I've been reading this week in Farmers Weekly about sore feet and am wondering if anyone has any cures or salves for sore hands? My hands are always getting hacks and normally can boast at least half a dozen real deep ones. I've tried most creams including barrier ones but no great success. Any help would be appreciated.

I just use cetrimide type udder cream each time they get washed. Try to avoid washing up liquid-dries 'em worse than anything.

neutrogena is the best, expensive but it works

Another good one is nivea creme Try different barrier creams as some are a lot better than others some are designed specifically for very wet situations

"Vaseline intensive care" It seems to be a case of prevention is better than cure. Treating the hands frequently before they develop the problems has been the answer for me. Gee Perhaps this is a subject that FW could run a feature on.

We find 'prevention is better than cure' and wear gloves for many jobs around the farm. Something we would never have done 5 years ago. I started by keeping a pair in the tractor cab for connecting up PTO shafts - always knocking knuckles not to mention getting covered in grease.

No need to be embarrassed about being in touch with your feminine side Jim. [:)]

Marigolds?

I find Showa bricklayer gloves best,flexible grippy palm,cotton back. Last for ages, thin enough to work in.

I hardly ever wear gloves and often regret AFTER I have done some harm. Skint knuckles, oil I cannot remove or cuts and infection. Maybe we all should consider gloves a bit more to make our hands and joints last a lifetime.

We've found blue nitrile gloves, the type worn by surgeons etc, very useful, especially during milking. They offer good protection without bursting, but you can still feel your work! I was advised to get them by my Dr. after a nasty touch of 'contact dermititis' (aoowcchh)

Always wear gloves. No one would never know you were a farmer.

The best barrier cream to use is Coopers Dairy Ointment-only problem is they have recently stopped manufacturing this product, although there is still some in circulation.

Also feed your skin from the inside.... maybe a good fish oil supplement to start with. We usually feed out animals more vits and minerals than ourselves! Have you listened to a tape [Dead doctors don't lie]that was doing the rounds sometime ago, by Joel Wallach... a farmboy who became a vet and then a doctor. Joyce

I wouldn't have admitted to having a shower with a bricklayer on here!

Well surely you can see how it could happen; soft hands, smell of nivea cream, glass of claret, etc. [:)]

Thanks for all the suggs I do wear thin surgical gloves but find that the powder in them dries out the skin more. Hemp made from the cannabis plant is one of the best creams i've used and if all else fails it makes great roll-ups!!! Which barrier cream is the best? I've used Savlon which works some days!

At lambing time when the hands are always wet I swear by the plain heavy duty Neutrogena used twice a day, morning and night. It is unscented so you do not smell like a tarts boudoir and the sheep don't seem to mind it!!!

Best barrier cream is good old vaseline.Millions of babies' bottoms can't be wrong! Also if you have hacks on hands or feet slap masses of vaseline on at night and put cotton socks on.You will look really silly but who cares!I also saw a recipe using ground up aspirin and vaseline for hacks.

Thanks girlfriday!! Not sure about the recipe for hacks but i heard of one involving aspirins and apples. Appearently it did something for badgers to control them spreading TB or so I was told!!!

Beeswax skin cream is good, after putting your hands in water will stay on skin.+ it smells natural...

my husband used to have the most disgusting cracked sore hands with loads of ingrained muck, since used a menthol udder dip to pre clean the cows teats before milking (available from genus)his hands have softened and never looked so good!! You could always try using a good thick cream, (sudocream works well) apply a thick layer and then a pair of socks on your hands over night, it should help!!

I would massively recommend Lotil cream. It is anti-fungal and seems to heal cracks and fissures in a couple of days. It also takes the edge off the sting.

 

I have just started wearing gloves to milk and must admit that it has hepled  a great deal i had the worst looking hands ever came to the point 3 weeks ago that they were bleeding so gloves are the answer for me although sudo cream or e45 help heal them up as well