Scratches are my Enemy

I spent two and a half hours putting the latest remedy on Rain, King, Dude, and Chaos to try and cure those scratches. I know it's going to be a long drawn out process. I think I may call the vet and see which remedy would work the best. I don't know that the oinment I'm putting on them is really helping or if I need to cure it from the inside out first.

Two and a half hours! I'll never be able to get everyone cured of scratches before winter sets in. I didn't even look at Sam or Bob. Brego is the only one in the main herd that doesn't have them for a fact.

I also had to put aloe vera on Dude and King. Their noses are starting to scab over. I'm not sure whatthe deal is. It's very frustrating.

And after spending 2 1/2 hours putting the goop on I put everyone out into the drylot. They tore down my temporary fence. So now I have to figure out a more permanent fence. I swear if I don't do something soon they are going to bust the big drylot fence down and I'll have to catch all the horses throughout the entire county.

The horses did come up later after I let them back out into the pasture. And what did I notice, that most of the goop was already gone. I'm not sure if it soaked in or if they somehow rubbed it off.

I need to start picking at the scabs. Rain's scratches scabs are on pretty good. It's going to take more than five minutes of soaking. I need to bring a timer out or something.

Chaos has them bad on his two back legs. I didn't soak his legs figuring he'd knock my head off. But when I put the cream on, the scab started coming off. So I guess I need to put some type of wet wrap on his back legs if he won't let me soak them (and I'm guessing he won't allow it.)

Dude has scratches on all four legs but they don't seem to bother him too much. His nose is giving him more problems. I tried aloe vera and sunscreen last night but was getting fed up. So I put nitrofurizon on instead. It's a bit more messy but I think it might have helped a bit more. Dude doesn't like his face messed with so it's always an effort in futility.

I did have King caught once and he escaped. So I had to convince him to come back to the barn for some pampering. He stood like a gentleman for all the treatments (scratches and all four legs and aloe on the nose). He's also due for new shoes. I think I'm going to have my farrier just pull the shoes and be done with it. I did see King trot around the drylot and he didn't seem like he was off. So maybe it IS the scratches that are bothering him and the goop helped relieve some of the pain. We'll try it again tonight and see what happens.

I also applied some nitrofurizone on Queen's bum. She's got pink skin around her tail and I couldn't tell if she was getting burned somehow or if it was her being "messy" so I decided I would apply some cream on her as well.

The problem is, I spend all my time putting goop on I am not getting a chance to ride Maverick or Chaos. I still need to get Maverick adjusted to grass and out into the big lot. Otherwise, I may see if I can't buy a round bale and plunk it in his drylot and let him have that while we are away.

The pony pasture where I was planning on keeping the ponies isn't coming back like I'd hoped. I need to get in and mow it down and see if it'll hold them. If not I need to do some quick thinking and quick fencing. I'll have to tear down the mare pen while they are at mom and dad's and install them near the garage so they have a run-in to get away from the mosquitoes. I need to take a closer look at everything for the ponies to see what I can and cannot do while we're gone.

I so desperately need a vacation but I'm not sure I feel comfortable leaving all my animals. And to top it off, after spending that much time with the horses applying this latest remedy, I started to break out. I am not sure what I'm allergic to but it's all over my face, neck, and chest. So our entire Borderlands is quite a sight with our white and yellow creams smeared over everything.


I'm not sure how tonight will go. I'm hoping to head out right away and put a ride in on Maverick. Then I'll start working on putting my scratches remedy to the test. I need to figure out some type of wet wrap to put on everyone. Maybe then I can pull everyone into the barn, apply the wet wrap for 15 minutes and then go around and start applying the cream. It might not take as long if I do it that way instead of pulling each horse in individually and messing with him for awhile. 15 minutes to soak while I spend 15 minutes picking off someone else's scabs and applying the cream. Hhmmm... sounds like a plan I'm going to have to try. Now to come up with a plan for a wet wrap.