Horse Facts and Fun at Healing Tree

Equine Scratches and the Development of T-ZoN

by Dr. Eric Witherspoon, DVM.

I recently talked about the specific condition, ‘scratches’ (also known as mud fever, greasy heel, dew poisoning among others) and what causes it (see post April 27, 2010.)  The question for me as a veterinarian was:  how to treat this condition most successfully?  To be honest, the products that were available, either by prescription, or OTC or what I had been taught in vet school, simply didn’t work very well.  I knew I had to come up with something brand new, a concoction that would treat the bacterial and fungal infection, the redness and inflammation and the dry scaling and cracking, and any other symptom that might be present.

  I had been using Tea Tree oil topically for a number of different wound applications and knew that I needed a strong but non-prescription strength anti-inflammatory steroid to knock out the redness, soreness and pain.  Through a number of trial-and-error mixtures, I finally hit upon the ideal formula.

Something was needed to carry the active ingredients into the tissue without just sticking on the surface, thus attracting dirt and grime, like so many other already used ‘scratches’ treatments.  I chose a combination of natural oils, jojoba oil, avocado oil and olive oil…..all known for their soothing emollient properties and rapid penetration into skin.  Hydrocortisone is a fantastic topical steroid to stop itching and redness and I began adding along to the Tea Tree oil other potent proven natural remedies to reduce swelling and encourage healing, such as comfrey, goldenseal, myrrh and aloe vera.  The main point was to not only ‘heal’ the problem, but not to cause any further pain or irritation or stinging to the already sensitive areas.  And, voila, T-ZoN Dermal Care Cream was created!  Of course, its uses are not just limited to ‘scratches’ but it’s great for saddle sores, cinch galls and sores, ear plaques, rashes, burns, insect bites, tail and mane rubbing and much, much more.

 
 

Equine Parasite Migration

by Eric Witherspoon, DVM

Imagine your horse has replaced Tom Hanks in the starring role of that cute movie of several years ago about an e-mail relationship.   (I know, I know, I’m asking you to stretch your imagination a bit more than normal.)  Instead of hearing that ubiquitous, and in my humble opinion, obnoxious, voice intoning, “You’ve got mail”, your horse would instead hear, “You’ve got worms!”  Not exactly a dinner table or cocktail party conversation topic, but nonetheless, quite important for all horse owners.

Over the years, we’ve all been bombarded, by veterinarians, store owners, and drug companies with a number of deworming programs, from daily wormers to rotational wormings ranging from monthly to quarterly intervals.  We all know how important it is to our horses’ health to keep their GI (gastro-intestinal) tract clean of parasites, but it becomes even more important during certain times of the year, especially the fall and spring.

Some of the most insidious and harmful equine parasites are known as strongyles, both large and small species, more commonly referred to as ‘blood worms’. An infestation of these worms can cause anemia, colic, unthriftiness, poor skin and hair coat, and weight loss among other things.  Although the large strongyles may do more outright damage to the GI tract, veterinary science has in recent years discovered that the small strongyles can be just as damaging to the mucosa, or lining, of the intestines.  Way back in the dark ages when I attended veterinary college, there were only about 19 species of small strongyles that had been identified by parasitologists.  At present, there have been well over 40 species of small strongyles documented, whose sole purpose, other than selfishly obtaining a tasty ‘blood meal’, is to torment your horse, and subsequently you and your veterinarian.

You see, during certain larval stages that these parasites go through, they reside and migrate through the lining of the small intestine.  They’re microscopic and relatively harmless during this stage, compared to what they’re just waiting to accomplish when they break out, so to speak.  As far as we can ascertain, part of the life cycle of these creatures is intimately tied to seasonality, in particular those changes that occur in late fall and early spring.  In mid to late autumn, prior to the first frost, small strongyles in larval form, may sense that cold weather is just around the corner, greatly inhibiting their chance of survival in the environment outside their equine host.  If I may wax anthropomorphically, they ‘realize’ they’ve got to get outside and start the next cycle of their life before they could possibly be killed by freezing or inclement winter weather. 

So, at this point, the migrating small strongyle larvae literally break out of the lining of the equine intestinal tract!  No prison guards to stop them; no razor wire fences or gun turrets to discourage their escape; they simply run amok, well, crawl amok within the horse’s guts, causing minor bleeding from the mucosal wall, painful irritations and wreaking general havoc.  At least as much havoc as a microscopic larva can wreak, keeping in mind that there are thousands of these larvae being released at one time.  Although there may be other underlying causes, this larval migration is a major reason why there are so many colicky episodes witnessed by horse owner and veterinarians during the fall season.  Though they may not be life-threatening colics such as those caused by impaction or twisted bowels, they nonetheless are quite discomforting to the horse, and subsequently the owner.  A similar seasonal situation occurs in the early spring, when once again, the small strongyle larvae, encysted within the intestinal wall, break out once again to continue their life cycle.  In their little wormy minds, I’m sure they’re probably thinking, “Hey, springtime’s here!  Sunshine, no more harsh cold, grass to crawl around on!  What say we get out of this dark smelly intestinal tract and visit the outside world?”

How can the horse owner protect her equine charge from this plague cycle of encysted larvae?  The most effective treatment is fenbendazole, a deworming compound that’s been used in veterinary medicine for years.  However, research within the past decade has proven that doubling the dose of fenbendazole and administering that dose for 5 consecutive days will kill the encysted strongyle larvae before they have the opportunity to migrate further in their life cycle.  This purge deworming should be done at least once a year, preferably in the early fall or early spring, and will have even better results if done twice a year.  Using this method does not eliminate the normal deworming process, whether you’ve chosen to utilize daily wormers or rotational worming, but is an adjunct part of one’s schedule for eliminating parasites.  Fenbendazole is labeled under a variety of commercial names and applications including paste wormers and liquid forms.  Check with your veterinarian to determine which specific product and at what time of year it would be best to administer this for your horses.  Spring is upon us right now and the timing couldn’t be better to protect your horse from possible colic and other symptoms associated with small strongyle migration.

 

More about Why PH is Important to You and Your Horse

by Eric Witherspoon, DVM

You walk into your favorite store at which to buy shampoo and conditioners for yourself and you’re immediately confronted with a vast array of products, most of them proclaiming to be pH-balanced.  What’s a consumer to do?  What if you don’t even have the faintest idea what ‘pH’ means?  What if you’re harming your hair, your skin, your neighborhood, your child’s chances of getting into any Ivy League college, the earth if you use the wrong pH product?  What’s a consumer to do??  And then, just when you think you can ignore the problem and it will go away, you’re confronted with the same choices when it comes to grooming your horse.  You question:  should I just shave my head and my horse at the same time and be done with this dilemma?  Don’t despair, dear reader, hopefully we can help.

In recent years, the issue of pH has been in the forefront of discussion in the equine world, mainly within the area of horse grooming.  To be quite honest, there has been a lot of misinformation generated as well, and the purpose of this column is to try to clarify some of those issues.

Hair is made up mainly of proteins and is actually fairly strong stuff.  However, certain chemical processes can weaken hair and cause it to break or become brittle.  Hair structure is made up of two main parts:  the cuticle, or outer layer, consists of overlapping scales.  The inner layer, or the cortex, is basically protected by the cortex.  When hair is damaged, the scales of the cuticle may stand away from the cortex or even break off, exposing the inner layer and making hair feel dry and brittle.  The cortex is made up of a chemical ‘string’ of proteins and gives hair its elasticity and strength.  Alkaline products can penetrate through the cuticle/outer layer.  As an example, most human hair color dyes are alkaline; they open up the cuticle and mix with the cortex, thus changing the color of the hair.  Even diluted bleach with a pH of 9 can cause the scales of the cuticle layer to break off if used too often or mixed too strongly.  When the cortex is exposed to further washing and environmental factors, it can dry out, loose elasticity and leave the hair prone to breakage.

Basically, pH scale measures the concentration of H+ (hydrogen ions) and OH- (hydroxide ions). More simply put, it is the measure of how acidic or alkaline a solution is.  The pH scale ranges from 0, very acidic, to 14, highly alkaline, with 7 as the neutral number.  Even though some products may have a slightly higher or lower number than 7 and could be considered ‘neutral’, e.g. a pH of 6.5 to 7.5, the scientific fact is that neutral pH is 7.  Period.

The internal pH of most living cells is close to 7, and the pH of a healthy horse’s skin and hair is 7.0 to 7.4, essentially neutral.  This neutral pH provides a barrier to both unfriendly funguses and bacteria.  In fact, equine skin pH actually increases as a horse sweats, creating an environment more conducive for harmful bacteria and fungus to ‘set up shop’ dermatologically, so to speak.  Because of this, it is very important to try to bring the pH back to normal, as close to neutral as possible.  Everyone who has ever purchased shampoo for themselves as heard or read the term: pH-balanced.  This is simply stating that a particular product, shampoo, conditioner, moisturizer, whatever it may be, has been balanced for a particular pH.  As an example, the pH of human skin and hair is around 6.7 to 6.9, slightly lower than a horse’s.  So, a pH-balanced shampoo will have a slightly acidic pH so it will rinse more cleanly, not leaving chemical residues behind.

Yet another way to understand the difference between acid and alkaline, or basic, solutions involved how they rinse off a surface.  Bleach is a highly alkaline substance with a pH around 12.  If you’ve ever gotten bleach on your hands, there’s a feeling of slipperiness and an inability to wash the bleach off.  It may take 5 or 6 repeated rinses of clear water to get rid of the bleach and to have normal tactile sensations back in your fingers.  This is because highly alkaline products do not mix well with water. The technical term is hydrophobic and, simply put, they bind to the protein of the skin, hair, cornea, etc.  Acid-based products, on the other hand, are hydrophilic, that is, they mix well with water and are more easily rinsed off hair and skin and are much safer around the eyes.  As an example, most prescription eye ointments and drops are acidic so they do not cause damage to the cornea, but are rapidly absorbed into the eye chambers.

In contrast, mildly acidic solutions have an opposite effect and flatten the cuticle, making hair easier to brush and look shinier.  As an interesting aside, before the advent of modern hair coloring salons and technology, women would rinse their hair in vinegar after harsh chemical dying processes to make their hair more shiny and manageable.

Because the pH scale is so ‘compact’, ranging only from 0 to 14, it’s important to understand how it works.  Each pH unit represents a tenfold difference of the H+ (hydrogen ion) and OH- (hydroxide ion) concentration.  That means that a solution of pH 2 is not twice as acidic as a solution of pH 4, but rather a HUNDRED times more acidic.  If a horse’s skin and hair has a pH of 7, an alkaline solution with a pH of 10 is actually 1000 times MORE ALKALINE than normal or neutral.

Simple pH Chart

                        Solution                                    pH

                        Sulfuric acid                                    1  

                        Lemon juice                                    2

                        Soda                                                3

                        Milk                                                 6

                        Pure rainwater                                6.5

                        Baby Shampoo                                 6.5

                        Baking soda                                    9

                        Ammonia                                       10

                        Bleach                                           12

                        Drain Cleaner                                14

                       
 The most important lesson to learn about pH and your horse’s skin and hair is simply this:  it’s always best to try to bring the pH back towards neutral or normal.

Remember that sweating and dirt can raise the pH toward the alkaline side, so a neutral to slightly acidic pH product works best for cleaning and protecting the horse’s skin and hair.  Although a more alkaline product may seem to clean better, it simply strips away all natural oils and opens up the cuticles, possibly causing hair shaft damage and making an environment in which funguses and bacteria can more readily establish themselves.

 If there’s a question about a specific product, it’s best to contact the manufacturer and ask for a copy of the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet), which should contain the pH of the product in question.  Or, you can test any solution or substance with a simple pH meter or litmus paper test.  Also, the term ‘pH-balanced’ can, unfortunately, be twisted to mean what the manufacturer wants it to mean.   Unless a reference point is provided, pH-balanced may be misconstrued.  As an example, since horse’s hair and skin is normally around 7 to 7.4, a pH-balanced shampoo should be close to neutral to ‘balance’ the pH back to normal.