The current seasonal conditions are ideal for greasy heel to develop – long grass, mud, wet weather – and we are seeing horses affected by this inflammatory dermatitis.

What is it?

A skin condition involving the lower limbs of horses particularly those with white hair on their pasterns and/or hairy fetlocks. Hind limbs are most frequently affected but it can involve all four legs.

Greasy heel can be quite persistent and tricky to get rid of - early intervention is best.

What causes it?

Constant repeated exposure to moisture eg continual standing in damp pasture, insect bites on lower limbs and abrasions – basically anything that reduces the effectiveness of the skin as a barrier to fungi, bacteria and mites.

What does it look like?

The condition first appears as a mild dermatitis with swelling and redness. As the disease progresses scabs and crusts form causing matting of the hair. If left untreated the scabs become painful and itchy leading to further trauma and lameness.

How do we treat Greasy Heel?

The first thing to do is to remove the predisposing conditions - clipping excess hair, washing legs to remove mud and keeping lower limbs dry.

Soaking and scrubbing the affected areas with a medicated wash (eg chlorhexidine solution or iodine scrub) to soften and remove scabs is essential to kill the bacteria. Scab removal may need to be done in stages, softening the scabs before trying to gently remove them. Then dry the legs and apply a topical antibiotic and steroid cream as prescribed by your vet (such as prednoderm). More severely affected horses require sedation & pain relief to allow for treatment by your veterinarian which may also include administration of systemic antibiotics (injectable or oral).

The take home message

If found in its early stages and appropriate treatment initiated Greasy Heel can be managed by horse owners, however if lesions get worse or any severe signs such as lameness, cracking or bleeding appear you should seek veterinary advice.

It is a persistent disease and treatment may need to be continued for weeks, possibly months. Don’t give up.

Prevention is the best cure for Greasy Heel – ensure horses are kept in clean and dry environments and check legs regularly in wet, cold weather.

Autumn is here and with the cool seasonal change often comes an increase in the number of cases of colic.

Colic is a pretty broad term used by vets and horse owners alike to describe any form of abdominal pain. Most of us are familiar with the common signs – pawing, rolling, sweating, dullness, and inappetence, to name a few. There are a huge range of different causes of colic, however the increase in cases during the Autumn months can be attributed to a couple of factors.

1. Lack of pasture cover - Following the Summer, pasture on offer is usually limited, of low quality and poor digestibility. Horses will tend to graze closer to the ground and, in sandy soils, this can lead to ingestion of significant amounts of sand. This sand can accumulate and consequently cause irritation within the digestive system, resulting in sand colic.

2. Cooler weather - Cooler weather can lead to reduced water intake. Given the lack of pasture availability, hay is often fed to cover the feed gap. This high fibre diet, combined with inadequate water intake, means that the digestive tract can be lacking in the moisture it needs to run smoothly and impaction colic can be the result.

Tips to prevent colic this Autumn:

+ Always provide fresh, readily accessible water

+ Supplement the diet with small amounts of salt to encourage water intake

+ Avoid overgrazing pasture, and feed hay or grain in feeders to prevent sand ingestion

+ Ensure dietary changes are always made gradually

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) causes significant economic losses to all cattle producers, be they feedlot, dairy or breeding enterprises. A recent study has investigated the impacts of BRD in feedlots in southern NSW. A total of 898 steers weighing an average of 432kg were fed for an average of 114d. Any animals that were pulled for treatment were recorded, then all steers were followed through to slaughter for lung lesion scoring.

Some interesting observations for the trail were:

+ 18% of steers entering the feedlot had at least one case of BRD

+ Healthy steers - not treated for BRD through the trial, and no severe lung lesions

• Grew at 1.8kg per day
• Had 352kg carcasses
• With a marble score of 349

+ Subclinical BRD steers – not treated during the trial but had severe lung lesions

• Grew at 1.6kg per day
• Had 336kg carcasses
• With a marble score of 326

+ Clinical steers – treated during the trial and had significant lung lesions

• Grew at 1.4kg per day
• Had 328kg carcasses
• With a marble score of 299

This demonstrates that an event of BRD reduces both the quantity and quality of meat yield from steers. It also shows that we must pay close attention to identifying, as the subclinical steers (i.e. steers that have the disease but have not yet been diagnosed), still suffer losses.

Another interesting finding of the study was that the net financial return for steers that were not treated was 1, 2 or 3x higher than steers that were treated. Healthy steers net returned $183. If a steer was treated once, a net return of $118 was realised. If treated twice, -$6 was realised and if treated under 3, -$227 was realised. This proves the importance of using the most effective antibiotic treatment in the first instance.

If you would like help setting up BRD prevention and treatment plans, please speak with us.