Beans!!! What are they??? Where are they located???
Hi All 👋 hope you had a lovely weekend!
I often get asked the following questions, what is a bean??? Where is a bean located?? These are perfectly normal great questions!
A bean is a build up of urine, skin cells and smegma which forms inside a pocket called the urethra fossa which is located above the urethra at the tip of the pen*s. As this little cocktail of things are unable to come out of this pocket the urine then calcifies to form beans, which over time these little monsters just keep growing!!
From a health point of view they can put pressure on the urethra itself making it uncomfortable for the horse during urination.
From a performance point of view due to location of the beans they sit quite high up so when the horse is working those inside hind muscles put pressure on the bean, again making it uncomfortable for the horse when they’re are working away. They say this is a similar feeling to us running around with a big stone in our shoe!! Ouch!!
But what about horses in the wild….
As these horses are entire they are covering mares and therefore this build up doesn’t form as they are cleaning themselves naturally! As our domestic horses are gelded we then have to help remove this build up! However it is only recommended that a clean is done every 6 months to a year using water based lubricants so we don’t disturb their natural flora!
Hope that helps! In the meantime here is a great video of Harry who decided to have it all out on show during his clean including his bean removal! Good job to his awesome mummy getting it all on video to be shared on here!!
Happy Monday 😀🐴
Well we all know how quickly things can spread between yards, and I am constantly thinking of ways to keep my bio security to the highest standard. As well as using fresh new gloves, syringes and sponges between each horse. I am also using Equine Bio Genie All Purpose Equine Disinfectant spray, on all of my equipment including my buckets, coat and my boots after I have finished at each yard. As your horses health is absolute paramount!
So I thought I would share this little insight with you all to give you peace of mind when using my services!
