The search continues…. Would you buy a horse with a sarcoid? I have an appt to try a 5 yr old and was just informed he has a large sarcoid behind his girth area. Experiences with them? Wondering if I should cancel the appt now?
I owned one. Several sarcoids much smaller than in the photo. That one is HUGE! Seller was a vet who swore it would just go away and was no biggie. Well that, and various other representations, didn’t turn out to be all that accurate. I treated it with the cream she gave me and it never stopped the sarcoids from growing. One was on his sheath and really kind of worried me. I ended up selling the horse with full disclosure (for unrelated reasons) and I don’t know what ended up happening… but they were growing rather than shrinking when I sold him. I didn’t enjoy having the worry and I will not knowingly buy one with sarcoids again.
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I would not. Especially because this one will potentially interfere with a girth if it grows.
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That was my concern! And worry about it coming back if removed…
Thank you for your input! It is huge and the location near the girth is worrisome.
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They can grow back larger. I wouldn’t do it.
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Like the others, the location is worrisome.
I have dealt with a sarcoid on two different horses and neither was an issue, but neither was in a location that would interfere with the tack.
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I too have dealt with with them in areas that were not an issue with tack and one horse who had one where the browband and the headstall meet. It was surgically removed, which made the already sensitive horse head shy, and it took about 2 years to regrow. The horses I have dealt with had them where they had them, they didn’t spread, but the ones they had all seemed to grow at various paces. I’d take a gamble on a nice horse with one in an inconspicuous area that won’t interfere with tack. This horse would be a hard no due to both size and location.
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I’ve cared for two…one had a sarcoid in the ear; the other was directly under the cheek piece of the bridle. Both were treated w Aldera (I think) and neither has come back. It’s been years.
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No.
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It could be NBD and never cause an issue. Or it could be a huge, expensive, unmanageable, stressful deal. The latter is not worth the risk, IMO.
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Definitely cancel appointment. I just treated one with Aldara (successfully, knock on wood!) but it took a while and got worse before better. The location and size… no way!
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No. Just no.
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My mare had one (in a place where it didn’t interfere with tack however). Treated it when I bought her, fell off within a few months and hasn’t returned - it’s been three years. Not sure if I would risk it if it was under tack though; depends on where your girth lies.
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To me, thats something that the seller sorts out, not the buyer.
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My mare has Sarcoids. I didn’t know when I bought her ( she was 6) but the first one on her shoulder appeared shortly after and took 2 years to grow. It was flat and scaly and not a concern. But then last year she developed one on her stifle that grew very fast - like within a couple of months it had grown to ping pong ball size and then exploded and fell off, and then started to Grow again. She also had a small one on her belly. I got them surgically removed last autumn. It cost €500 and 1 month of stall rest (because the one on her shoulder would have ripped open if she had moved). My vet said normally with surgical removal they don’t come back. Although there’s a chance she can grow new ones in different places. Fingers crossed that doesn’t happen…
The worrying thing about sarcoids is they are so badly understood by science and there is also a lot of misinformation and incorrect treatment. The world’s leading sarcoid specialist says the ONLY way to remove them Is surgically and sometimes they also need chemotherapy. I had to shop around for a vet who actually understood that. I inquired with a few clinics who said they wanted to use creams, put an elastic band around it, etc. 
:dizzy:
Anyway personally I would still buy a horse with sarcoids if I loved the horse and if my intention wasn’t to resell it. It might just take more management and some luck that they don’t develop in stupid places like eyelids. But whenever you buy a horse it could develop random things anyway (asthma, allergies, lamenesses). My other horse has a pretty severe parrot mouth which made him cheap to buy. People are silly about parrot mouth too. However it makes no difference to him and he has turned out to be the best horse I’ve ever had.
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I got a fantastic deal on a little warmblood because he had a sarcoid above his eye. We treated it with some sort of topical and it disappeared and never came back 
Had a small scar in its place. He was one of my favourite horses I ever had, he has since sold. I will say though the placement and size of the one in your photo would give me pause. AND it’s shady that the seller only told you about it after you made the appointment.
I also had a horse with a parrot mouth and he was extremely tough to sell even though he was super flashy and an unbelievably fun horse. He was 8 at the time of sale, had him since he was born with absolutely no issues. But people just couldn’t get over the parrot mouth I guess just because it sounds bad.
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Decided to cancel the appt - didn’t like that it wasn’t revealed before I made the appt and didn’t like the location or size. More risk than I want to take on at this point.
Thanks for the insight everyone!!
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And yet, there are plenty of us who have had them biopsied and done various treatments that are not surgery and had great success including them never reappearing. YMMV, but topicals or cryo can work for many.
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NO
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