From the Inside Out - Part I

'Mr F' has pointed something else out to me yesterday:

As usual, in the early morning 'Mr F' has free range to wonder around in the yard while I muck out all the stables and feed the other horses.

It is a great way for me to observe 'Mr F' and it might help me solve the ongoing issues of itchy-skin and stiff back legs/quarters, particularly pronounced on the left side.

While he is roaming free in the yard I take notes of:

• does he itch a lot and if so where?
• what is his stance when eating?
• what is his stance when browsing around in the yard and when he is saying 'hello' to the girls ('Rose' and 'Madame' who usually poke their heads out of their part of the stable / cowshed)?
• what mood is he in (inquisitive, dull, interested, grumpy, stroppy, bored, playful, etc. )
• what do his droppings look like (oh yes, droppings. I wasn't aware that one can develop 'poo-envy' ... )

Yesterday I observed 'Mr F while he was urinating, or lets say he made me watch: It is unusual for him to urinate in the yard, he usually seeks out soft ground so it doesn't splash. Yep, this I figured out by just watching him over the past months; he won't urinate if he stands on hard ground.
Back to observations: it seemed as though he requires quite some effort to the release of the urine. Once he was finished he looked at me and then on the floor at his urine and than back at me.

By now I know that routine:  he then gives me 'the look' which is clearly aimed at me: "Please, look and observe, I could do with having this (whatever it is) sorted / looked at. Is it supposed to be like that?".

'Mr F' does this every time he wants to show me something. I have found many little problems that bothered him this way and managed to resolve them. And in turn he learned that he can communicate to me if he is unwell or in discomfort. He knows I listen even though I don't always get it straight away. I am quite sure he wonders why I don't just know ... like he does. It's hard work training these humans ...

Well, being in the yard I went to examine the urine. I know NOTHING about horse urine and was quite puzzled that it was of a milky and almost slimy consistency (forgive the forward description) . Now we are all told that a human's urine should ideally be almost as clear as water, else it may mean we are not drinking enough water or something else might be wrong.

I of course had to go and do some research on horse urine and found this very interesting article on horse urine:
"The urine of horses is a bit different than most other domestic species as well as man. Most animals' urine is clear and watery, while the horse naturally has mucous and proteins in its urine, often giving it a thick and slippery feel. Horse urine is extremely variable in its appearance, with normal colors ranging from light yellow to orange or red to quite dark, as well as milky. It can change color from the beginning to the end of a good-sized urination. After hard exercise in the summer it may be quite dark and horses who have tied up will often have very dark urine, which is a sign of a serious disease.
 
If you pay attention to your horse's urine on a regular basis and the color changes dramatically, that might be a good reason to check things out, especially if there is discomfort present, or any unusual behavior associated with urination. A bladder infection is usually accompanied by an increased frequency of urination with small quantities passed, with or without blood. The passing of urine is often painful, and the horse may stretch out and try to urinate, but then stop only to try again later. If there are clearly flecks of blood in the urine (not just a reddish color to the urine) an infection might be there."


Here the important part:

"Variations in hay, grass and food may cause urine color changes, as can variations in the amount of water or hydration level.
The chalky or whitish material seen is usually calcium carbonate, which horses can excrete. Feeding high calcium legumes such as alfalfa may increase the amount of calcium in the urine. Normally calcium in the urine is not a problem, but in a few individuals, the calcium can form stones. Usually discomfort will be seen associated with urinating. Send a urine sample in to your veterinarian if you see pain signs."

Might he have some troubles with his bladder perhaps? Could this be an explanation for his continuing stiff rear end? Have you heard of the 'Bladder Meridian'? Here we venture into the ancient world of Chinese Acupuncture, a most interesting read.


While I hope he does not suffer from urine stone. I am going to observe this more closely over the weekend and may actually have a sample sent off to the vet just to make sure. 


'Mr F' used to be on Hi-fi Chaff (among other feed) with alfalfa and some balancer pellets. This wasn't my choice, frankly I have no clue about feeding a horse. Apparently some need much more than grass and hay ... It all depends on what they do work wise. It all becomes rather complex. And I can only imagine that 'Mr F' probably was given very little grass when he was active as racehorse.

And so I did some more research in matters concerning food. I have experienced this with dogs and humans, you are as well as what you eat. And what you eat affects each being differently. It depends what is in your gut, how well you are looking after all those millions of little helpers that keep your gut healthy, named microbes.  It's time to change his feed, for many reasons. One of them is that I want to know what is in the feed, rather than feeding some pre-made pellets.

 My decision for changing his feed is based on:

• To improve his condition. To stop his itchy skin, the improve the condition of his hooves and to hopefully sort out his fairly runny back end business.
• Knowing what is in his feed, no preservatives, no sugar, no chemicals.
• I may also make use of individual herbs as supplements. Have you ever watched your horse grazing? It is most interesting to observe what exactly they eat and it changes with the seasons. Horses will seek out certain herbs etc, if they can, sometimes also to in some ways self-medicate. It is most interesting watching your horse and what it chooses to eat when you are about and about and let it graze along the verges. 

I will stop feeding 'Mr F' Alfalfa, for various reasons. 

If you are interested, read the 'PureEssentials' Information sheet, it is rather interesting.  Of course I had to go and research yet again what was written in that sheet; but there are various different sources that are not all that happy with alfalfa. On the other hand, many do like it. Different horse, different situations, different needs.

All I am care for is to find the cause for 'Mr F's itchiness and stiff back.

As I am going through all this I have also had a look at the placement of horse intestines. I wish every rider would have a look at these graphics, it will make you think twice before plummeting back into that saddle, regardless of your weight!



To be continued ....

Mr Itchy - and being a dismal horse person

It has been a mild and VERY WET winter so far.

'Mr F' was doing fine until the 1st of January 2014 ...

We had another great ride the day before; a beautiful winters day ending with a lovely sunset.

Previously I had only put hoof boots on 'Mr F' on his front feet but the 'Barefoot Lady' pointed out that his back feet were exposed to too much abrasion on hard (tarmac) ground. As I only had boots for his front feet I borrowed a pair of hoof boots from 'Jane', with inserts, to make them fit as good as possible.

The ride out went fine, untill the last few 100 yards. One of the back hoof boots had become lightly twisted but we were nearly home (10 minutes) so I left it be. We got back home and 'Mr F' seemed pretty pleased with his lot. His feet were fine, I couldn't find any rubbing where the boot had become twisted.

2 days later 'Lillian' and I planned on going out riding again. I went to tack up 'Mr F' when I noticed he was not at all happy.  During the day I experienced annoying people of varying degrees and now we were surrounded by other people in the yard. I just wanted peace.

Normally I allow for as long as it takes to get 'Mr F' tacked up. I do not like to rush him and I like the time while brushing and preparing to get an idea of his mood.

But today I was very distracted and didn't pay much notice to the fact that 'Mr F' was giving me various hints trying to tell me something wasn't right.

As we walked out of the yard I noticed that 'Mr F' had a hard time walking with his hind legs. I still was somewhat ignoring it but then I looked at his sorrowful eyes and it was like a slap in my face. 'You stupid woman! Get a grip and become aware of the situation rather than dwelling on matters that are by and large really not all that important!' - My thoughts to myself.

I said to 'Lillian' that I wasn't going to ride but that I would lead him along the way for a while to see how his leg was. We didn't get far. It was no good. 'Lillian' too noticed that he wasn't right. I did check his feet but couldn't notice anything that could be wrong. Then again, I had very little knowledge still. 

Well, I was about to get yet another crash course in horse care.

The next morning both his back legs were quite swollen in the pastern area and I had seen him stand in the field rubbing his back side along hedges while stamping with his foot. 'Lillian' thought it could be mites (mange). 'Mr F' had always been a little itchy anyway as soon as his winter coat began growing. And when he arrived at 'Buttercup Farm' in February/March, he was infested with lice. He does have a rather thick winter coat now. Would I have known just how thick his coat grows I would have had him clipped.

The other 'option' was mud fever or something of that sort. 'Mr F' had very warm hoof walls and for a short while I wondered whether he may have an abscesses. Although he only just had his feet trimmed a few days ago and when doing the pressure point test he was fine. Besides, it seemed odd to have abscesses in both hooves at the same time, appearing over night!

I did notice some scabs on his pastern and so decided to wrapping them in bandages soaked in warm water to try and soften the scabs. I would then apply a thick layer of sudocream which is antiseptic and should protect for a while as a mud barrier. It was all that I had available at the time, it would have to do.

I washed his belly, back inner legs and neck with medicated shampoo just in case he was suffering with the lice again (I thought I had seen a few appear again).

The bandages ...

 'Mr F's laundry ...

I did ask 'Suzie' the Vet whether it could be mites but she was of the opinion that that would be very unlikely in a thoroughbred. I myself have read up on all possible parasites in the meantime, including all types of 'mud fever' and am still inclined to think it is mites (he would need an injection for that following a skin scrap for testing the type of mite/parasite.)

'Mr F's lower limbs were swollen for nearly a week but appeared to get better. I noticed that the skin on the back pastern was very hard and thick, almost crusty but not as you would see with mud fever. Perhaps he has a fungal infection (I read up on that, too!) and so I began treating the area with Iodine Spray while keeping it clean as good as possible.

He had other itchy spots such as the inner thighs. I am very glad that 'Mr F' is used to me touching him anywhere without being bothered by it. I checked his tail base and all of his back for signs of bites but all I found was a few largish scabby patches. I spent a good week washing, soaking and pulling off the scabs (some type of mud fever or rain scald I guess). He would go into a near trance like state if I'd hit the itchiest spots! I felt very sorry for him and worse I felt all itchy too for a good week!

Two weeks of soaking, washing, scratching and scab removing passed. We are slowly back to normal and 'Mr F' is starting to look much more at ease with his lot. And I no longer have to get up an extra hour earlier, because each morning and evening I would spend at least an hour dealing with 'Mr F's scabs etc.

If not already before these two week, now 'Mr F' certainly does not have a single spot on his body that I haven't touched, repeatedly while removing scabs and attending his itchyness.

Unfortuanately he lost a fair amount of tail hair because he was itching so badly. It'll take a while for that to grow back.

So, what was the cause of this?

I can only guess that it may have had to do with that ride out and the twisted boot. Perhaps it did rub somewhere. Just a tiny wound is enough for bacteria to enter and from there the infection can spread like a wildfire.  Other than that, I have no explanation.

Lets hope whatever it was does not return!