun 16, 2013)

Im soap sensitive so i find other Soap type things to clean myself with, but you still need to clean yourself! 


OP i hope its not cancer .


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## Goldilocks (Jan 30, 2015)

chinoerika said:


> Last sentence , I hope your kidding.


Why? 

I don't use soap on my lady parts. Its very bad for the general bacteria! This leads to trush and other bacterial problems. Drs will advise never to use anything like that. There are specific washes out there that are for the more intimate parts.


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

Goldilocks said:


> Why?
> 
> I don't use soap on my lady parts. Its very bad for the general bacteria! This leads to trush and other bacterial problems. Drs will advise never to use anything like that. There are specific washes out there that are for the more intimate parts.


crickets


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## westdusty (Feb 6, 2015)

We checked and he does not have a bean. The horse is mine and he's approx 10 years old Appaloosa. The blood work came back with high liver enzymes. Unfortunately there are no equine vet in our region and we don't have access to an x-ray machine.

Can someone tell me how to upload pictures??


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## westdusty (Feb 6, 2015)




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## westdusty (Feb 6, 2015)

Here are pictures


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## Angele (Jan 29, 2015)

It works Mona you did it


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## ApolloRider (Feb 14, 2013)

In regards to the soap on human genitals...

Goldi is in fact correct. Our lady parts are self cleaning, if you do get gross down there it's because you are messing with your pH with the type of soap you are using. Water and a loofah or whatever you use are sufficient. They make a special type of soap for human genitals if you absolutely feel the need. NEVER use scented soaps to wash those areas. It screws up your pH levels, and kills the good bacteria.

For a lot of people it does more harm than good.
Ask your gyno on your next visit. 
If you have UTI problems and you are douching or using scented soaps guess what, that's most likely why.

Edit: Sorry for the off-topic post. I just feel like people need to understand their bodies. It's very important.


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## Ray MacDonald (Dec 27, 2009)

Maybe try cleaning it with vagisil until your vet knows what it is?


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## equine08 (Feb 7, 2015)

westdusty said:


> We checked and he does not have a bean. The horse is mine and he's approx 10 years old Appaloosa. The blood work came back with high liver enzymes. Unfortunately there are no equine vet in our region and we don't have access to an x-ray machine.
> 
> Can someone tell me how to upload pictures??


West Dusty & Angele, my suggestion for when your vet comes back is to bring an ultrasound machine to check for an obstruction. In addition, I would suggest writing up a history on the horse, as well as sending him/her as many good photos, including ones that show progressive changes. As a non equine vet she may want to utilize the online resources of sites such as Vetstream (you can get a 30 day trial for non members) and Vet Learn which have excellent info for Equines. Vet Learn has a Compedium for Continuing Education which may be very helpful. Your horse may have an obstruction or even a squamous cell carcinoma of which those high liver enzymes are related. Most larger equine practices & vet schools are very open to consultations with local vets. Some do not charge for the consultation as so many referrals come from local vets, but even those that do, the charge is a small amount.

Good luck with your guy, I hope this can be resolved for him.
https://www.vetstream.com/equis/Content/Disease/dis01325


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## Goldilocks (Jan 30, 2015)

Ray MacDonald said:


> Maybe try cleaning it with vagisil until your vet knows what it is?


That is a good idea.


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

ApolloRider said:


> In regards to the soap on human genitals...
> 
> Goldi is in fact correct. Our lady parts are self cleaning, if you do get gross down there it's because you are messing with your pH with the type of soap you are using. Water and a loofah or whatever you use are sufficient. They make a special type of soap for human genitals if you absolutely feel the need. NEVER use scented soaps to wash those areas. It screws up your pH levels, and kills the good bacteria.
> 
> ...


Yes, people should understand their bodies, which is why I'm posting this.
Soap does not harm outside genitalia because it is skin covered vs mucus membrane which is internal. The mucus membranes are where the good bacteria live & they can be adversely effected my soaps, antibiotics & such.
Keep the soap external & there is no problem.

Fun fact: Men & horses are the only mammals with skin covered penises.


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## rookie (May 14, 2012)

My sister is a doctor and also advises against washing "the tenders" with soap as it can alter the Ph resulting increased risk of infection. 

To the OP, what has happened?


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