# Heat rash (?) on body



## measles (1 April 2008)

Yesterday morning one of our mares (who is a sensitive soul) had a widespread rash under her stable rug.   She is clipped but had gone down a rug as the evening was milder and so it shouldn't have happened as a result of being too warm.

The lumps vary in size from pea size to 3" in diameter and she is finding them itchy and a little hot.   She ahd a similar thing last year when someone sprayed her with fly spray and she took an allergic reaction but she's had nothing new on her or in her feed.  

Aside from ensuring she's not too hot (she's in a termatex now during the day) is there anything else can I do?


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## Louby (1 April 2008)

Just a thought.
This happened to my old mare.  She too was fully clipped, I was told to strip her and bathe the areas with diluted hibiscrub.  This did nothing and I felt awful as it was winter and she was naked apart from a cotton cooler (couldnt leave her totally bare).  Turned out it was the hay or something in it???? as we got a different delivery the following week and her lumps went.  Ok, so they just went ... but then put her on the normal hay again and they came back.  I didnt use that farmers hay again and didnt get the lumps.


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## Martop (1 April 2008)

Just watch they don't spread and become sore as my horse (thin skinned TB) has just been diagnosed with Dermatomycosis, whic is an airbourne bacterial infection.

His started as lumps under the hair but he was biting the ones he could reach, making them sore and in the space of 3 days they had spread over his entire flank on one side.

The vet came and diagnosed the above and said that he might have been a bit 'low' to have picked it up as most horses don't. He also said that moist conditions (warm rug, damp outside etc) don't help. He gave me some special shampoo stuff which i had to leave in and do him twice with. I also had to dunk anything that he had been wearing in the stuff!  My vet advised leaving rugs off as much as poss to get the air to his skin (not ideal for him in this weather - he's skin and bone as it is!).

My advice is to lessen rugs - even leave off a day one if stabeld - to see if that helps but if its still itchy in a day or 2 it may be worth getting it looked at.

Good luck


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## measles (1 April 2008)

Thanks for the helpful advice.


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## miller (2 April 2008)

Has the rug recently been cleaner (or cleaned since last used) - my gelding comes out in a severe nettle rash type reaction to some washing powders - can only use Nixwax, Tesco's own non bio or persil non bio for his stuff


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## Samcook (10 April 2008)

We've had big problems with my mare this winter since she had a small sebaceous cyst removed from her saddle area. The vet said to wash the wound with salt water twice a day, but after a couple of days she came up in a rash below the wound site. It started to spread, and after being rugged up, she ended up with them all over her body. I left her rugs off for a few days, but the initial rash remained. In the end, the vet agreed that it may be a reaction either to the salt water or the solution used to clean the wound site initially. I then washed her all over with dilute hibiscrub to make sure there was nothing left to irritate her skin. BIG mistake - she suffered a huge reaction to the hibiscrub and ended up looking like bubble wrap all over including face and legs.

Bathing her in baby shampoo and leaving her rugless seems to have sorted the majority of it out, and she is no longer sore and itchy BUT we are showing from this weekend so I clipped her yesterday to make her look presentable. Where the initial rash was, the bay coat is now in black spots, still with a few lumps. It looks suspiciously like a rainscald scar. I'm just dreading her getting warm in the wagon and breaking out again.


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## teabiscuit (10 April 2008)

mine had an itchy patch where he rubbed himself raw

i washed with hibiscrub, let it dry, and put hydrocortizone cream from the chemists on

it's worked a treat so far *touch wood*


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## Damien (11 April 2008)

it does sound as if it could be a mycosis, (fungal) infection. best to have a vet out and do some scrapings to establish that it is, as bacteria and fungal infections can worsen with different treatments if they are treated for the wrong thing. If it is a mycosis then washing with Imavarol could clear it up quite quickly. A mild wash with dermoline anti bacterial shampoo and allowing her to dry naturally without rugs could be a good interim measure. Sunshine and fresh air is one of the best treatments for so many skin conditions but I know most of us are struggling with that one.


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