Spring Shedding & Dry Skin?

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Permalink Reply by Barbara F. on May 15, 2009 at 5:15pm

Hi Jen,

My horse gets dry like that in the winter. I don't think a shampoo and rinse would harm your horse at all and she'd probably appreciate it as long as the water's nice and warm!

If your horse is really dry, you can always add a bit of oil to her feed, although sometimes oil can go rancid in the summer if it isn't kept in a cool place. I'd start with the bath and a good currying, then see what she looks like.


By the way, there is a difference between dryness and the scurf that some horses get on their lower legs (usually hind), but it doesn't sound like your horse has that.

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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Grant on May 15, 2009 at 6:47pm

Thank you so much Barbara!! I'll try the oil in her feed--but I think the bath will really help a lot--

As for the bath, its just starting to warm up here in Oregon--is supposed to be 70-80 degrees this weekend--do you think thats too cold to give her a hose bath? I know that sounds stupid because they ARE animals of course, but BBBRRRR... lol

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Permalink Reply by Barbara F. on May 15, 2009 at 11:59pm

I think she'll be fine if you give her a warm bath, then throw a light cooler over her and take her for a little walk to dry off.
Just a little oil. I think people use corn oil, but I'm not sure. Maybe someone here knows for sure?

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Permalink Reply by Jan Jollymour on May 20, 2009 at 4:12pm

Hi, Jen:

Horses are just like people, individuals, and some get lots of spring/fall scurf and others seem to get nearly none at all. Some horses seem to shed almost all of their coats in the spring/fall, to the point of appearing nearly hairless in some areas, and others take forever to drop their coats. I keep my horses under lights in the winter (a la hunters) and they don't get much coat, and that helps.

Really strong currying with a rubber curry will, over the course of a few days, and coupled with work, take the scurf out of the coat without drying it as bathing will. I usually only bathe with water, following work, and only use shampoo on the greys, where it really can't be avoided. Grooming with lots of elbow grease is the best tool available!

As regards feeding oil you can use pretty much any food grade oil. I usually look for on-sale canola oil at the bulk stores, and as long as you keep it cool it should be OK. You can also use products like Cool Calories (palatable and stabilized oil pellets) or stabiliized rice bran (but that you have to be careful to keep your calcium/phosphorus ratio correct, unless you use a product which is already corrected). I use ground flax, which I keep cool in the summer. I buy it in 50 lb bags, which is more economical than any of the other alternatives, and feed up to 2 cups per day (divided) on some horses. Alternatively, you can use extruded feeds like Hi-Fat 20, which is 20% fat, and the fat's already included in the extruded kibble. That's usually my first choice, as it's palatable and doesn't create oil deposits in feed buckets, bins, and water buckets. Some horses will produce even more oily scurf when you increase the oil in their feeds, but your problem sounds like it's perhaps more related to dry skin.

I would try good old-fashioned currying and grooming, and see how that goes after a week. My horses will get scurfy when I've been away for a few days teaching, and I have to work a little harder the first few days back at work to clean out their coats, but after that they stay pretty clean with daily hard grooming and work!

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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Grant on May 22, 2009 at 2:23pm

thanks so much for all of your help and advice guys! the sun was shining so much on Sunday, that I just went for it and spent a while currying her out and then dove in and gave her a full on bath. she LOVED it!! she dried quickly, wasn't cold and we fully enjoyed our time together! :) I'll try to get some pics to show you all how her coat is just shiny and gleaming with red highlights!

Thanks again!!

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Permalink Reply by IrishRider on June 1, 2009 at 4:26pm

I have heard that tea tree oil can help with this too. I have not tried it yet but have heard about it on more than one occasion.

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Permalink Reply by jay hughes on June 17, 2009 at 11:12pm

Tea Tree Oil is a great solution and is gaining a wonderful following.

The brand i know about is Healing Tree Brand and they are a very reputable company run by a vet.

Hope that helps.

jay
H & H Horse

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Permalink Reply by Don Gillett on June 19, 2009 at 12:44pm

Shedding season isn't a fun time of year, and it's worse for some horses than others, especially those prone to having dry skin or have poor diets. Here's some tips that can helping in reducing dry skin and dull coat issues.

Don't over bathe your horse, once a month can be too much for some horses. It's better and more natural just to use only water and hose down specific areas if necessary, but avoid the constant use of soap, as even mild soap will actually dry out and dull your horse's coat and can even be damaging over time.

Brushing and vacuuming your horse's coat is better for removing dirt and also stimulating the skin.

Don't leave sheets and blankets on for days and days, many do this so the horse sheds out quicker, but the skin needs to breathe too.

Don't over spray your horse with commercial fly sprays and bug repellents, the majority of these products contain chemicals and if over used can cause skin dryness and irritations.

An excellent alternative fly and mosquito repellent for horses is an Avon product called "Skin-So-Soft", this has been used by many horsemen for years and has proven to be very effective with added benefits such as being far cheaper than most commercial products, more natural with no harsh chemicals, a good conditioner for the skin and coat, in fact you may begin to notice a big difference with dry skin conditions as weel as the sheen to your horse's coat. Use the Avon "Skin-So-Soft" Original formula.

Many people use petroleum gels or baby oils to treat dry skin or dull coats, this is fine but don't over to do it and throw your horse out in the hot sun, this can potentially burn your horse's skin. If you turn your horse out into a paddock or pasture, on hot days apply towards evening and give the oils a chance to absorb and get rubbed off a bit overnight.

If your horse has a chronic dry condition supplements such as tree oil can help. Adding a little rice bran which adds fat to the diet can be excellent for improving the coat as well as a good general vitamin supplement. You can also use corn oil, add 1/8 cup cold pressed corn oil to the grain daily. In about 2 -3 weeks, you should notice a difference. Once a healthy coat is restored, you can back down to adding the oil once every week or two.

Just be careful with adding supplements for every little thing that will supposedly benefit your horse, it can sometimes actually lead to adverse effects by over supplementing a horse's diet.

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