Collar sore?

[Maxwell]

I don’t know about collar fit but I do know that if I saw that kind of sweat mark on a saddle pad on one of my riding horses, I would know that the saddle was not fitting the horse well at all. It seems like it should be the same for a collar. Shouldn’t the collar distribute the pressure evenly on the horse’s shoulders? That kind of sweat mark could only come from uneven pressure. It seems to me that it wouldn’t matter what kind of pad you use if the collar does not fit properly.

Again, I am not an expert on harness fit but I have seen every kind of pressure sore imaginable associated with ill fitting sadles and that is what the sore and the sweat marks look like to me. I have often seen where the hematoma takes several hours to show up. This is because the pressure from the collar while the horse is working, forces the swelling out of the area. Once the saddle/collar is removed, it takes a few hours for the swelling to become apparent on the surface. The inflamation was there all along but was being forced into the deeper tissue where you could not see it. It may take up to 12 hours for swelling to become apparent.

I hope your horse is feeling better soon.

@goodcompanion 19529 wrote:

Pretty hot here today. One of our interns had the horses out harrowing several hours this morning. Putting them away both seemed fine. By this afternoon one of them had developed this sore.

Never had or seen collar sores before. Is that what this is? Or perhaps a “hot spot?” The hair and skin was chafed away just a bit in the center of the swelling. We put some blue-cote on it which you can see in the picture.

Is the collar pad to blame? The contact surface of it is essentially just plastic. Not very absorbent.

Currently our plan is to rest him and monitor the swelling and decide tomorrow whether to take further action. Advice appreciated.

[goodcompanion]

Just an update. Swelling went down within a day. Gone entirely in two. Still this is kind of a weird incident, I am thinking probably some kind of bug bite or sting that got irritated maybe. The swelled area was never hot.

The collar fit may have been just a little loose but had never seemed a problem on any prior occasion. My collars are adjustable though and the pad is a little worn out so just to be on the safe side I will cinch it up a notch or two and put in a new deer hair pad.

[Donn Hewes]

My mare with a little swelling did much the same thing. I think a few bug bites could do it. maybe cleaning the shoulders after work will help. I have never been consistent about washing the horses neck after work, but I have been this week. I was tempted to try a new pad but haven’t yet. Donn

[mitchmaine]

warm soapy water when the collar came off with a clean water rinse, and a dry brush when the collar goes on.
that was the advice i got once. wish i was better at doing it.

mitch

[Michelle Ross]

Looks like an improper fit combined with heat trapping. Suggest rest (no collar or pulling) for a couple of days: ice is good for the first hour or so, followed by a hot pact for a couple of days, 2-3X/day for 10 minutes. Get the swelling down then consider a different pad. Ensure that the collar is a good fit for future work. Dr. Ross, DVM

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