Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Moxidectin and cleaning don't clear mites in heavily feathered horses
By Rüfenacht, Silvia et al.·Published in Veterinary dermatology·2011·Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Combined moxidectin and environmental therapy do not eliminate Chorioptes bovis infestation in heavily feathered horses.
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A group of heavily feathered horses with skin problems on their legs, caused by a mite called Chorioptes bovis, were treated with a medication called moxidectin and an environmental insecticide to see if it would help. Despite some improvement in skin crusting, the treatment did not effectively eliminate the mites or significantly improve the horses' overall skin condition. This means that current treatments for this type of mite infestation in feathered horses may not be effective, and more research is needed to find a better solution.
People also search for: horse skin problems mites · pastern dermatitis treatment horses · moxidectin for horse mites
Abstract
Chorioptes bovis infestation is a common cause of pastern dermatitis in the horse, with a predilection in draft horses and other horses with thick hair 'feathers' on the distal limbs. The treatment of this superficial mite is challenging; treatment failure and relapse are common. Furthermore, C. bovis infestation may affect the progression of chronic pastern dermatitis (also known as chronic proliferative pastern dermatitis, chronic progressive lymphoedema and dermatitis verrucosa) in draft horses, manifesting with oedema, lichenification and excessive skin folds that can progress to verruciform lesions. An effective cure for C. bovis infestation would therefore be of great clinical value. In a prospective, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, the efficacy of oral moxidectin (0.4 mg/kg body weight) given twice with a 3 week interval in combination with environmental treatment with 4-chloro-3-methylphenol and propoxur was tested in 19 heavily feathered horses with clinical pastern dermatitis and C. bovis infestation. Follow-up examinations over a period of 180 days revealed significantly more skin crusting in the placebo group than in the treatment group. However, no other differences in clinical signs or the numbers of mites detected were found between the two groups. The results of this study suggest that moxidectin in combination with environmental insecticide treatment as used in this study is ineffective in the treatment of C. bovis in feathered horses.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20609205/