[Fwd: Re: RC: Scratches?]

[Jim Holland <lanconn@tds.net>]

Judy...

My guy had this also. It's harmless and won't cause any problems....only
had it on the front of his back legs and I think your vet is probably
right...it due to urine splash.  I went on a campaign to get rid of it
and finally did, but you have to continue to treat to keep it off.
Apparently all horses don't grow this stuff.

It's kind of a " black greasy stuff", not crusty, so hard to scrape
off.  I used one of those "scrunge" pads which is sponge on one side and
sorta like a mild sandpaper on the other for cleaning teflon pans and
such.

I scraped the stuff a little with my fingernails, then used the rough
side of the scrunge to scrub it with betadine.  Did this twice a day and
it went away in about a week. After that, need to scrub it with Betadine
periodically to keep it off.  I'm sure there is a bacterial part of this
crud, but it doesn't seem to get any worse if you leave it alone and
apparently doesn't affect the skin or hair...just looks crappy.

All this stuff that grows on our horses is easier prevented than cured. 
Keep in mind that Sun of Dimanche is my only horse, so he gets my
undivided attention and a close scrutiny twice every day.  This is a
little tough if you have a herd, but here's what I do and never have any
of that stuff.  My pastures, while all grass, are on a creek and if
Sunny can't find any mud, he will "create" some by digging up a place to
roll.  I immediately fence him out of it and he promptly creates
another. Although he is not standing in mud, he is frequently covered in
it and is a real mud puppy when he can find it.

About every other day, I wash his legs from the knees/hocks down with a
sponge and a small bucket of Betadine, including scrubbing his feet with
one of those hoof picks with a stiff brush on the other side, then dry
thoroughly with a towel, checking for any sign of stuff growing on him,
especially scratches, and scraping off any scabs, rough spots, etc. with
my fingernails.  Sometimes I just coat under his pasterns with NFZ just
on general principals. It's water soluble and is usually gone by the
next day.   I keep a spray bottle of 10% clorox handy and picking up
each foot, spray it, slosh it around and dump the foot...no rinsing.

Works for me...nothing grows on him...never had thrush or whiteline,
either.

In the winter, when his coat is thick, I use one of the wire dog
groomers to remove any mud from his coat.  He seems to enjoy
this....just be gentle with it, stroking with the coat, especially on
his legs where he doesn't have any fur.  I then brush him with a stiff
brush to remove any leftover dirt. The wire dog groomer apparently gets
down to the skin and loosens up any buildup of dirt and junk that leads
to a case of rain rot.  Sunny seems to be very susceptible in the
winter, and I was always scraping a few spots off here and there till I
started doing this.  I sometimes see little tiny scabs come out when I
use the groomer with maybe a couple of hairs attached...this is the
beginning of rain rot and you wouldn't know if was there until the scab
was big enough to feel with your finger. Once exposed to air, it
dies...so never develops into something I have to treat.

Regards, Jim and Sun of Dimanche



JUDYK89@aol.com wrote:
> 
> I was wondering if anyone knows...
> 
> My mare has black crusty stuff that "grows" on the front of her rear legs, my vet called it "stud crud" (I believe it's from urine soaking and dirt sticking). Would this be the same type of infection as scratches or rain rot?  I've tried a dozen different things to get rid of it, maybe I'll try some of your solutions?  Another vet also recommended, for scratches, Nitrofurazone and antibiotics (don't remember witch antibiotics).  He says it's a new treatment, and it works every time.
> 
> Judy
> 
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-- 
Richard T. "Jim" Holland                 Phone:  (706) 258-2830
LANCONN, Inc.                            FAX:    (706) 632-1271
Three Creeks Farm			 INTERNET:  lanconn@tds.net
175 Hells Hollow Drive                   
Blue Ridge, GA 30513