The lesions look scaly and crusty, are accompanied by hair loss, and are commonly seen around the girth and saddle areas, the hindquarters, and along the chest, neck, and face. Sometimes the edges of the lesions have frayed, broken, or distorted hairs just prior to the hair falling out. Usually a ringworm infection is not itchy or painful to the horse, but it can be. Young children are very susceptible to ringworm, so care should be taken to keep them from catching the disease by petting an infected horse. In the meantime, it is best to treat the horse as if it had ringworm.
Treatment requires diligent attention to hygiene.
All saddle pads, brushes, girths, and cinches must be washed and disinfected, and each horse should have its own designated equipment to reduce the chances of transfer from horse to horse. Remove contaminated bedding from stalls, and disinfect stalls and equipment with bleach, chlorhexidine, or benzalkonium chloride. Isolate infected horses from others. Daily bathing for the first week, then bathing once or twice a week is necessary to control the infection. Weekly baths should be administered until all lesions have been gone for at least two weeks.