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scratches information
uc berckly
Measurement of Skin Desmosine as an Indicator
of Altered Cutaneous Elastin in Draft Horses
With Chronic Progressive Lymphedema
Chronic progressive lymphedema in Clydesdale and Shire draft horses
causes
severe disability of the limbs
leads to premature death
Measurement
of Skin Desmosine as an Indicator of Altered Cutaneous Elastin in Draft Horses
With Chronic Progressive Lymphedema
Chronic progressive lymphedema in Clydesdale and Shire draft horses
causes severe disability of the limbs
leads to premature death
Since appropriate function of lymph vessels is dependent
on the presence of
viable elastin fibers the goal of this
study was to document differences in skin elastin fibers in affected horse breeds compared to a nonaffected draft
horse breed.
Methods
and Results:
Biochemical analysis of cutaneous desmosine
a cross-linking amino acid
found
only in elastin was used to measure elastin in the skin from 110 draft horses.
This included 7 normal, 38 mildly affected, 30 moderately and
15 severely affected horses,
and 20 horses of a nonaffected draft breed.
Desmosine
concentrations in neck,
considered a nonaffected skin region, and left forelimb an affected skin region
were compared between the
groups.
A significantly
lower desmosine concentration was found in the skin of the neck and limb
of clinically normal animals of affected draft
breeds compared to a nonaffected draft horse breed.
During the progression of the disease in the affected breeds,
cutaneous desmosine concentrations
most prominently increased in the skin of the distal limbs.
During the progression of the disease in the affected breeds,
cutaneous desmosine concentrations
most prominently increased in the skin of the distal limbs.
Conclusions:
Chronic progressive lymphedema
in draft horses was associated with an initially systemic
lower
cutaneous elastin level
and a deposition
of elastin during the progression of the disease.
A failure of elastic fibers to appropriately
support the skin
and its lymphatics
is proposed as a possible contributing factor for
chronic progressive lymphedema
in Shires and Clydesdales.
KEY
PHRASES TO RESEARCH
cutaneous lesions
skin desmosine
Collagen and elastin cross-linking
collagen
elastin
cutaneous wound healing
Progressive
Swelling
Hyperkeratosis
Fibrosis of Distal Limbs
Clydesdale
draft horses
Shire draft horses
Belgian Draft Horses
Primary Lymphedema
WHO STUDIES THIS CONDITION
Hilde E.V. de Cock
Verena K. Affolter
Erik R. Wisner
Gregory L. Ferraro
Nigel J. MacLachlan
scratches
uc
berckly study # 2
KEY PHRASES TO RESEARCH
cutaneous lesions
skin desmosine
Collagen and
elastin cross-linking
collagen
elastin
cutaneous wound healing
Progressive Swelling
Hyperkeratosis
Fibrosis of Distal Limbs
Clydesdale draft horses
Shire draft horses
Belgian Draft Horses
Primary Lymphedema
WHO STUDIES THIS CONDITION
Hilde E.V. de Cock
Verena K. Affolter
Erik R. Wisner
Gregory L. Ferraro
Nigel J. MacLachlan
scratches
uc berckly study # 2
A condition
characterized by progressive swelling hyperkeratosis and fibrosis of the distal limbsrecognized in Shire, Clydesdale, and
Belgian draft horses.
This chronic progressive disease starts at an early age,,,progreses throughout the life of the horse..... ends
in disfigurement and disability of the limbs......inevitably leads to premature death.
This study was undertaken to better characterize this disease.
Methods and Results:
Six affected horses were donated for diagnostic
workup.
A detailed clinical, radiologic, gross, and histologic description is given in this report.
The lesions
in the limb consisted of progressive development of thick-walled lymphatics associated with chronic dermal dema, inflammation fibrosis and
elastin degeneration. ....In the end stages arteriosclerosis and fibrosed veins were also present. .....The clinical
signs and pathologic changes in this disease closely resemble the human condition of
elephantiasis nostras verrucosa
a state in which chronic lymphedema plays a pivotal pathogenic
role
Methods and Results:
Six affected horses were donated for diagnostic workup.
A detailed clinical, radiologic,
gross, and histologic description is given in this report.
The lesions in the limb consisted of progressive development
of thick-walled lymphatics associated with chronic dermal dema, inflammation fibrosis and elastin degeneration.
....In the end stages arteriosclerosis and fibrosed veins were also present. .....The clinical signs and pathologic changes in
this disease closely resemble the human condition of
elephantiasis nostras verrucosa
a state in which chronic lymphedema plays a pivotal pathogenic role
sara shalda treatments
 
Listerine and baby oil is what we use here at Sara shalda performance horses
as a daily maintenence routine for scratches
summertime less
oil wintertime more oil
just rub on legs twice daily
see improvement in a few days 
scratches trement remediesmost recent
up to date scratches book on the market
as of 2008
order it here save your horses
life 
severe chronic pastern lymphedemasevere chronic pastern lymphedemathis leg is in need of immediate emergency treatment
first the horse must be stalled this leg is in need of immediate emergency treatmentthis leg is in need of immediate emergency treatment
first the horse must be stalled first the horse must
be stalled
i
would not give this horse more than a 20 % chance to live
toxemia has set in by now organs have
already began to shut down
a horse like this needs excersice remember increases circulation but...a horse in this condition also needs
a stall large airy roomie peaceful clean water large box stall at
least 18 x 18
the horse must be treated at least
4 times daily
   dry sawdust shavings clean water large box stall at
least 18 x 18
the horse must be treated at least
4 times daily
soaking
wraps towels or cotton rolls
saran wrap or garbage bags
vet wrap not too tight
make sure off leg
is tied up
move quickly
it is extremely painful for a horse
to have his leg tied up in tis condition
change completely every four hours
wash gently with non irritations soap
ivory
EquyssMicro-Tek Shampoo
panteen
wash gently warm water
spray with sprayer heavier
than mist setting but not as strong as flat or jet
i like shower setting
gently for a long time 20 minutes
horse must be in shoeing stock
order
your shoeing stock from us
order your shoeing stock
from usorder your shoeing
stock from usor go to pur shoeing stock page to see other dealers accross the contry horse must also have his feet soaked in soaking boots scratches page one has more info severe cases we soak every day after two weeks of intensive therapy the leg should
look more like this
now you can start to cut back treatment
to three a day
after about a month cut back to only two a day
don't quit
all together it will come back
worse than ever
none of this will last if
the horse is not on internal supplements
see scratches
page 1
very very
important
horse must remain happy
anything
you can think of
popsickles in the waterbucket jolly ball stall toys 
carrotts apples
sweet licks salt licks
playing radio
running fans even a tv to watch
anything to make him more comfortable
and release good happy endorphins
pain immediately
releases poisonous toxins
thats why it is so hard to heal these horses
they are in a constant state of extreme agony all the time or go to pur shoeing stock page to
see other dealers accross the contry horse
must also have his feet soaked in soaking boots scratches page one has more info severe cases we soak every day after two weeks of intensive therapy the leg should
look more like this
now you can start to cut back treatment
to three a day
after about a month cut back to only two a day
don't quit
all together it will come back
worse than ever
none of this will last if
the horse is not on internal supplements
see scratches
page 1
very very
important
horse must remain happy
anything
you can think of
popsickles in the waterbucket jolly ball stall toys
carrotts apples
sweet licks salt licks
playing radio
running fans even a tv to watch
anything to make him more comfortable
and release good happy endorphins
pain immediately
releases poisonous toxins
thats why it is so hard to heal these horses
they are in a constant state of extreme agony all the time
the following photos
below
are of my own horse Clyde after a year of treatment.
his scratches started...on
the rear right leg half way up the cannon bone.
we
noticed it while we were getting him ready to go into a class at a show.
we thought he
just banged his leg in the trailer
the
judge noticed it too.
he said .....whats
that?
banged his leg in the trailer..... i said
hope thats all it is ....the judge said
he knew something i do not.
he knew it was .....the onset of scratches
as
the year went on.... it got worse and worse no matter what i did.
by the end of show season it had spread to his entire body.
i
tried many different experiments on him that winter
in the nasty northern Michigan cold.
i learned alot.
no thanks to any vet or 100's of people i asked for help.
i
was so astonish how little people knew of this condition
everyone
told me something different
some were positive some not
everyone had an
opinion
but none of them helped
geeez
i insisted we put clyde down
cant stant to hurt him everyday i said
my husband refused
said i was the smartest and most creative horse trainer he ever met
said he has seen me work many miracles
said i had it in me to do one more
save my horse he begged
just
looked at me
i couldn't look him in the eye
couldn't look clyde in the eye either
how could i do this
i needed help
the only one on the whole planet
that knew how bad this was clyde
so i asked him to help me
told him
he could count on me
to give it my all mo matter what happened between us
i researched everything
myself.
learned from trial and error.
i learned from pharmacists.
learned from medical journals.
learned
from the Internet
i studied how burn patients recover.
studied how skin grows
studied what affects the skin
studied
what helps and hurts skin
studied home remedies
studied ancient remedies
of other cultures
talked to people who had skin problems
made my own notes. made my own
conclusion.
came up with my own medicines. my own salves.
my own shampoos, some worked...some didn't.
it is true i think the disease has
a certain progression it must go thru
to interact with the body's immune system and the lymph system
top
3
most important factors in this horses recovery
1. consistency.
three or four times aday when its real bad. never miss a day. no matter what.
2. combination of internal and external medicine.
you must use the supplements.
you must use the creams, shampoos, conditioners,
boots, wraps, dryers
3. your ability to adapt.
you must be able to know when something is not working and change
it.
sometimes change is very small.
sometimes it means completely eliminating.
sometimes it means
combining different ingredients in different amounts.
make sure you take alot of photos. write everyting down
no matter how dumb it sounds keep everything
i would give anything to show
you exactly how bad this poor horse actually got.
it will be hard to imagine
this
from the photos below because he is sooooo much better now.
questions...?
sarashalda@aol.com 
these sores
basically stay in the same spots
just increase and decrease in severity
depending on many factors
treatment must be done all year long
even in the winter
if you do not have
indoor facilities, I'm sorry, but you just have to make due.
treatments must be done every day or more.
in the winter you will need a hot bucket of water
put in the following
a dash of soap...panteen or dawn
dash of bleach
other things to have with you ..
at the same time
panteen conditioner
hair
dryer
comb
rubber gloves help keep your hands warm
but you must take them off to feel for scabs
and to
remove scabs and to check for new ones
| exercise is important for circualtion |
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| your treatments need to include it |
 Scratches
refers to a skin problem on the lower legs
area becomes crusted scabby
and thickened creating bumps and sometimes open sores.
skin may ooze or the whole lower leg may swell... horse may
become lame.
generally affects unpigmented skin more readily than dark skin
Scratches is a dermatitis,,,inflammation
of the skin.
Some horses seem to be more susceptible than others.
some recover better than others
some require different treatments than others
inflammation of deeper layers of the skin involving the blood
and lymph vessels
most common site of inflammation is pastern and fetlock area heel and back of the pastern
skin is hot hard reddish and thickened crusted scabbed leaking cracked
spreads
if not treated
will spread to the inner tissues
complicated by bacterial infection
Traditional
treatments for scratches
were
astringents like methylene blue
iodine mixed with glycerine or
ointments made with zinc oxide
nitrofurazone and steroids.
a better treatment
recommended by several veterinarians is a mix of
nitrofurazone DMSO
thiabendazole
(a cattle wormer.. also a good fungicide).
hard to find anymore however
can substitute other benzimidazole dewormer drugs
found in horse paste wormers.
clean
thouroghly apply mixture
one part nitrofurazone ointment
(an antibiotic salve)
one part dewormer paste containing thiabendazole or other benizmidazoles
one part DMSO.
look here
veterinarian local feed store such as
tractor supply.
DMSO
(dimethyl sulfoxide) helps
reduce swelling and inflammation
helps the fungicide
the wormer paste's active ingredient penetrate the
area deeply taking the medication into the underlying tissues.
nitrofurazone
combats bacterial infection helps buffer the DMSO so it won't burn or irritate the tissues.
The wormer paste kills fungus. safest type of fungicide to use in conjunction with DMSO
Harsh or poisonous fungicides like iodine should never be used
with DMSO
because DMSO carries the medication into the body and could cause serious problems.
area should be well cleaned before applying the medication so dirt or outside contaminants
are not carried into the deeper tissues by the DMSO.
reread.
Warm water apply with a well-rinsed dishwashing detergent squeeze bottle gently
use your fingers to
remove any dirt clinging to the leg
After washed with warm water and is very clean it
should be dried
with a towel. gently
WE HERE AT SSPH UsE A BLOW DRYER
ON FEATHERS THE DRYER THE BETTER
The skin should
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