New foster is filthy

Hey all, looking for a bit of a "head slap" wake up, please. I'll try not to get to wordy, but I guarantee nothing.

I got a new foster in and the poor guy is filthy. His coat is very oily/greasy feeling and he has minor rain rot starting, which I want to get rid of asap. My problem is, I can not, for the life of me, think of what we used to do to clean up a really nasty one in the dead of winter...

I do have access to a hot water wash room, but it's not heated. He is very hairy and I really don't want to have him that wet for that long and chance a chill on top of everything else. I was thinking more along the lines of one of those dry powder "shampoo" things? Chemicals though, yuck. What do you all think of maybe a few pounds of corm meal worked in and brushed out of his whole body. That sounds like a ton of work and I would almost be afraid he would try to eat the corn meal off of himself.

Poor guy just stands in front of the hay and slowly munches with his eyes closed and a very grateful look on his face. I'm not one to anthropomorphize them beyond reason, but you can clearly see him savoring every bite.

Any suggestions welcome.

PS. Yes, I know "This Thread Is Useless Without Pictures", but this is going to be a court case and I'm not suppose to say much about him until they see which way the trial is going to go. If I get to foster him for the duration I will collect pics and once the case is settled, I may be able to post them. He's such a sweet heart now, I'm looking forward to seeing the real horse come out when he gets to feeling better. They can really surprise you!

PSS. Sorry for the headaches my posts cause those of you who twitch at spelling, grammar and punctuation. I know I suck at it, but never have been able to get it right.

ETA: I guess this could have gone in "grooming" maybe? Sorry mods, please move as you see fit.

If there's warm water, then just give him a regular bath, sweat scrape as much off as possible and then use a cooler, or stable blanket and keep him in til he dries completely.

I am totally not a fan of those none wash shampoos.

When the mare I had last year had rain rot, it was winter so I feel your pain. Luckily we don't get very cold winters here, but I diluted Vetadine (an antibacterial wash) in a spray bottle and sprayed it on the affected areas and rubbed it in with a soft body brush (which will have to, obviously, be discarded or seriously disinfected once all is said and done). This way you don't have to wet more of the horse than necessary. I'd leave it on to dry and do it again each day. Cleaned her up nice and fast. You would want to do the odd full body wash though to clear it all off.

I was going to tell you just bathe him you're in KY but I popped up western KY in my weather gizmo and at the moment you are colder than I am up in NH. Get a bucket of hot water and give him a sponge bath for now. You warm up into the 50's next week. A nice iodine shampoo followed by a rinse with dollar store listerine for his rain rot. Towel dry him as best you can and put a sheet or cooler on for a bit. A real blanket is going to hold in the moisture and slow down the drying, something you don't want to do with rain rot.

Make sure he has hay in front of him all the time. Digesting that fiber produces more body heat than anything else. A good dose of vitamin A in his food will also help him fight off the rain rot.

Put some of that dollar store listerine in a spray bottle and spot treat him until the sun shines and it warms up.

Good luck with him.

^^^ great advice but you mentioned the words "court case", so it might not be a good idea risking getting him sick by using water.

The Owners might just allege "the horse was fine until you bathed him and got him wet"

Can you afford to invest in a Furminator? Tractor Supply carries them for dogs. The large dog Furminator is around $55

It should comb thru his coat with a lot less effort and a lot more efficiency than any kind of brush.

Also, just to make him feel good, stop at WalMart and buy one of those dog grooming mits with the raised rubber dots all over them. Use that on his face, poll and ears and watch how fast he really goes to sleep

If his legs are really covered in filth and he probably has scratches underneath, I would bath him and rinse him in warm water from the knees and hocks down.

If you don't have an equine medicated shampoo on hand believe me, Dawn dish soap works wonders and won't hurt him. If it's good enough for baby ducks in oil spills, it's good enough for horses' legs

Get some cheap white bath towels at WalMart and towel dry his legs off. Hopefully you won't find any Scratches (mud fever) under there but don't count on that. If you do, I would ask whomever was in charge of confiscating him, if they feel it's legally safe for you to trim the fetlock hair so the air can get to the sores and heal them.

Good luck with him and many kudos to you for taking him in. I could never foster because I get possessive after awhile and would not want to let them go

Before grooming him, take as many pictures as you can. Incase they are needed for court...
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This is the poor man's hired groom.
Roto Fluffer Brush Sullivan Supply (Showing Grooming - Supplies - Brushes Combs)

You have to make sure you desensitize to the drill. Do not catch the mane. And go with the hair.

Once they realize how wonderful this brush feels, it is really easy to get them used to the sound. Usually they have that look of "I am really scared and want to run but. It. Feels. SOO. Gooood!"
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If it were my foster, Id give them one good full bath with warm water and use plenty of coolers in a protected area while they dry. I would then put them on a Vit A supplement and flax. That should do it along with a good diet.

Well, good on you for taking care of him!! It is nice that he is so thankful to be safe and fed.

I imagine they already took all the photos necessary for the case. (?).

I would do the same as those above have suggested, a good warm bath during the warmest dryest part of an upcoming "good weather" day. But, if you have a fleece blanket (like a liner) you can put it in the dryer have some one run it out to you - and it will be all snuggly warm when you put it on him after you blade/dry the water off. And, I use large beach towels to "dry" mine w b/c they are made of thinner material - which seems to make them more effective.

Okie dokie. Some tried and trues here. Experienced dog groomer.

Ditch the furminator. Designed to pull out under coat in shedding dogs, will only bounce over top of an oily coat.

Ditch the cheap towels. Invest in ONE chamois, preferably a brand like Absorber or UltimateX, made out of fungus & rot resistant PVA. You will find a zillion uses for this towel and it will last you YEARS. Found at walmart in the automotive section. Pulls water out like nothing else out there. Wring it out and keep going!

Lumpy rubber mitt, yes. Zoom Groom curry, better. Feels like heaven and works like a savage!

If you're really not wanting to get him wet, Ecolicious Equestrian has just released a waterless shampoo that is hardworking but still packed with all-natural yummies. Nurturing body health is this entire product line's foundation and all of their products have anti-fungal properties. Look them up online.
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