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HorseAdvice.com » Diseases of Horses » Skin Diseases, Wounds, and Swellings » Hair and Coat Problems / Itching / Irritated Skin » Scratches, Grease Heel, Dew Poisoning, & Mud Fever »
  Discussion on Scratches / dew poisoning
Author Message
New Member:
octavius

Posted on Tuesday, May 29, 2007 - 1:21 pm:

There probably aren't too many horse owners that haven't had to deal with scratches at some point in their riding career. I've had great success controlling this problem with just a few adjustments to the basic treatment. First of all it's easier to prevent than you might think. A lot of horses get it because they are ridden in the evening, hosed off, and put into the field wet. If this is you, take a few moments and towel off your horse's legs. Not only will it help to get rid of excess water but it's a nice massage for their legs. Also, invest in a hair dryer and get your horse used to it. If you keep the hair on his fetlocks short, towel off the excess moisture, finish drying with the hair dryer and then apply an antifungal athletes foot spray from the supermarket, you can get through the entire season without a hitch. I live in an extremely humid area of Maryland and as soon as the heat and humidity set in I start applying athletes foot spray to my horse's lower legs several times a week. It works like a charm. One other important thing to mention is that if you are battling a current case and you are using panalog or antibiotic ointment followed by Destin you need to make sure the leg is absolutely dry before you apply your medication. Again, use your hair dryer! Once everything is healed, continue with a good swipe of Desitin on all the prone areas and apply an athletes foot spray a few times a week until fall and you shouldn't have any more problems. And your horse will thank you.
Member:
ngossage

Posted on Tuesday, May 29, 2007 - 4:34 pm:

Last year my horse was itching his hind legs and had pink/red coronet bands and was swollen from fetlock to hoof (also painful to palp) from dew poisoning/scratches. Vet came out administered dexamethasone, and 15cc of histavet (also pulled cbc-everything was fine). I washed his legs, and then cold hosed over the next few days. Vet told me I could use Benadryl or other anti-itch medicine on his coronet bands as needed (dry first-Denise, hairdryer is a good idea!). We also added bell boots all the way around. Since adding the bell boots during night time turnout, no more red/itchy coronet bands.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, May 30, 2007 - 7:27 am:

Welcome Denise and thank you for the post emphasizing the importance of dryness in preventing and treating this disorder. It is very true that excessive wetting contributes to most cases and gets in the way of successful therapy. Nicole your post is a bit more perplexing as the vet just addressed the symptoms and not the cause and I could see bell boots being a double edged sword: protective of physical damage and sunlight on the coronets but may promote moisture. What advantage did you feel the bell boots contributed. Did you feel the coronets were drier?
DrO
Member:
ngossage

Posted on Wednesday, May 30, 2007 - 12:48 pm:

Dr. O, the vet wasn't able to diagnose an actual cause other than something irritating the coronet bands (she had't seen anything quite like it before). When he's turned out during the daytime from late September-early May without bell boots the red bands do not occur, so something that's blooming/growing in the pasture or the early morning dew while they're turned out at night irritates him. The bell boots keep his coronet bands drier.
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