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what is the best thing to treat rain rot

23K views 36 replies 19 participants last post by  StopSquareSalute 
#1 ·
what is the best thing to treat rain rot
 
#3 ·
Last year my horse got one of the worse cases of rain rot I've ever seen. All I can say is don't let it go too long before calling your vet. My horses hair was falling out in clumps and it took almost the whole winter/spring to grow back. Some people say the craziest things to put on it but truthfully getting it checked out and getting an antibacterial shampoo and antibiotics is probably your best bet. Knowing that your getting the best treatment is much better then guessing around what might work and what might not.
 
#5 ·
diet and nutrition,
While it is a fungus, generally it only takes root in a malnourished horse, usually a lack of vitamin A. Topical solutions are only treating symptoms and not getting rid of the underlying problem. Thats why it apears to keep coming back, if you dont fix the horses diet it will keep coming back.
 
#9 ·
Rain rot is not fungus. It is actually a bacteria that acts like fungi. Do NOT treat the area with a fungus treatment and keep the area CLEAN and dry. Keeping moisture away from the infected area will help healing and speed up the process.

I washed my horse daily for a week making sure she was completely dry. Which was hard because I was in a small barn in the middle of January.
 
#7 ·
Rain rot can occur because of many things, although must common is the rain. Sometimes it happens when you are not grooming your horse enough, either way, a good way to treat it is to groom, groom, groom!

If you are sharing brushes with another horse who does have rain rot, that may be why. :)
 
#10 ·
So.. Rainrot acts much like a fungus - still being a bacteria - and can actually be something that can be passed between horses by even grooming tools.

Depending on the time of year [considering I live in the NW and it rains a lot here a majority of the year] I cleanse the area first. The goal is to get rid of the scabbing if its that bad. The longer the horse soaks the easier they are to get rid of. Getting rid of the scabbing that is harboring bacteria is important :) Usually considering its colder when raining I'll spot wash. Regular shampoo is fine.

Then I start the treatment process honestly.. I just use Cowboy Magic Krudbuster. The biggest thing is keeping the area from exposure to the eliments until you have it treated.. And as someone mentioned above.. continue treatment on the area a bit past the time it appears to have cleared.

Wash up your grooming tools and make sure no one else is sharing them - both people and horses.

Hope it helps!
 
#11 ·
My 40 year old pony has rain rot and it comes every spring and stays through until October. I haven't tried the vit A but I think that adding that to his senior feed and mash might help. I usually groom the heck out of him while he has it. He doesn't seem to mind it but still won't come in out of the rain and will get irriatated if I try and lock him in his stall. In October is when I start to blanket him because of the cooler weather. That's when it seems to start going away.
 
#13 ·
NIzoral shampoo.

You can buy it from a pharmacy (chemist)

Dilute with hand hot water and apply to coat, lather up well working it well into the hair to the skin and leave to dry.

It will sort out the rain rot within days.

No need to pick off scabs which is very painful for the horse. They will fall off as you wash. The shampoo seems good at dissolving much of the scab.

Sometimes you may need to wash a second time but I've rarely found I need to do this.
 
#17 ·
It is bacterial and also contagious. The healthier the horse the better it will fight it, there are lots of antibacterial washes and sprays out there and it might need a course of antibiotics
I have never in all my years of horse owning had one with rain rot or mud fever, for me prevention is better than cure and if the weathers going to be really wet and muddy for a prolonged period they get somewhere dry to stand either indoors or outdoors and a lightweight waterproof blanket
The problem is once a horse has it any blanketing will incubate the bacteria to give it a better breeding ground and make it worse
 
#25 ·
I think maybe you are the one that is too focused to see beyond the point you want to make. I do understand what you're trying to say but to know that ketoconazole is effective in curing rain rot you first have to confirm by a biopsy that the horse does indeed have rain rot.
Extensive research has already been done in laboratory & clinical trials to introduce the dermatophilus bacteria into animals and then observe the symptoms - which manifest as what we know as rain rot/mud fever etc. and they then look at the most effective ways of treating it. This work is not done by some vet going out to look at a pony in field somewhere thats had the scabs picked off 'whatever'.
Research has also been done introducing other things that cause skin problems - fungal infections for one and also infections from soil borne things like e-coli as they all have a similar appearance and appearance but a different cause.
If you want to do some actual research trials you might try approaching someone doing a PhD, but a huge amount of research and trials have already been done by the big Pharma, companies on 'triazoles' which are the group that ketoconazole belongs too as to how effective they are as anti bacterials/antibiotics, mostly down to the ongoing problems with drug resistance. Its already well documented that they are effective in the treatment of fungal related infections so for your theory to work you would have to prove the existence of dermatophilus on the affected area to be able to say that you have a success as research has already indentified the bacteria minus any fungal existence in cases of rain rot
One of the biggest delays in this research is the concern that triazoles may have a miniscule risk of causing birth defects and there are already new antifungals that are less risk coming through the registration process which under new EU legislation coming out next year may hinder re-registration of these products.
Good luck with your continued research, I wish you well in your efforts.
 
#26 ·
I also have to disagree with the statement "rain rot is not contagious".

In my experience, it IS.

Picture this - new horse, perfect bill of health except that I couldn't get my hands on her to feel her all over. By the time I COULD, she had quite extensive rain rot. Not so bad that you could see it but all along her topline and down her sides.

3 days later, my mother's pony turns up with it on her nose, presumably picked up from grooming the affected young TB.

3 more days later, a boarder's pony turns up with it. Same day, I take my older gelding's rug off for the first time in a few days, and he has it UNDER HIS RUG where during this time he has been completely dry.

We treated by using a medicated shampoo for the treatment of fungal skin infections primarily in dogs and cats - this particular shampoo is of course also registered for use in horses, we bought it on vet's advice and the vet cannot recommend the use of a drug or product that is not registered for use on the species intended.

All four horses are now totally clear of any sign of rain rot though my older gelding still has 'scabs' on his hind legs. He has old wire scars on both hind legs and we presume these 'scabs' are from keratosis caused by his scars as he is otherwise completely healthy and nothing we have tried has made any difference.
 
#27 ·
Jaydee - what I am trying to get across is that I believe the initial cause of rain rot, mud fever and greasy heel is FUNGAL! Not bacteria - I think that the bacteria gets in when owners start to pick off the scabs or the horse itches the condition and breaks the skin

Treat it at the first sign - the raised areas of glued together hairs - with the Nizerol and it goes no further. If Nizerol doesn't work on bacteria then the condition it sorted must be fungal. If it were bacterial then washing with an antiseptic solution would sort it straight away but it doesn't. The Nizoral does.

Where I am in New Zealand these conditions are rife as we are in a humid zone. So we see this on a very regular basis. The majority of our horses live out and many without covers. We are very good at spotting the early signs as we see it all year round.

This winter just passed was very wet and my filly naked, she was fine until we had heavy rain, followed by a couple of very warm days then back to the rain. She developed rainscald in a matter of days. The rest of the horses in her paddock didn't because they had covers on. My Clydesdale on a different property developed it on her ears - the only spot left uncovered.

As soon as I spotted the raised areas - they were treated with Nizerol and a few days later clear od scabs and any further new patches.

I would love to have this researched as it woould save so many horses from being tortured by their well meaning owners.
 
#34 ·
Jaydee - what I am trying to get across is that I believe the initial cause of rain rot, mud fever and greasy heel is FUNGAL! Not bacteria - I think that the bacteria gets in when owners start to pick off the scabs or the horse itches the condition and breaks the skin

Treat it at the first sign - the raised areas of glued together hairs - with the Nizerol and it goes no further. If Nizerol doesn't work on bacteria then the condition it sorted must be fungal. If it were bacterial then washing with an antiseptic solution would sort it straight away but it doesn't. The Nizoral does.

Where I am in New Zealand these conditions are rife as we are in a humid zone. So we see this on a very regular basis. The majority of our horses live out and many without covers. We are very good at spotting the early signs as we see it all year round.

This winter just passed was very wet and my filly naked, she was fine until we had heavy rain, followed by a couple of very warm days then back to the rain. She developed rainscald in a matter of days. The rest of the horses in her paddock didn't because they had covers on. My Clydesdale on a different property developed it on her ears - the only spot left uncovered.

As soon as I spotted the raised areas - they were treated with Nizerol and a few days later clear od scabs and any further new patches.

I would love to have this researched as it woould save so many horses from being tortured by their well meaning owners.
If you are so interested in researching then why not begin with asking owners of affected horses to have samples of skin scrapes sent off for analysis before treatment. These would show both fungal and/or bacterial presence. You would probably have to pay the costs but would be worth it for your ongoing research as without them you cant prove anything that you could present to a company.
Sufficient laboratory trials have been done to confirm that dermatophilus is the cause of rain rot as these trials have to be carried out under clinical conditions where there is no other fungal or bacterial cause present - this is how scientific research is done - my husband is Global Head of R&D in a company that specialises in this type of thing
You might be able to prove that Nizoral is effective against dermatophilus as well as fungal infections this way
Trials on new less toxic 'azoles' are currently underway to determine how useful they would be as antibacterials/antibiotics
ingentaconnect Antibacterial Activity of Some New Azole Compounds
Nizoral is available in its generic form sold as Ketoconazole which is a lot cheaper I imagine than the brand name.
For the person who uses bleach effectively - Hydrogen Peroxide is a very effective antibacterial and antifungal - these things can do both jobs. It is also cheap. I frequently use it on myself especially when I get scrapes and also tick bites and though it might sting a bit I wouldnt describe it as painful at all
 
#28 ·
Dilute bleach in a spray bottle (follow the instructions on the packet, use the amount recommended for washing human hands) Remove the scabs and dispose of in a plastic bag then spray affected area once a day.

It may hurt the horse a little but it is the cheapest option I know of and worked really well on my horse's mud fever, it had grown back hair in two weeks and had healed up in one week.
 
#29 ·
It's cheap but it doesn't work and it hurts the horse - been there done that with a harnedd trainer I worked for - we worked on one horse for weeks.

One wash with Nizoral will clear it up in a day or two - you won't need to pick off the scabs and the horse won't feel a thing. The bottle lasts for ages and won't bleach your clothes in the process.
 
#32 ·
I dont know if anyones said this, but medical Iodine shampoos worked for me.
Get horse/pony wet, scrub with iodine shampoo, leave on for 30mins to soak in, rinse off and use a brush to scrub off whatevers left. Dry off really well.
I heard that its from vitamin deficiency? So we also bought apple/salt and mineral licks for their stalls.
 
#33 ·
I heard that its from vitamin deficiency?
Zinc and Copper both help skin integrity so it's worth finding a good mineral block that has these ingredients.

Vitamin A also may help too.

Last year while I was away my filly developed really bad sunburn on her white blaze. Her mineral block had run out a couple of weeks earlier.

When I got back from my holiday I bought her a new block and a few days later all signs of thesunburn had gone.

This was the first time for over two years that she had run out - so now the block is replaced the momen it is gone. Both mum and daughter have big white blazes. The zinc and Copper seem to keep the sunburn at bay.
 
#36 ·
I use Triodine or MTG... works well for me and has worked for several years.

Iodine-based shampoo (Viodine shampoo) also works well and treats a variety of skin funguses...
 
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