# Infection on Back Legs



## tseluyu dylan (Sep 25, 2009)

Hello, 

My pony gets the infection on the back legs possibly from urine?
I scrub this off every day but it continuously comes back. 
Is there anything I can do so this fungus will stay away for good?


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## bubba13 (Jan 6, 2007)

Wait, is it urine, an infection, or a fungus? Or feces? Or sweat?

Is your pony by any chance a mare?


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## tseluyu dylan (Sep 25, 2009)

Kashy is a gelding, and it is a fungus that grows on the front of the back cannon bone that is often caused when urine splashes onto the skin.


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## bubba13 (Jan 6, 2007)

How does your horse posture to pee? A (healthy) gelding should not be splashing his hind legs when he urinates. And urine is sterile, so I don't see any way how it could be connected to a fungus. Does your horse have white legs? Sure it's not rainrot or something related? Got a picture?


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## apachiedragon (Apr 19, 2008)

bubba, it's called urine scald or urine burn, and it's irritation and scabs caused by urine staying on the skin.

tselu, once you get it cleaned off really well, apply zinc oxide (a diaper rash cream works well) until it heals. Once it is healed, you can keep a layer of Vaseline on the fronts of the rear legs to prevent it from coming back, but if you do, be sure to clean it well and reapply often so it doesn't harbor bacteria in itself.

Bubba is somewhat right in that your horse may not stretch out properly to urinate. That could just be him, or he may have some back or hip and leg soreness preventing him from stretching. You may want to mention it to the vet and have them do a pain check the next time they are out.


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## bubba13 (Jan 6, 2007)

apachiedragon said:


> bubba, it's called urine scald or urine burn, and it's irritation and scabs caused by urine staying on the skin.


I've seen it in mares--well, not scabs, but particularly for mares in heat, when the stickier discharge comes out and stays in contact with the skin for a good while, I've seen hair loss and irritation. But I've never seen that develop into a secondary infection, nor a fungus, nor have I seen a gelding that urinated on himself to the extent described, unless he were dying or something. Even if he _did_ pee on his legs, it should, theoretically, bead right off and not cause any problems....


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## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

No matter how stretched out my geldings get, if the wind is blowing hard enough and in the right direction, it will blow back on their legs.

Diet can make a difference in urine acidity. If the horse is being fed a high amount of alfalfa, it will produce a lot of ammonia in the urine which, in turn, can cause burns on their legs in this time of high heat/humidity we are all experiencing.

Ditto washing every day and applying the diaper rash cream to the affected areas.

Washing with some form of Betadyne is the best but if you can't get that, warm water and Dawn dish soap will work. Just do NOT bath the entire horse in Dawn dish soap.

Rinse thoroughly, wipe dry, then put the diaper rash cream on. WalMart's "Equate" is the thickest, has the highest amount of zince oxide and stays on longer


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## apachiedragon (Apr 19, 2008)

I've not seen it cause a fungus either, but I suppose it could be mistaken as something such as rain rot, which is a fungus. They look similar when the urine scald gets those crusty scabs on it. I've known a few geldings to get it over the years, but most had sensitive skin, or didn't stretch out properly to urinate, for whatever reason. In any case, I do recommend having a vet do a once over when the OP is able, in case there is an underlying issue.


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## tseluyu dylan (Sep 25, 2009)

_apachiedragon_, does the diaper rash cream also promote hair growth, somewhat off topic but I had someone tell me that if I rub it on a tail bone the tail will grow out where it is thin. Do you think this is true?


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

Both my mare & gelding get pee on their hind legs. Here in southern AZ, the ground is hard as concrete and it splashes in all directions. The pee mixes with the dirt to form dried mud on the legs.

The gelding gets some pee on all 4 legs...not too bad. 

The mare gets it on the inside/rear of her hind legs. She needs daily cleaning or it will cake as urine soaked dried mud. She objected to lots of things I tried, but I recently started using one of the curry combs with lots of soft 1/2 inch fingers. She seems to enjoy that, and it gets the dried mud off in a minute/leg.


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## apachiedragon (Apr 19, 2008)

tseluyu dylan said:


> _apachiedragon_, does the diaper rash cream also promote hair growth, somewhat off topic but I had someone tell me that if I rub it on a tail bone the tail will grow out where it is thin. Do you think this is true?


I've never heard of using diaper rash cream to help hair grow, but it certainly won't hurt. At the very least it will help heal and keep the skin moisturized, which will allow the hair to grow back.


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## ScharmLily (Nov 23, 2009)

If you are talking about what looks like basically a buildup of dead skin on the front of the cannon bones, then I know what you are talking about. My gelding has had this ever since I got him at the age of 19. I have never really seen him get pee on him, and he usually waits to pee on the sand or in his stall because he really doesn't like to be splashed. I groom him every day, and I clean everything to well....sort of a neurotic degree  

I once asked the vet about it, and they basically said that it is a rather common form of dermatitis. I have tried everything on him to no avail. However, my mare, who did not have it when I bought her, somehow contracted it from him (likely from the brushes- I no longer share brushes). I was successful in getting rid of it on her by using MTG on her legs every evening. Just be careful to wash it off after a few applications otherwise it can irritate the skin. I treated my gelding with the same stuff, but I think that it is just so established on him that it's impossible to get rid of at this point. I also scrubbed and brushed the legs every day and then used bleach water to sanitize the brushes afterward. Also, no sharing brushes at all.

My new gelding did not have it when I got him and still doesn't have it now. I keep all their brushes, boots, and polos separated, and this seems to do the trick. I definitely do not think that it is environmental at this point, nor do I think that it is caused by urine.

So, just thought I would share my experiences. I would recommend trying the MTG though, because it was the only thing that did work on my mare.


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## mls (Nov 28, 2006)

tseluyu dylan said:


> Hello,
> 
> My pony gets the infection on the back legs possibly from urine?
> I scrub this off every day but it continuously comes back.
> Is there anything I can do so this fungus will stay away for good?


On the inside of his back legs? What does it look/feel/smell like?

When my old gelding needs his sheath cleaned, he will have smega on his back legs. He is a very oily creature!


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## Hatty (Jun 11, 2012)

My 34 year old thoroughbred gets urine scald on her hind legs. I have found using liquid paraffin the best barrier as you can plaster it on all over the legs. Then wash it off with soap at night. It also softens the scabs so that they slide off and don't crack. I use it if the horses get mud fever for the same reasons. I found the nappy cream was difficult to remove and could get a bit dirty. 

Hope it helps


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## Tnavas (Nov 29, 2011)

Are his legs white? It sound more like mudfever - inwhich case wash well with Nizoral shampoo - its a human antidandruff shampoo that contains ketaconizol which will kill the fungus that is causing the problem.

Dilute with hand hot water, lather up well and work well into the skin - I use an old towelling face cloth as it gently removes scabs ready to come off.

Make you wash well around and beyond the current area of infection.

Generally I find one wash works but you may need to do more if it is very bad.


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## goodhrs (Dec 30, 2009)

Urine can cause urine gall on back legs, it is high in uric acid. It isnt sterile.


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