Warts & All

[blackjack]

Dear all,

Don't know if any of you can help with this. Had the vet out on Friday to do injections and general health checks. For about a week now Thor has had a swollen sheath. The vet had a look at it and a good feel around and said that there is no heat or lumps and it is probably just flies causing it. He recommended cold hosing (poor Thor LOL) to help it. Has anyone else had this problem and do I need to be concerned do you think as I will always find something to worry about with our boys !!

Also, he has got a wart on the corner of his mouth and another couple of tiny ones on his sheath which the vet said were baby warts and should eventually disappear. Again, have any of you had experience of these at all as he said to keep an eye on them and make sure they do not get bigger in which case they could be sarcoids. That pony of ours does give me things to worry about !!!

Any thoughts or opinions would be gratefully received as it was not my usual vet but someone else from the practice who was European and rather worryingly seemed to struggle with his spoken English sometimes (but a very nice chap though).

[ryebrook]

Nikki, Sprite had juvenile warts, clusters of them on his sheath and they all eventually disappeared after a couple of months. They can be infectious as Flash now has them and just waiting for them to drop off too! Not sure what the boys have been up to together ;D They are pinky grey in colour and look like little cauliflours!
They are really quite common in youngsters, something to do with the immune system.

[harveydales]

Yes, baby warts are very common and go on their own in a few months.

As for the sheath, maybe he kicked at it due to flies. Quest does that sometimes and the swelling goes away on its own in a day or 2. Not sure I'd fancy cold hosing though! I'd just keep an eye on it for the moment.

[huntersmoon]

My Jet often has a swollen sheath, mostly in summer but sometimes in winter. It does sometimes get very messy and I try to clean it when it gets bad, though I've been told not to do it too often as you can destroy the necessary bacteria in it. He's been like it for a good few years, but it does'nt seem to get any worse or cause any problems. It's always worth mentioning it to a vet though just in case something is causing it.