How to Diagnose, Treat & Prevent Rain Rot in Horses
When there are high volumes of rainfall many horse owners may begin to see the presence of rain rot on their horses. Rain rot is a skin disease that can be frustrating to deal with but with the right care can often be easily treated.
Rain rot is a common condition during rainy seasons and horse owners should understand how rain may impact the health of their horses. While typically easily treated rain rot should be addressed immediately to prevent worsening or spread.
Rain rot also called rain scald or dermatophilosis is a skin infection caused by a bacterium known as Dermatophilus congolensis. Living on the horses skin D. congolensis is mostly dormant but under wet conditions this bacterium can cause an inflammatory infection resulting in lesions on the horses skin. These lesions cause small patches of raised bumps which are scabs containing clusters of the horses hair. Removal of these scabs results in bald patches along the affected area. In severe cases lesions and scabs may become large and affect multiple layers of skin. When this occurs the horse may need time off from riding until the infection clears.
All horses can be affected by this condition however links with horses coat colours and immune status leading to a higher incidence of rain rot have been identified. Particularly
