rubbing her butt & tail raw

[sayyadina]

My Welsh/Arab mare has had periods where she's been rubbing the underside of her tail & butt raw since last winter. At that time, it had been very cold & dry, so I though it might be dry skin. Tried a coat supplement, but that did not help. When I realized it seemed worse when she came into heat, I thought that maybe putting her back onto the RelaxHer she'd been on would help, but it does not seem to have. She's also been on a joint supplement for the past 3 years. I've also tried washing her tail, which doesn't seem to help. I also have a moisturizer for horses, but I don't think that helps.

In addition to the RelaxHer & SmartFlex maintenance, she gets Blue Seal Trotter & local grass hay. She's out all day with my other mare, but comes in over night. She's dewormed regularly on a rotational schedule. And this started when it was way too cold for any insects to be active. The only thing the Trotter has that the Strider didn't is alfalfa.

One thing I've been wondering is if maybe she's developed an allergy to either the Trotter or the SmartFlex. Before we moved last year, she got the Strider. But its been over a year since the grain change, and the supplement has been the same for 3 years.

The thing that bothers me about it is that she rubs until she rubs the skin away. She's the only horse at the stable with this issue.

If its not dry skin, or hormonal or worms, I'm kind of at a loss as to what this could be. I also clean off her teats regularly, and they don't really get that crusty to begin with.

She has always been kind of 'itchy' and enjoys a good scratching session, but this is way beyond her usual pattern.

[LovelyBay]

My mare started doing this too this year. I've scrubbed her tail and rear area with an anti-fungal and anti-microbial shampoo, and it helps for about a day. I've tried Listerine and MTG in her tail. I de-wormer regularly too, but when I had a fecal count done there were worms that should have been being taken care of by the de-wormer but weren't. So I got a special de-wormer (not part of the rotation that I usually use, and it helped!
She still itches a little, but I use some Aloe on her tail and use extra fly spray and it seems to keep it at bay.

[SkipChange]

That's bizarre, hope you get it figured out.

Our usual protocol for tail itchers if worms isn't the problem....washing her tail and conditioning it. Listerine, anti-microbial, anti-fungal products will be good but I would highly suggest following it up with a good conditioner as these products can be quite harsh. Really work it into the scalp and rinse thoroughly. Treat with MTG afterwards. *Note* MTG should not be used before the horse will be in direct sun. It can causes some horses to burn severely in the sun. If your horse is stalled great, if not I would apply it late afternoon. MTG is one of the most amazing products for growing hair and helping a variety of skin issues.

[blaeberry001]

We have a problem like thisin the UK with one of our ponis "Sweet Itch"

[JWB]

Check to see if her udder is dirty..... My arab mare would scratch the heck out of her tail whenever her udder got dirty.

Also it may be an environmental allergy.... Benadryl might help. I gave mine 10 pills each morning when she was really bad BUT it is NOT show legal. Make sure to stop well before a horse show.

[cholmberg]

Ditto JWB. My mare would start butt rubbing when she had crud between
her teats. . . itches and they can't scratch it. I tried to be regular with cleaning,
but if I ever slipped, it was a sure reminder.

[Simkie]

My mare rubs the crap out of her tail because of arthritis in her neck. The bony changes irritate the nerves and cause what I assume is a tingling sensation on her tail. Then she rubs.

Weird and uncommon, but if you've ruled out everything else, it could be a possibility. Sadly, there's just not a whole lot that can be done about it.

[Leather]

Also check her vulva and anus for any gunk in the folds.

[pupakin]

Dirty udder would be my first thought also. You need to get all of the gunk out from between/around the udders but also up between her butt cheeks behind the udder. I can always tell when I have waited too long to clean my mini's udders when she backs up to a tree and rubs away.

[ChocoMare]

Read This Thread (http://www.chronicleforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=155469) :yes:

Then go buy four tubes of Equimax. It won't hurt to try and I bet it'll help ;)

[hollyhorse2000]

Lots of us have this issue, but it's usually a spring/summer thing. I have recently started using Calm Coat, which I like quite a lot and highly recommend. I have also used something called Not So Sweet Itch.

However, it does sound like an allergy to me. Perhaps you can put her on an antihistimane to see if that works? My horse is on a daily one prescribed by vet each summer.

You might also try homeopathics both orally and topically . . .

good luck

[sayyadina]

Her udder doesn't get very crusty, and I clean it regularly. Anus & vulva also do not get crusty at all.

Arthritis isn't too likely in her case. Though she is 16-20, she's only been in work for the past 3 years, since she had been badly abused.

I did have some Malaseb spray left over from last year, and we went through that whole bottle without it working.

My gut feeling is allergies, and my gut feeling is quite reliable in regards to my own health issues. Is the benadryl something I can try on my own, or do I need to talk to my vet? I'd prefer to go the homeopathic route, however there aren't any holistic vets in the area.

[sandro]

Most of the time rubbing is do to Pinworms, they exit the anus at night to put their eggs (you need a miscroscope to see it) around anus area. The old care is to take some oil ( I use olive oil) and clean carefully all the area around and the lower tail portion facing the anus. It work on my horses, I tryed everything before without results. You can use cream as well, the goal is to have the area greasy so the eggs dont sticks, and if they are already there they will died.

[goeslikestink]

Most of the time rubbing is do to Pinworms, they exit the anus at night to put their eggs (you need a miscroscope to see it) around anus area. The old care is to take some oil ( I use olive oil) and clean carefully all the area around and the lower tail portion facing the anus. It work on my horses, I tryed everything before without results. You can use cream as well, the goal is to have the area greasy so the eggs dont sticks, and if they are already there they will died.

i agree pin worms arnt covered via wormers sometimes
also what type of rotational wormer you on do you mean you rotate the wormer on a daily basics or what

best to worm via seasons of the year and cycle of the worms

also look here-- www.sweet-itch.co.uk

[Seven-up]

Just an idea; may or may not apply here.

I have a horse with a wonky tail. Either nerved or broken, we don't know the history. She will rub it to the point of a huge, nasty, bloody sore. Vet's theory is that the nerves are messed up and it either hurts or itches (maybe the tingly feeling that someone else noted.)

We tried a lot of things, but what has worked the past few years is a shot of Vetalog, which is a steroid-type injection. (If you're not into steroids, then disregard, but you might at least look into it.) We give it to her once a year or so, and it totally does the trick. I know some people are totally opposed to steroids, but this one is apparently one of the more "mellow" steroids. The tiny dosage she gets, as infrequently as she gets it doesn't really compare to the damage she would do to her tail if I left her alone. I think she'd rub her tail right to the bone if I didn't do anything about it.



If you can't determine why she's rubbing, then I think it's definitely worth it to talk to your vet. You never know; it could be something really bizarre that no one has heard of. And there might be a really simple solution.

[sayyadina]

I'm not sure exactly which ones she's been given, since the BO worms both my ponies. Didn't get a chance to ask her what they were given when they were wormed, since I've been sick for most of the spring & summer.

I don't think sweet itch, or anything insect related, is at all likely since this started during the winter (February or March) and it was very, very cold with quite a bit of snow & ice.

Don't think an injury is likely, since it would have had to have happened during last winter, and I don't know when she could have had the opportunity. It was very icy, but none of the horses got turned out then.