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In severe cases, lesions and scabs may become large and affect multiple layers of skin. When this occurs, the horse's use may be impacted until the infection clears. As a final tip, and possibly one of the most important, learn to try and spot the symptoms of mud fever and rain scald as early as possible. Spotting and treating the infection early will provide a lot more relief for your horses – and probably you as well! As with most things, a minor case is a lot easier to treat than a major one.
Likewise, reducing exposure to environmental factors known to increase incidence may help prevent this condition. If you know there will be heavy rainfall in your area, keeping your horse in a barn or under shelter can help reduce risk. Also, limiting access to muddy areas or trying to reduce the overall presence of mud may be helpful, as caked mud on your horse could compromise the skin. If you are seeing high biting insect populations, implement best management practices based on fly species.
Home Remedies For Rain Rot
Rain scald can occur all year round, although it’s most common when there are long periods of wet weather with warm temperatures and high humidity. The bacteria thrive when there is limited oxygen, so the condition is usually seen in the winter months when horses’ coats are much longer. Rain scald is a common skin disease that acquired its name because the condition causes the skin to look as though it has been scalded by rain droplets. It’s also known as dermatophilosis or rain rot and it’s caused by the bacterium Dermatophilus congolensis – the same organism that’s responsible for causing mud fever on legs. However, with the right antimicrobial shampoo, and a diligent attitude, rain rot is easily treatable. Due to its contagious nature, it is best to keep any horse dealing with rain rot isolated from the rest of your horses.
Banixx is a great option that can be found at many local farm stores. Long standing cases may have large areas of scabs which merge together, giving a plaque-like appearance on the skin. White skinned areas seem to be more susceptible to infection. When the infection affects the lower limbs it is called mud fever and similar scabby lesions will be found, particularly on the back of the pastern and fetlock and the limbs may become swollen.
Preventing Rain Rot
Speak to your vet for advice if you think your horse has rain scald. It is important to confirm the signs are not mistaken for other skin conditions, such as ringworm which is a highly contagious fungal infection. Your vet may take a sample of the scab or do a skin scraping to help diagnose the condition under a microscope2. The condition is often diagnosed in the autumn or winter months due to consistent exposure to wet and muddy conditions, although it is also seen when horses are over-rugged, as this can cause excessive sweating. Scabs form in places along the horse’s neck, back and hindquarters.
McDowell's staff Herbalists can not diagnose your disease or illness. What they can do is offer a herbal program to assist with healing, after you have had advice from your doctor or specialist. If you have unexplained pain or symptoms, seek medical advice. If you notice the above signs, it’s important to contact your vet for diagnosis. This is essential because the bacteria live under the matted crusts.
Tips for getting rid of mud fever or rain scald in horses
While it may start off mild, over time this contagious bacteria can spread and cause a considerable amount of hair loss. You might be able to treat this condition with a few items laying around your barn. All horses can be affected by this condition; however, there have been identified links with horse's coat colors and immune status leading to a higher incidence of rain rot.
Some of these practices include setting up traps, increasing farm sanitation, introducing parasitoid wasps, and spraying your horse with a pyrethroid-based insecticide. Here is NZ, there is a great product called Vet Direct mud gel – it contains strong antibacterial and anti-fungal active ingredients that are great at eliminating the infection once the scabs have been removed. In particular we recommend using it to treat larger skin patches across the horses body and face. As you can see in our photo’s below – Oscar here was the model patient. If you aren’t based in NZ – there will almost certainly be alternatives available, just ensure your treatment contains both antibacterial and anti-fungal properties as both may be present in the infection. Rain rot, also called rain scald or dermatophilosis, is a skin infection caused by a bacterium known as Dermatophilus congolensis.
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Rain scald is characterised by these scabs coming off with tufts of hair, which look like little paint brushes. Wet, humid conditions are the perfect environment for rain rot. This skin infection leaves painful scabs along the back, hindquarters, and legs.
Tea tree and rosemary oil have also proven helpful in treating rain rot. It can be combined with Vaseline and rubbed onto the infected areas. The horse may show a pain reaction when touching the scabbed areas – or when attempting to brush/remove the scabs and lesions. When you run your hand over the affected area you will feel crusts, and the horses hair will have clumped over the scabs. It’s possible when brushing these may remove themselves from the horse leaving bald patches. And that was it – the best and easiest fix for rain scald that I have ever come across and one that can be done in colder weather without having to risk wet horses getting a chill.
For horses that live out without a rug, it’s important to ensure the field has shelter from the elements to reduce the amount their skin and coat becomes wet. This could either be in the form of hedges and trees or manmade field shelters. Light coloured horses tend to be more susceptible which is thought to be due to their pink skin which is more delicate. Additionally, horses with poorly developed immune systems or underlying diseases such as cushing’s disease are more prone to getting rain scald. Initially areas start exuding a sticky secretion that matts the hair together into small clumps. This progresses to crusty scabs that often have tufts of hair attached to them, which can stand up and look like paint brush bristles.
However, it can be confused with other conditions such as ringworm and seborrhoea , especially in the early stages. If further confirmation is required, your vet can send a swab or scab to a laboratory for culture, where they will try to grow the Dermatophilus bacteria. The bacteria in the scabs can cause re-infection so any grooming kit or tack should be appropriately disinfected.
This will allow their skin and coat time to dry and protect them from the prolonged wetting of their coat. The bacteria that cause the condition are thought to originate in the soil and are present on many horses’ skin. When this happens, acute inflammation and infection of the skin occurs. The affected areas should be cleansed with a suitable antibacterial solution such as dilute Hibiscrub and then gently dried2.
A second product we always sing the praises of, it Equine Super Goo. Again another NZ based product, this stuff is magical and great for treating cracked heels in particular. It only requires one thorough application and will fully treat mud fever within a few days. We highly recommend – you can get in touch with them on Facebook if you want to make an order. And remember, be careful to avoid future contamination through sharing of rugs and brushes and saddle pads etc and disinfect anything that has been in contact with a rain scalded horse. If none of these work, there are plenty of products designed to specifically treat rain rot.
Rain Rot on a horse
Similarly, be sure to disinfect and replace contaminated grooming tools and other equipment as needed to prevent spread. While most often found on the horse's topline, rain rot can be found on numerous areas of the horse's body, including their rump, face, and legs. Therefore, it is important that regular, thorough full-body examinations occur. Hands-on palpation may be needed when examining your horse for rain rot, particularly during winter months, as increased coat length makes visual assessment difficult. Unlike many other skin conditions, areas with rain rot do not typically itch but can be painful and cause your horse to become sensitive to touch. The ‘paintbrush’ scabs should be gently removed and disposed of.
Grooming regularly is also a good idea as it ensures you’re regularly inspecting their skin which means you’ll likely spot the signs of rain scald in horses a lot quicker. If your horse has a minor case of rain rot, it can typically heal with a little bit of extra attention and care. Giving your horse a bath with an anti-microbial soap can help remove the scabs and disrupt the bacteria in the affected area.
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