My homemade concoction is neosporin, hydrocortizone, and monistat 7 mixed in equal amounts. I go to walmart and get all generic versions, it costs about $8 to make a batch.
I’ve used antifungals (miconaizole or athletes foot cream) with desitin as my home made combo… on our shire mare that gets scratches in her feathers every summer. Works pretty well.
I just use a baby butt cream. I use different ones with each season and I haven’t had one not work yet.
All you need is Nolvasan.
[QUOTE=monstrpony;7741185]
Are you sure this is scratches? Might it be cannon keratosis? Especially during shedding season, cannon bones tend to get yucky looking, but my take on it is that many of us are bad about shedding out on the lower leg, and this is the result. Vigorous grooming with a soft curry mitt or a jelly scrubber, and then brushing away the shedded hair and the accompanying dead skin does the trick for me.[/QUOTE]
I agree placement seems odd for scratches–usually scratches shows up just above the heel area.
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[QUOTE=ytr45;7738808]
It the old days folks always picked off the scabs and scabby stuff, before treating with xyz treatment. My neighbors still do that. When did the guidelines change?[/QUOTE] Picking the scabs and breaking the skin leaves room for infection, ie cellulitis. It’s best to soften the scabs and let them fall off on their own.
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I had decent luck mixing chlorhexadine gluconate solution with a clear dish soap to gently scrub the legs. I’d let it sit 5-10 minutes all sudsed up, rinse thoroughly, and towel dry.
I used Tea Tree ADE ointment (basically Vaseline with tea tree oil mixed in), unless it was going to be really wet from rain or dew. Then I used either diaper cream or Healex (both zinc oxide based) for a really water repellent barrier.
Haha haha! Sorry, a scratches thread gets resurrected by jock itch remedies.:lol::lol:. Clearly I’m being juvenille.
I’ve had success with that too. Cheap when ingredients bought at the dollar store.
Bumping this up rather starting a new thread. Going to try the 50/50 Desitin/nitrofrazone combo after a chlorhexadine scrub soak. The Equiderma lotion didn’t help and neither did MicroTek for my Holsteiner. I’ve never before fought scratches like this.
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Go for broke and mix all 4. Desitin, antibiotic, steroid, and anti fungal in equal amounts. I have a gray with 4 whites who gets some form of scratches every year and this always works. I usually don’t bathe legs with anything and don’t pick scabs. Just make sure legs are dry and lay this stuff on thick.
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Are you using triple antibiotic ointment and the over the counter 1% hydrocortisone?
So your just saying the chlorhexidene scrub?
the 4 way product I posted years ago involved the use of a dewormer in the mix. It is a sound practice based on the mixed nature of the infection we call scratches. You could mix the products together and put it in an old roll on deodoreant bottle off to use the search function to see if I can find the exact recipe.
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That’s interesting. So you apply the dewormer topically, rather than dose the horse with it? I’ve never had to treat scratches, thank goodness.
found it this is from a topic in 2009
From hoopoe
if this is true scratches / mud fever the primary and causative agent is a fungus Sporotrichum schenki
Most home treatments do not get to the root cause, fungus that lives inside the follicles out of reach of topical medications
this recipe has appeared here as well as other places. Use a roll on applicator, like an old deodorant bottle or a squeeze bottle
1 part furazone ointment
1 part “bendazole” dewormer - thiabendazole, safe-guard, panacur ,anthelcide EQ Benzelmin
1 part DMSO
dewormer is the safest anti fungal as it is made to be used inside the body. DMSO should never be mixed with iodine preps.
wash the area with warm water and scrub it clean. rinse very well and towel dry
using gloves apply medication daily
mix up only enough formula to use in a short time
I agree that if this has been of such a chronic nature it likely deserves the look to by the vet and possibly some culture or biopsy.
sarcoids can mimic mud fever
the fungal element is in the soil and pretty much impossible to get rid of. I live in western Washington the land of mud and have a horse that lives out 24/7. I have never been in a barn that has this issue. I think I have hit it lucky
I printed out Heather Smith Thomas’ excellent ( as always) article from the COTH (sorry no date noted) The recipe comes from a vet in Oregon
I really battled persistent scratches in MN. All of the goos, scrubs and sprays would reduce but not eliminate. And it was exhausting. Put the horses on a half dose of poly copper and poly zinc (Uckele or Horsetech, cheap at both) and POOF scratches gone. Magic!
Highly recommend! :yes:
I read that somewhere else too! It is the symptom of a copper deficiency.
Yes. Equal amounts of all 4. Generic is fine. Good luck!
You can put the solution in your wash bucket with shampoo or use surgical scrub like Hibiclens.
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