# Mud fever, how to get rid of????



## alsxx (4 August 2009)

Ok this may sound really daft, but my TB has a bit of mud fever on one of his hinds - the back of his pastern/heel. I have been cleaning it daily (hibiscrub, removing the scabby bits as best I can - easier said than done when he is waving his leg around in the air generally in my direction!!) but cannot get it to budge (usually have got rid of mud fever by this method in a few days)....its not getting any worse, but it just wont go.

He's out 24/7, don't really want to bring in if I can help it as he's so chilled out in the field, and field is not wet at all - there is no mud!! I have been covering it in sudo cream after its been cleaned and dried thoroughly. Does anyone have any good ideas on what I can use to get rid of it....I'm starting to think I may just have to admit defeat and ask te vet for something. Its not made him lame, but it is sore for him, and he did protest at having that leg fiddled with by the farrier today.


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## HorseandGroom (5 August 2009)

Hi
If it's mudfever and you want to leave the horse in the field then what worked for me was to clean the area with anti bacteral shampoo, rinse clean and dry.  Cover the area in sulphur sublimed (BPC 1973) available from the chemist in 500g box for about a £5. Mix some of the the sulphur powder with a small amount of neutral skin cream (like cold - nappy rash - cream) to make a yellow paste.
Cover this with a gauze and bandage check twice daily that all is well and do not over tighten the bandage. The idea is to keep this dry and the sulphur mix on the skin. Its the sulphur that is important here, not the cream so much. It Should clear in about a week. Any concerns / complications call a vet - This worked for my mare from what had been a bad case. By the way it generally only occurs on her white leg! Hope this helps Ian


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## FabioFrench (5 August 2009)

We had a problen like this last year. Apparently the enzyme that causes mud fever also lives on buttercups and other meadow plants so can give them mud fever when they walk through it. We found silver cream the best thing to use and cleared it up a treat. You can buy it from metabolics. Or you can use sudocreme from boots.

Good luck.


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## alsxx (5 August 2009)

Thanks both...its a nightmare, never experienced it in the summer before, and never experienced a mutant version that doesn't want to go away  
	
	
		
		
	


	




....but yes its a white leg! There are buttercups in the field....we are moving on fri and new field they will be in has no buttercups.

I shall go off to Boots and try and get that sulphur stuff to give it a go (no doubt more strange looks from the pharmacist coming my way!!).


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## fatpiggy (5 August 2009)

I've found that Keretex mud fever powder beats everything hands down. I plaster udder cream over the top to hold the powder against the skin and keep the damp out, but anything oily over the top would be fine.  Bear in mind that you will be transporting the mudfever "bug" onto your new field. We never had it previously on my current yard until an infected horse moved on


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## alsxx (5 August 2009)

Hmmm...perhaps he will have to live in the stable then for a few days until it goes when we move.....its just mine where we are going, and has been rested for a good year with no horses on so hopefully is mutant bug free.

I was going to buy those turnout socks for him for the winter...are they any good?


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## Magicmadge (5 August 2009)

My girl got terrible mf this time last year. It was dry, no mud but it got in after she got harvest mites. It was very bad, up past her knees i tried allsorts and spent a fortune but it got away from me and was very upsetting for the horse and me. I got the vet and they gave me flamazine cream. Fantastic stuff it cleared very quickly, expensive, but they price matched a price i found on the internet £35. If she were ever to get it again i would not hesitate to pay that.


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## alsxx (5 August 2009)

I will bear that in mind MM. Fortunately it hasn't got any worse, I seem to be on top of it, its slightly smaller than the size of a 2p coin, but it just isn't getting any better. He did get a little bit higher up on the front of his leg and i got rid of that in a couple of days. The chemist is getting me in some of the sulpher stuff which will be ready to collect tomo morning so I will give that a bash!


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## Kenzo (5 August 2009)

Just keep on doing it with hibiscrub and some antibacterial shampoo, it will take well over a week before you start to see an improvement.

Rince the leg first in cold water, this closes the pores while you rinse the dirt/dust/sweat etc off, this reduces the risk of increasing the infection and dirt penetrating into the skin.

Then with warm/hot water bath the area in diluted hibiscrub along with some nice tee tree/antibacterial shampoo, sponge gentle to loosen the scabs, although it will be soar getting those scabs off (you'll need some gloves to pick away), and there will be bald patches but it needs to be done as you have to encourage new skin to grow.  

Then rinse off with a some nice cool water, this helps sooth the area, reduce swelling and put some flamonzine cream (silver sulfadiazine) on you can buy this from your vets, its no prescription and is around 15.00 for a large tup, no point just getting a little tube as it will only last you a fwe days, this a really good cream, they use it on people and is used in hospitals and the stuff works most importantly.

You could massage Vaseline into the area a few hours before and cling film it, this will warm and soften the skin so the dead hair and skin, scabs etc will drop off before you bath it, thus making it less painful for the horse.

Flamozine once applied is easily absorbed by the skin, which then dries nicely and lets the skin breath, applying greasy creams won't help the skin recover it will only create in nice environment for the bacteria to live in.

If you do this twice a day for the next week (or so) then it will go.


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## Pink_Pampas (5 August 2009)

I'm having a similar problem with one of mine.  The vet looked at it while she was out, she blood tested him for photosensitivity (came back clear) and as there was no mud said it was just the contact with wet grass (it started off when we had a really wet few days in June and spread from there).  It's been really hard to get rid of, have been doing all the hibiscrub washing and drying etc.  She gave me some antibiotic and steroid cream - Fucidin, but am just using hydrocortisone cream now from the chemist.  It's getting there, just have to keep on at it!


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