Hello everyone! I have a mare who constantly needs compression on an old leg injury or it will fill with fluid…(ugh). Anyways, as winter approaches, with it comes lots of rain, snow, and mud. My girl has been getting her new bandage muddy and wet within a day of wrapping it, costing me lots of money to rewrap every day. I am trying to find an affordable way to keep her bandage waterproof. I have seen recommendations for press n seal, but I really do not like that idea as it makes the bandage “un-breathable”. Is there such thing as a bandage cover? I would prefer something reusable. Thanks in advance! (Her bandage consists of a non-stick pad, a sheet of cotton, and vet wrap)
It’s not reuseable, but elastikon prevents quite a bit of water penetration. It will stay put in muddy environments and is still breathable. You can wrap the entire bandage in it if necessary, or just place strips at the top and bottom of the bandage to help seal the moisture out.
Another idea, which probably wouldn’t work in this case, would be to adhere the nonstick pad with elastikon and put a boot over top. Something like a sports medicine boot or a splint boot might work to add warmth and enough compression to keep the filling at bay while saving you money on bandaging materials.
Edited: added info
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Non-stick pad “glued” on with a small dab of zinc oxide ointment followed by Vac’s no bows (the fat ones, not the Jack’s thinner ones) followed by polyester stable wraps.
Everything will stay in place during all weather and the only expense is the non-stick pad and the PITA of doing laundry every couple of days or so during the worst weather.
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LeMieux Turn out boots might work?
Also this option https://profchoice.com/i-7261571-boot-covers.html
However, I would be re wrapping every day regardless. I wouldn’t leave a bandage on for more than 24 hrs straight.
Ditto! Those SMB boot covers are fine. My trainer puts them over her white polos for warm-up at clinics and they stay put, but I still wouldn’t leave a wrap on more than 24 hours. I don’t think I’ve left one more than 12 hours without a re-wrap unless the horse was on stall rest and not moving enough to shift anything.
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Thank you for the replies so far! I am not sure if sports boots are a good idea as the bandage is a “permanent” thing meaning her leg is ALWAYS wrapped except while I’m changing it. This is what it looks like if it helps anyone (below). A few of you mentioned to not keep a bandage on for more than 12 or 24 hours. That is a little bit extreme for her case as there is no open wound. Just very thin, but very much healed skin! It’s just for compression and the nonstick pad is just for extra protection for the thin skin
Is there a reason why you’re not using a standing bandage instead?
That’s how I’d deal with this. Everything can be washed, nothing gets tossed. You can top with those covers when things are really wet.
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I dont think I’ve ever really considered it! Our vet told us to wrap like this when her injury WAS healing last year, and I never thought to convert to something else.
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The sports medicine one would work for that easily. Its more a lose bag thing that you just put over.
The wrap should go lower, to the ergot at least too, imo.
Injury or not, a wrap really shouldn’t be left on for 24 hrs without changing. Is there a reason it cant be removed and rewrapped every day?
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FWIW, I’ve absolutely had vets tell me to wrap an injury and leave it for 2-3 days, to avoid disturbing the delicate wound bed as it heals. Looks like this is well past that stage, though! Agree that wrapping once or twice a day is the way to go now.
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Oh my goodness. Now that I’m researching photos of injured tendons with bandages, I’m now realizing that most go down to the ergot. I’m seriously considering changing my vet as she does not really care about my “barnyard” horses. She usually doesn’t even check my mares VERY expensive injury we paid for. (The one for the bandage obviously). After the injury healed mostly and we paid for the vet bill, she forgot about us. She never gave us any recovery plans or tips to wean her injury off the bandage. Now I’ve been coming up with this bandage on my own and it’s obviously not correct. If anyone has any tips, I would really appreciate it. I’m so glad that you all brought this to my attention.
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This looks to be a pretty reasonable walk through on applying standing bandages I start at the top, though, not the middle. (And leave the alcohol out for what you’re doing.) I like Vac’s no bows and the Bevel standing wraps, but everyone has their own preference!
If she still needs to be wrapped 24/7, then consider rewapping AM & PM–or at least checking twice daily to confirm everything is where it should be, and rewrap once a day.
How do you feel about doing the same thing in this article (including the ergot this time), but still using vet wrap and cotton sheets? I feel more comfortable using something that sticks to itself and offers more security. But I will definitely try standing wraps(the reusable ones) if you think this isn’t a good choice.
I’d certainly not go that route–it’s much easier to over tighten vetwrap, which can cause a bandage bow or a pressure sore. It’s also 
to go through all that material every day.
It’s not difficult to put on a very stable standing wrap that will not slide or move (even in turnout, although you definitely should keep an eye on them if they’re wrapped when out) but it does take some practice
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Thank you so much!
Vet wrap and sheet cottons are great for fresh injuries, but they are unforgiving. Sheet cottons are thin, and don’t compress much. Vet wrap is very stretchy and hard to apply across the whole leg with uniform tension that is not too tight or too loose.
A wider bandage with less stretch, over a thicker pad, gives more room for error - and is washable and more cost effective.
I’d recommend you grab a copy of the USPC Guide to Bandaging Your Horse. It’s cheap, easy to follow, and covers things you hope to never need as well - like how to wrap a knee properly.
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Having extensive experience wrapping horses in turnout (way more extensive than I wanted, dumb horses) – I use standing bandages over quilted wraps. Do practice. You can make a solid, secure leg wrap. For security, I put a strip of tape (I rip a piece of Gorilla tape in half because I’m poor & it makes the tape last twice as long; duct tape quits when it gets wet so I no longer use it) around the velcro to keep it in place.
Never had anything shift or come loose, even on the goofy young TB who chews on everything. And it’s all machine washable!
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How about the quick-wrap bandages? Quick and easy to apply, you can “spiral” a strip of tape to prevent it coming undone. You might also look at the “equiflex” compression socks for horses. They are a bit of a pain to get on but not bulky and they don’t slip. Kind of like support hose for horses!
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Just a note for using Vetrap - I always unroll the entire roll and then re-roll it onto the cardboard tube (without stretching it!) before applying. It makes it way, way easier to put it on and just about eliminates the danger of getting it on too tight. You can literally put it on with only a non-stick or absorbent wound covering. With a Vac’s no bow on top, I can get 2-3 days out of one application of Vetrap - just save the cardboard roll and as you’re taking it off roll it back onto the cardboard roll. Bonus, since it’s grabbier than leg hair, the standing wrap will not budge even in mud, snow, rain, etc. Same technique works for cling gauze wrap. As long as it comes off clean, re-roll and re-use. Do not re-use if wound has seeped through, obviously.
