Rubbing tail

[rabbitsfizz]

OK, guys, those who know me know I am, paranoid about worming. The gelding in question has had Fenbendazole five day course, Ivermectin and Praziquantel, His insides should be as near a worm free zone as is possible!! I am about to worm again with Ivermectin, but he really is rubbing a lot, he has n tail left at all looks as if he has been docked!! The backside is not sore, and he has not rubbed his dock either. He is driving me NUTS! I think he heard Appies do not have much tail but if he would just look over the fence at his father he would see that his sweeps the ground....

 

[Rocklone Miniature Horses]

Could it be an allergy or sweet itch ? They should only rub their bum if the worm infestation is really bad (which it can't be with that super worming schedule) or with pin worms which you would see on the tail/anus. Are you maybe spraying it with anything? My little mare rubbed her tail out when I first got her because I was spraying it to groom her and that was irritating it.

 

[amysue]

Did you run fecal counts? I never paid much attention to the recommendation for them, always wormed my way, until one of my horses wouldn't get over a bout of diarrhea. Fecals revealed he needed piperazine wormer, which is hard to find for horses, but readily available for birds in liquid form, my vet said that she recommends it for tail rubbing due to pinworms too. If it is not worms, it could be fungal, I spray tail docks with antiseptic mouth wash (listerine) only the brown kind. It could also be that he has an itchy sheath and he cannot find a way to relieve the itch. You probably know all of this already, but I figured that I would mention it. I know that a selenium imbalance can cause hair loss too. If he is not rubbing his dock at the top, maybe it is not worms? Is he rubbing his legs, butt and the tail is taking the abuse? Does he have biting lice? Ivermectin only kills the sucking kind. I had one lose his tail due to an allergic reaction and applying shapely's mtg weekly made it grow back much faster than I expected. I hope you can figure it out, poor guy.

 

[FurstPlaceMiniatures]

Are all his 'special areas' clean? I had a mare itch herself bald because of a dirty udder

 

[chandab]

Geldings and stallions will sometimes rub their butts a lot if their sheath needs cleaning; it's as close as they can get to itching the spot.

 

[Minimor]

I would say that 99% of the time when my horses rub their tails it is due to itchy places not related to pinworms--dirty sheathe on a boy, cruddy stuff on a mare's udder, bug bites on tummy or inside the hind legs, dried sweat between the hind legs, things like that. If they have willows or any shrubbery they can straddle they will straddle it and rub the offending area. Otherwise they rub on the fence even though that accomplishes nothing other than giving them a rubbed tail.

 

[Cayuse]

I have gone through the itchy tail thing this fall and washing their tail with a shampoo containing a little betadine once a week did the trick. It gave them almost immediate relief. I think it was called "Horseman's something or other". And was inexpensive. The were UTD on worming, just plain old itchy. I've also used just a teeny bit of betadine in the bathwater when I could not get the appropriate shampoo. But only if I had no option as it's drying.

My old gelding would straddle sapling trees and itch, too!

 

[rabbitsfizz]

He is seven months so I doubt he has had enough time to build that amount of crud- but I shall check, thank you. I shall also spray with Listerine (which I had forgotten. He does not have sweet itch, of that I am sure. I watched him today and it is the breeching area of the backside and rump he is rubbing, the tail is just taking the bashing!!

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Good to see you on the forum again, Jane!

 

[rabbitsfizz]

Hi Marsha. I spend all summer with the horses, in a trailer- no Internet, no TV. I love it! I am a hermit at heart. Have two driving horses in the pipeline (I am not training them, I have seen reason on that and admitted defeat, I am just too old and cannot do it anymore) So, hopefully I will be back on the driving forum with pictures in the not too distant future. I should really like to show this gelding but he looks as if someone has docked him- all I need now is a jusge who can see past that or a REALLY good set of extensions!!!

 

[Rocklone Miniature Horses]

Hi Marsha. I spend all summer with the horses, in a trailer- no Internet, no TV. I love it! I am a hermit at heart. Have two driving horses in the pipeline (I am not training them, I have seen reason on that and admitted defeat, I am just too old and cannot do it anymore) So, hopefully I will be back on the driving forum with pictures in the not too distant future. I should really like to show this gelding but he looks as if someone has docked him- all I need now is a jusge who can see past that or a REALLY good set of extensions!!!

There are very good ones for sale at about £70 from mhs.

 

[supaspot]

is he simply too warm ?

 

[rabbitsfizz]

Well, it is warm here, but not just below the end of his dock, I feel!! Not rubbing anywhere else at all.....

Rocklone false tails are against all Miniature and, as far as I know all Standard, horse registry rules in the UK.....

 

[amysue]

If his sheath is not dirty, does he have lice? Any time I have seen a horse with lice, one of the most affected areas is the back of the leg below the rump. Maybe his legs itch and the tail is being damaged in the process? Maybe a lice dusting would not hurt? Aloe Vera gel or hydrocortisone applied to the dock may stop the itching. Hope he stops this and you can salvage the tail.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

Too late! There is no tail. No lice, although it is always worth dusting, yes. His field mate has not rubbed at all and this is the ONLY place he has rubbed....

 

[amysue]

If nothing else has worked, perhaps it is a food allergy? I have never had one of my own suffer from this, but have talked with someone who has. Changing her horse's diet helped and adding a skin/ coat supplement made it stop. The other thing it could be is a physio neurological issue. Never seen it in person, only read about it. Supposedly a chiropractor or acupuncturist can sort it out. Sounds like a long shot but I figured it was worth mentioning.

 

[chandab]

If nothing else has worked, perhaps it is a food allergy? I have never had one of my own suffer from this, but have talked with someone who has. Changing her horse's diet helped and adding a skin/ coat supplement made it stop. The other thing it could be is a physio neurological issue. Never seen it in person, only read about it. Supposedly a chiropractor or acupuncturist can sort it out. Sounds like a long shot but I figured it was worth mentioning.

My next thought was allergy too. It's amazing what some horses are allergic to, and how it'll manifest.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

He must be allergic to grass then......which is going to be a HUGE problem!!

Honestly this one has me stumped. I am going to try worming again, and dusting and then spraying with listerine after that he will be free to a good home!!!

 

[amysue]

How is the weather where you are? Do you have a lot of dust or pollen? Environmental allergies could manifest that way too. I hear you on the "free to good home thing" I have come close to getting rid of more than one while sorting out things like this.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

The weather is unseasonally warm here at the moment, with severe flooding in the North, and more to come, but we have had very little rain, and he has a shed, although I have never seen them use it! I'll try everything, it cannot hurt, I shall also give it a good wash in an insecticidal shampoo before dusting and spraying and shooting (er, no the last one was a joke!)