Naturally treat and prevent mud fever

The Natural Way - specialized in itching and skin complaints and the natural treatment of horses with sweet itch, mud fever and CPL. 

Mud fever and rain rot are some frequently occurring conditions in horses, mainly in the autumn and winter period, when mud and rain are a daily occurrence, the ration changes and resistance sometimes dips. But how do you treat and prevent these skin complaints naturally?

 

Content

• Recognize mud fever
• Symptoms of mud fever
• Causes of mud fever
• Diagnosis
• Treat mud fever 
• Mok olie - The Natural Way
• Guidelines
• Prevent mud fever
• Guidelines
• Healthy food
• Herbs

RECOGNIZE MUD FEVER

Symptoms

I'm sure every horse lover has experienced it: your horse has a mud fever. But what exactly is that?

Mud fever is a skin inflammation in the pastern cavity (or on the lower legs, but then we call it rasp), in which a bacterial infection can develop, with symptoms such as:

• (Moist) crusts
• Dehydrated skin
• Skin flakes
• Painful swelling
• Sensitivity
• Redness
• Itch
• Pus/pus

These symptoms can occur together or separately, so your horse does not have to meet this entire symptom picture to be considered sulky.

Summer mud fever or sunburn can also occur in the summer months, which is usually more common in horses with (white) sensitive skin. Factors such as sunlight, low resistance, liver imbalance, incorrect nutrition and irritants from plants play a role here.

Causes

Mud fever has up to 40 different causes . The most common are:

• Low resistance
• Disrupted intestinal flora
• Incorrect, inadequate nutrition to the needs of your horse
• Standing in the mud for too long without being able to dry in time
• Standing in a dirty stable or paddock (urine and manure)
• Using already used or dirty towels and brushes
• Legs are hosed down or washed too often
• Wounds or soft skin
• Bacterial infection
• Too few free movement options
• Poor blood and lymph circulation
• ...

It is sometimes said that horses that are housed outside 24/7 are more likely to suffer from sulking due to changing weather conditions and, for example, exposure to mud. However, these horses enjoy free movement more than stabled horses and therefore have better blood flow and better lymphatic circulation. It is of course important that there are enough dry and hygienic places to shelter, roll, dry and eat.

Diagnosis

In most cases, mud fever can be diagnosed based on the clinical picture or description of the problem. A distinction is made between wet and dry mud fever . If in doubt, the vet can perform a skin biopsy.

 

Mok olie © The Natural Way

 

TREAT MUD FEVER

When there are skin complaints such as swollen skin, you are already dealing with sensitive skin that you do not want to put extra strain on. If treatment is necessary, always choose natural products.

Mok olie - The Natural Way

We developed our own Mok olie that fully meets the description of a skin-friendly product: 100% natural and sustainable, with respect for the skin flora and suitable for all skin types.
Mok olie can also be used preventively to prevent complaints, both with mud fever, grater and rain rot.

Treatment guidelines

 

Customer results Mok olie © The Natural Way

PREVENT MUD FEVER

We have already seen how you can recognize mud fever, what the possible causes are and how you can treat mud fever and rainrot. But how do you initially ensure that your horse does not suffer from sulking this year? Various factors are important in this. Just like with sweet itch, for example, this also involves a total approach, tailor-made. Because every horse is different.

Guidelines

In general, we can say that a horse must have sufficient dry and hygienic places to rest, roll and eat. In addition, sufficient free exercise options such as pasture/paddock are necessary to achieve healthy blood and lymphatic circulation.

Get inspiration from Paddock Paradise facilities to encourage natural movement, for example by placing the water bowl far away from the feeding areas, placing the shelter on the other side of your plot and creating wide paths to encourage playing and running in the herd. .

In our Low Countries it appears to be very difficult to keep horses mud-free, but more and more is possible. This may involve soil improvement, permanent or temporary solutions and management. In addition, resistance is an important factor in the prevention of skin complaints such as sore throat.

You can support immunity and healthy intestinal flora by offering herbs and healthy food. This way you can treat the mud fever from the inside.

Healthy food

You have probably heard the statement "itching comes from within", and the advice that for healing you must support and/or treat these complaints from within. For horses that are sensitive to mud fever, a healthy intestinal flora and therefore a correct and healthy feeding policy is indeed necessary.
We have already written an E-book about this: OERVOER in which I tell you everything in 66 pages about a healthy ration, intestinal flora, detox and waste products, micro and macronutrients, pre- and probiotics, herbs and more.

Spices

In one of our previous articles we already wrote about the medicinal power of herbs. In addition to being healthy, these herbs are also tasty and are loved by horses. You can even find most of these herbs on or around your pasture! You can also get this dried at a grocery store or online.

Some examples of suitable herbs are:

• Nettle
• Dandelion
• Cleaver
• Marigold
• Yarrow
• Chickweed
• Thistles
• ...

You can read a detailed description of these herbs in this article.

Nettle (Urtica dioica) © The Natural Way

 

Discover our 100 % natural Zomereczeem lotion, Mok olie, CPL olie, Natuur Shampoo and OERVOER (E-book) about healthy nutrition for itch-sensitive horses HERE.

 

© Laura Cleirens - 2020.11.11
Last updated: 2024.01.16