Meddi Mudis great for horses that are turned out, as it treats the scabs and protects the skin from further damage. Is this a chronic or an acute condition? As far as I have learned, mallenders is a form of keratosis, where the horse's body produces an excess of skin molecules, and it is chronic. It won't ever go away, though it can be managed. The feather scabs are more likely to be acute, caused by things like mites, mud fever or photosensitivity. Chorioptic Mange is caused by the feather mites Chorioptes equi that live on the surface layer of the horse’s skin. They are only about 0.3mm in size so can’t be easily seen by the naked eye. The mites feed on the skin debris and can live for around 70 days after hatching from eggs laid on the surface of the horse’s skin. The lower legs are the most common place for the mites to live and although feathered horse breeds seem to be most affected, they can be found in any breed of horse or pony.

Brewers yeast is very good for digestion with the added bonus that it's very good for skin and hooves too, you should see a difference within a month. The skin should be supple and shiny at al times even with a winter coat if she is healthy and that will show in the state of her mallenders too. You could add oil to her feed but being what she is that might not be good for her waistline. Also, being what she is she might be finding your grass to rich for her which will all have an effect on the skin; gypsy cobs are bred to be hardy and do well on the cheapest ground, by bringing them out of their comfort zone to richer grazing and diets let alone being molly coddled (not saying you do, just generalizing!) with rugs and all sorts it's not surprising that their bodies and systems sometimes react differently. Washing and drying - Horse was stabled at night. If I left his legs muddy they would still be soaked the next morning. If they were hosed off, his legs would be dry within the hour. I know the jury is still out about hosing but it was definitely the best thing for my lad. The only proven and effective treatments are either a moxidectin or ivermectin leg wash, prescribed by your vet, however, many horse owners believe that diet plays a significant role in the severity of the scabbing and by carefully adapting the diet, the condition can improve. It’s commonly reported that prone horses can get a flare up in early spring time, believed to be related to the sudden grass growth in the UK. Similarly, a high sugar and starch diet is believed to attribute to further irritation and some horse owners even suggest alfalfa is best avoided also. I will try the brewers yeast too. I had wondered about feeding her oil, although she is difficult to keep the weight off so this might be a problem. Scurfy, flakey skin is another common symptom of chorioptic mange and is believed to be the skin’s natural defence to shedding the mites. Often, even when the mites have gone, the horse’s skin continues to flake. What is mallanders and sallanders?never wash his feathers unless I absolutely have to ( @Cortrasna, you were right!). If I absolutely have to, use an animal shampoo such as Malaseb, never a human medicated shampoo

Aww I do feel your pain, it’s a nightmare isn’t it. I went through every lotion and potion under the sun. Some had no effect whatsoever and others were mildly successful but nothing ever cured my lad from trashing his legs. Gracie gets mallenders a little from time to time and in her case I'm convinced it is exacerbated by what she consumes. I don't feed her anything that contains biotin (which is why I went for the FP balancer) and it's definitely worse when she eats lots of sugary grass. She's been muzzled this spring/summer so far and all I've seen is a bit of greasy dandruff in her feather, she doesn't seem to have any sores this time And she's not stamping her feet at all either. If temperatures are low or for any reason you cannot shampoo your horses’ legs, the Equiderma Skin Lotion will do an excellent job on its own.

From a diet and nutrition perspective, supplying a balanced diet that provides adequate good quality protein plus vitamins and minerals are all important for general skin health and support. In addition, a small amount of a high quality oil rich in essential fatty acids such as omega 3, can also help skin health and suppleness. Although nutrition and diet are frequently discussed on forums and linked to mites, mallanders and sallanders in horses, there isn’t any scientific evidence to support this information. For example, there is often talk, particularly on social media, of biotin making mallanders and sallenders worse however, there is no scientific evidence to support this. Biotin is a naturally occurring vitamin present at low levels in grass and forages and is produced internally by the horse itself as it breaks down fibre. It is therefore impossible to provide a diet which is completely free from biotin.

Removing the scab is the key to starting the healing process. Follow the veterinarian's instructions.M&S Formula is a complete balancer that has been specifically developed for horses and ponies that suffer from Mallenders or Sallenders, it provides all the essential nutrients without fillers, bulking agents, cereals, alfalfa or sugars. M&S formula is biotin free and simply fed with a handful of chaff or grass nuts for those not necessarily on a hard food ration.