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Persistent Mud Fever: Have You Considered Mental Issues?

Nearly all horses encounter mud fever at some point in their lives. Usually, it's a small spot that disappears in a few days. Sometimes, it takes longer, and more spots appear on the legs. But what if you’ve tried almost everything and the mud fever just won’t go away? What if you have everything in order regarding housing and nutrition? What else can you do about mud fever?

Skin

Stress

Feeding

13 September '24 • 3 min reading time

Mud Fever Is a Collective Term

When people think of mud fever, they often assume it’s caused by wet paddocks, mites, sunburn, or by horse owners who don’t take proper care of their horses. There is often a stigma attached to mud fever, which is completely unjustified! Mud fever is not breed-specific, age-specific, or related to weather conditions. Mud fever is a collective term for sores on the lower half of horses' legs. It’s a term used for wet sores but also for dry, crusty spots. As a horse owner, you usually have some influence over it, but if your horse has mud fever, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re not taking good care of your horse.

Immunity and Nutrition Are Key Factors

Mud fever usually arises from an internal imbalance, leading to a buildup of waste products that exit the body through its weakest point (the legs). Incorrect nutrition (e.g., silage, grain-rich, and sugar-rich feed) disrupts the body, preventing the digestive system from functioning optimally, which leads to inflammatory reactions. This creates waste products that accumulate in the body. As a result, overall immunity decreases, digestion becomes even less efficient, more waste products are created, and so on. Many mud fever issues can be resolved by examining and optimizing the diet, cleansing the body with liquid nettle and dandelion, and simultaneously boosting immunity. Once the immune system is in good shape, waste products can be processed more effectively, the body flows better, and waste products won’t accumulate in the legs.

But What If Everything Is Optimal?

There are situations where the horse owner has everything in order in terms of diet, housing, waste products, etc., yet the horse continues to suffer from mud fever—not constantly, but it keeps flaring up. What do you do then? What is the underlying cause? With Friesians, Tinkers, or cold-blooded horses, people often jump to the conclusion of “mites,” but that’s often not the case. Not all horses with feathering have mites! And not all mud fever is caused by mites. Of course, it’s important to rule this out, but don’t automatically resort to chemical treatments as they negatively impact immunity, waste products, and thus mud fever. If you, as a horse owner, have optimized everything in management, the cause of mud fever is likely mental!

Does Mental Well-being Affect Mud Fever?

What happens when you, as a person, aren’t feeling mentally well? When you’re under a lot of stress, for example? Your energy drops, your immunity decreases, and you become more susceptible to illnesses, eczema, and other allergies. Some people become irritable and withdraw from social contacts, while others develop conditions like eczema. It’s similar with horses! You can have everything right in terms of diet and housing, but if the mental aspect isn’t addressed, weaker points will continue to surface. For some horses, this manifests as sores on the legs—mud fever. Herd unrest, inappropriate training, negative people in the environment, wolves, housing that doesn’t suit the horse, or unresolved issues from the past—any of these can trigger stress, which can then lead to mud fever.

Address the Mental/Stress Issue!

Do you really want to solve the mud fever and have you tried nearly all the supplements? Then we recommend looking deeper and contacting a homeopath (e.g., Francis Dalebout). They can work with you to identify the areas that need attention to relieve stress from the body. Be aware, though, that there’s no quick fix—if it’s been there for years, it won’t be resolved in just a few weeks or months. However, you will soon notice that your horse starts to feel better and becomes mentally stronger. Of course, you should continue to support the right nutrition and, for example, use nettle, dandelion, and/or a lymph product to keep removing waste products. But with homeopathy, you take a deeper step and really get to the root of the problem. Also, dare to take action in the interest of your horse. Maybe it’s better for your horse to stay outside at night, or perhaps a stall provides more peace. And maybe your horse functions better in a smaller herd or even in a different stable. Does the way you ride/work with your horse suit them? Can your horse keep up with the ambitions you have? These are all things to explore to ensure your horse feels mentally well and the mud fever goes away permanently.

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Everywhere you see shampoo bars and other shampoos being promoted a lot for mud fever, wounds, and other skin conditions. And then with the advice to wash daily, for example. But is that really wise for mud fever? Do you want the legs to be washed daily or are you perhaps doing more harm with that?. Washing disrupts the skin balance Shampoo bars are all the rage, not only for yourself but also for horses. And yes, generally these are "healthier" than a shampoo from a bottle, but these shampoo bars also have disadvantages. Shampoo bars degrease extremely, if you have ever used such a bar yourself then you notice that your scalp feels extremely clean and your hair becomes a bit stiff. This means that all skin oil is removed and thus also the protection of the skin. The skin balance...

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When your horse has mud fever, you might get varying advice. Whether to wash or not, whether to remove crusts or not. How to handle it? It depends on the type of mud fever! We explain it in this article.

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When your horse has mud fever, you might get varying advice. Whether to wash or not, whether to remove crusts or not. How to handle it? It depends on the type of mud fever! We explain it in this article.. Mud fever is a term that can refer to several different skin conditions. It’s often a bacterial infection, but fungi and parasites like mites can also cause skin flakes, inflammation, itching, and spots. Cracks or wounds can also occur with mud fever. To treat mud fever properly, you need to look at the form it takes: Is it ‘dry’ mud fever or ‘wet’ mud fever? Wet Mud Fever If the skin in the coronet and around the mud fever spots is wet from wound fluid or if you see blisters or open inflammatio...

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