Mud & Rain

Mud Fever / Greasy Heel – or Pastern Dermatitis as it is officially known - is caused by a bacteria called Dermatophilus congolensis that lives in wet and muddy conditions. Depending on where you live, this condition can also be called equine dermatitis, rain scald, rain rot, mud rash or scratches. While the bacteria is always present in the environment, the problems start when it enters the body, usually through broken skin on the lower leg and fetlock, where it can cause inflammation, oozy, scabby sores, and in severe cases, swelling and lameness.

These same bacteria can cause issues on a horses back or hindquarters. While this is more commonly called Rain Scald, the symptoms are often the same.

The short answer is yes. Mud Fever, Greasy Heel, Equine Dermatitis, Pastern Dermatitis, Rain Scald, Rain Rot, Mud Rash and Scratches are all names for the same condition: An infection caused when the bacteria Dermatophilus congolensis enters the horse’s body – usually through broken skin. While these terms refer to the same condition, rain scald is often used when the issue occurs on the horses back or hindquarters. 

Mud Fever and Photosensitivity can present with similar symptoms, but they're actually different conditions, caused by different factors, which means they need to be treated differently too.  While Photosensitivity is caused by your horse ingesting fluorescing chemicals in lush green grass, Mud Fever / Greasy Heel starts when bacteria enter the body, usually through broken skin. 

If there is lots of lush green grass around or there is algae in the water trough, you might be dealing with photosensitivity, or if “mud fever” is not responding to usual treatments.

For a full guide, head to our blog article: Does my horse have mud fever/greasy heel or photosensitivity?

There are many different methods for treating Mud Fever / Greasy Heel, some of which are expensive and can cause a lot of stress and discomfort for both the horse and its owner. Most methods focus on the external symptoms and involve scraping off scabs and applying messy creams and bandages to often tender skin. These methods can be uncomfortable for the horse, and downright dangerous for whoever is carrying out the treatment!

Our Mud & Rain remedy is given orally and is professionally formulated to support a normal immune response to the most common pathogens associated with Mud Fever / Greasy Heel. It helps with healing from the inside out and is part of our mission to provide no sting, no mess and stress solutions to everyday health conditions.

This remedy can be dosed straight into the mouth or on a treat using our pump bottle or use our jerry can formulation to dose onto feed or into the water trough to provide cost effective cover for multiple animals. 

We think so, and so do lots of our customers! We recommend dosing once a week with our mud fever remedy before the wet weather arrives. Most horses love the sweet taste so are happy for the remedy to be given straight into their mouth. The active ingredients just need to contact a mucous membrane – such as the gums, tongue, or lips – to start doing their job.

You’ll still need to keep an eye on your horse’s legs and increase the dosing frequency at the first sign of any trouble.

Lots of our customers have had success using our oral Mud & Rain remedy, and love to send us before and after photos! So don’t take our word for it – take a look at our customer reviews on our product page! Or read have a look at some of before and after photos on our blog.

Mud fever symptoms can be uncomfortable for the horse and riding it while affected by mud fever symptoms is generally not recommended. The movement and any rubbing can irritate the affected areas on the lower legs and cause the horse pain and potentially worsen the condition by increasing inflammation and hindering healing. It is best to allow the horse to rest in a dry environment during treatment and recovery.

We know they are unsightly, but if you are using our Mud & Rain remedy, we recommend leaving the scabs in place - they’ll dry up and fall away once the skin underneath has healed. In our experience observing the thousands of cases we’ve dealt with over the years, this should take 2-3 weeks on fresh area’s and a little longer on old scabs.

If mud fever is not addressed, the initial skin lesions can progress to more severe infections and cause considerable discomfort for your horse, potentially leading to lameness. Furthermore, chronic, untreated cases can result in skin thickening and fibrosis, predisposing the affected limbs to recurrent infections. Prompt and appropriate management is essential for your horse's well-being and to prevent long-term complications.

While horses are most commonly affected, cows, sheep, and deer can indeed develop a similar skin condition under persistently wet and muddy conditions. 

This is often referred to as “foot rot” in cattle and other livestock or "pastern dermatitis, and while the specific organisms involved might vary slightly, the presentation of scabby, inflamed lesions on the lower limbs and between the claws is similar. 

Our Foot Rot remedies for livestock provide immune support during risk periods and target symptoms when present: 

Use Foot Rot Active to help with symptoms when present and Foot Rot Prev as a support during risk periods to livestock prone to foot rot.

This remedy won’t cause any adverse effects, but the ingredients will only activate when they come into contact with a mucous membrane such as the tongue, gums or lips.

Like all Hippo Health products, this product comes with a money back guarantee for anyone not pleased with the results.

Adding 25mls (1oz) of remedy from our Jerry Can to a 500L (100-gallon) water trough every second day is enough to dose all of the animals that drink from that trough. With homeopathic remedies, the dilution ratio doesn’t have to be exact. The active ingredients disperse through the trough using the hydrogen particles in the water, so each animal gets a fresh dose every time they take a drink. Regardless of how much – or little – water is in the trough, the potency of the remedy will be the same. Adding our remedies to a water trough means a new dose is administered every time an animal takes a drink. The trough doesn't need to be emptied and refilled between doses as the sunlight destroys any residues after three days.

Learn more by watching our short videos on

• How to dose a herd via the trough in seconds
• How trough dosing works
• Trough dosing and remedy storage in hot weather