SCRATCHES

6/14/2010
May is back for just 2 weeks while her mom is on vacation in Alaska!   

While May was home, Linda rode her all around the neighborhood and on a trail ride or two.  Everything went great!!!  May is a bit of a looky-looer still, but she handled a weedeater without a problem  The whine of those things can send a horse (um Risa) right out their skins if they have never heard them before!

Scratches. May's got 'em.  Scratches is an interesting, if annoying, ailment.  It causes the skin to become inflamed, and crusty and split. Like an extreme case of chapped lips (X100) on the back of the pasterns.   Plus it spreads.

What is the cause?  Well, some combination of bacterial, fungal, and viral agents plus photosensitivity.  The exact agents vary from case to case, but the photosensitivity seems to be related to diets high in legumes...in this part of the world, we are talking alfalfa.  It almost exclusively occurs on white feet--and May has 3 of those!

The cure: If you look on line, the "cures" are many and varied!  But man the stuff is hard to get rid of, until winter when the cold and lower light levels often allow it to go away on its own. But here is what I am doing, courtesy of Dr. Dralle and Albuquerque Equine:
1. gloves on
2.  Glob furazone on the affected areas (softens and is antibiotic--kills stuff)
3.  Wrap it all in splastic food wrap (right around the leg)
4.  Wrap that with a piece of the old mattress pad.
5.  Wrap that with a polo wrap.
6.  Repeat every 2 days until the affected areas look pink and not covered in crispy crusties.
7. It could take a while.....2 weeks?
8.  Apply (off the internet) a mix of cortisol (anti-inflamatory) desitin (yep the baby butt stuff--soothing, has zinc oxide so should decrease light exposure) and tiple anitibiotic (that one is yep--antibiotic)
9.  Cover and wrap until the hair starts to grow back....

So, did steps 1-5.  May thought I was attemping to cut off the circulation in her legs.  Nevermind that I have done this before and no one ever lost a limb.  She was not convinced.  Took her to the arena and  rode at the walk, working on flexing side to side and vertically, turning, stopping etc etc.  It was not long before the saran wrap slid out from under the right hind job and flapped around her foot, prompting stomping.  Fixed that. Turned her out, rode Tabooli.

By the time I got back, she had removed the wrap from the front leg, along with partial shredding of the polo. She left the debris for me to clean up in the pasture.  So kind.

Rewrapped and tied her up while I rode Penny and Risa.  By this morning....wrap off.

New plan formulated at 5:45 this morning as I got ready to feed: Rewarp, isolate he in her own pen,  feed her (oh yeah put her on grass and off alfalfa); hope she paces all day instead of messing with her wrap.  That worked, except, she didn't pace!  She was relaxed as a clam (how can you tell clams are relaxed---they have a shell--???) and her wraps were intact! 

Tomorrow the unveiling will occur....more than likely:  Good progress and repeat steps 1-5 again!

RISA: Is getting more and more cooperative!  She is either reaching her vit B threshold or she is starting to mature a little--or a combo.  Either way I like it. She will have her work cut out for her Saturday--20 miles in the Pecos.....She'll be packin'....

PENNY: The bigger bit is working. She is softer.  Her lope is slwoing down but I must really work on rythym and drive to keep her from getting mechanical--it should look natural, if you ask me.  Trouble is I can feel it, but I can't see it.  It feels pretty good. 

TABOOLI: He is out grazing for the evening. Today was ride 24.  He is riding well at the walk and trot.  His whoa could be better, but it is decent.  We really worked on moving off my left leg because he has been reluctiant to do that.  Today went well and he also picked up both leads well, instead of giving me grief over the right lead--well did it well most of the time. 

Did have a steering issue at the lope.  He gets stiff and heavy still, so I have to keep him pointed in the right direction and use a lot of leg to keep him from bending his head one way and leaving his shoulder out the other. Focus!

He will put his head down and hump up for a step or two--so far no breaking in two,  and I don't expect much more than what he has shown me because he doesn't play hard in his pen (and it is a big pen--lots of room to cut loose), but that needs to quit.  So here are the options I use: Push him faster and through it, bend him to a stop, make him move his hip and get going again, hold my hands higher and keep his head up.  All work to redirect.

Tabooli will go home at the end of the month as will May.  Donati the Fjord will be coming for the weeks leading up to the Fjord evaluations in Colorado, so we will have fun gettng ready for that!