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From: Barb Peck
Email: bpeck@us.ibm.com
Hi. Delurking for this post. All of the above are various terms for pretty much the same thing. One thing everyone agrees on is that it's *really* hard to get rid of. I will list below what has worked for me. ( I have privately Emailed people with this remedy, but never heard back to see if it worked for them.) All of the above can either be caused by bacteria or fungus/yeast. IMO,most probably, it's starts out as fungal then gets a secondary infection going with some sort of bacteria. Anti bacterial medications do not kill fungus and anti-fungals do not kill bacteria. Alot of the bacteria & fungi responsible for this condition reside in soils AND on the skin. Sometimes the balance of the natural fora on the
skin get's out of balance (you know the good/bad bacteria scenario) the bad get's out of control. OR the bad can be introduced through a break in the skin. Some individuals are more susceptible to exposure than others, and horses with white socks seem to be in this category (although there's no proof, other than anecdotal that they're of weaker constitution).
Anyway. Wash the affected area with a good anti-bacterial soap (like Hexidine, from your vet) and leave the suds on 5 minutes. Then wash again with a sulphur based soap, (like Fostex, from the drug store). Dry the area. Now comes the
part where you play Russian Roulette on whether to use a medication that's anti-bacterial or anti-fungal. I start assuming it's fungal, and that it probably is itchy and uncomfortable. You can buy Monistat 7 without a prescription, and that's what I use (I know it's for yeast infections... but it works on this too) Glob it on the area.
If it's cracked or bleeding, use thin gauze over
the area and wrap in vet/tape/wrap then use a standing wrap. 12 hrs later take a look. Wash it & dry it again and then decide whether you need an antibacterial. I have actually put Monistat 7 on the area, then smeared Nitrofurazone cream over that. The worst cases are when it's really wet/muddy and the horse is constantly being re-infected, so it's important to keep the leg as dry as possible, and to wash your hands before and after treating your horse. If it's fungal/yeast, you'll see an improvement in 8-24 hrs. But you'll have to keep medicating the area
once a day for at least 7 days or until the skin is healed & unbroken and the hair is starting to come in. IMO it truly is the hardest thing to get rid of. Good luck.
Barb
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