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Barnyard Buddies:  Rescued horse- hoof abscess GOOD NEWS!  |
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MaryLD
True Blue Farmgirl
861 Posts
Mary
New Braunfels
TX
USA
861 Posts |
 Posted - Mar 27 2010 : 06:47:30 AM
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Please help me, Farmgirls!!
I'm used to my easy keeping, get fat on grass hay, perfect hooved Haflingers. The are all pony height, and we rescued a 16.2 Appendix QH for my husband, who is a foot taller and 100 lb heavier than I am. He won''t ride a pony, LOL!
Diamond is very sweet and kind. He came to us 200 lb down on wt after a YEAR being fattened up in rescue. He has held steady over the winter, which is better than losing wt. I put him in the barn at night, sometimes all day, and gave him plenty of hay/ feed.
He was wearing shoes when we got him. He is about half way transitioned to barefoot, meaning his hoof will haopefully have the resilience and motility of a barefoot horse in another 6 months or so, right on track.
Here's the problem. He got a tiny abcess aroud Valentines Day. It seemed to come from a stone bruise. Then either it worsend or he got another one, not sure which. We have had a wet, wet, wet, wet winter and we have a pasture full of rocks. When the absess was at it's peak, Diamond would hardly let me do anyting with his feet. So hard to treat him!! It is impossible for me to pick up his foot sometimes- he just WON"T let me. He is not trying to hurt me or scare me, but he will NOT co-operate. Everytime I think he can go back outside from stall time, he starts limping again within a day or two. I am ready to call the vet - which I have not had to do for a sick/ injured horse in my 5 yrs w/ horses excpet for a colic. I'm just at the end of my rope. I don't have anyone to help me poultice his foot, but he willnow usually let me pick up his foot, clean it, and apply betadine. It does not seem infected, but I want the darn thing to close up and regrow sole.
So- What's the normal timeframe for an abscess to heal up all the way in wet conditions, with indoor stall time? What would the vet do, if I called the vet? I feel like I would need to sedate him in order to accomplish anything more with him.
Second topic-
I ordered a set of hoof boots for him and true to form, he won't cooperate with wearing them AT ALL. I don't expect him to right now due to the old abscess, but I wanted to see what signs of lameness he would show while wearing a boot. He won't wear a soaker boot, either, so what was I thinking? Other than trying too soon with the hoofboot, what am I doing wrong?
My husband is gone all week and I don't have a horse buddy in my new town yet.
So I need advice, please!!!!!
~ Mary LD
Haflingers- You can't have just one!
( I'm just one short of a drill team!) |
Edited by - MaryLD on Mar 30 2010 7:52:31 PM |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Mar 27 2010 : 07:14:19 AM
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Mary- you might want to contact your farrier or vet over the phone and explain to them exactly where the rupture site is. I know that if the rupture is in the wrong spot is can open his foot up to all sorts of infections. Usually a farrier will be able to clean out the abcess site and then either put some sort of glue over the hole while sole grows from underneath or a special shoe.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
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MaryLD
True Blue Farmgirl
861 Posts
Mary
New Braunfels
TX
USA
861 Posts |
Posted - Mar 27 2010 : 07:19:38 AM
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Thanks, Alee. I had the farrier over twice already!! I'll give him a call and ask about glue. He is British trained, meaning highly trained, but no longer shoes the horses. I've always kept my horses barefoot, but I'm totally ready to do something differnetly here.
~M
Haflingers- You can't have just one!
( I'm just one short of a drill team!) |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Mar 27 2010 : 09:56:28 AM
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I prefer barefoot myself, however I am concerned about the abcess if it was on his sole because that can get nasty quick. You can also make a cardboard cutout of his hoof and vet wrap it on and then put duct tape over the vet warp instead of doing a shoe. You'll have to re-do this every couple of days since he will wear it away but that would keep him from having to be shoed.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
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Farmtopia
True Blue Farmgirl
1465 Posts
Zan
New York
New York
USA
1465 Posts |
Posted - Mar 27 2010 : 5:32:30 PM
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I am with Alee here. The foot needs prompt attention, especially with damp conditions you are talking about, the abscessing is not likely to improve.
Best of luck! 
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MaryLD
True Blue Farmgirl
861 Posts
Mary
New Braunfels
TX
USA
861 Posts |
Posted - Mar 27 2010 : 5:39:33 PM
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I've done the vet wrap thing with duct tape, etc, but it's basically impossible for me to do it alone since he won't cooperate, and I have no one to help me.
I'll have to figure it out somehow. He is no longer showing signs of infection, he just seems to need to regrow the part of the sole that was affected.
Luckily, my husband just came home for 36 hr, and I just got home from a birth. So we can work on it.
Thanks, everyone!!
Mary
Haflingers- You can't have just one!
( I'm just one short of a drill team!) |
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Annab
True Blue Farmgirl
2900 Posts
Anna
Seagrove
NC
USA
2900 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 03:48:30 AM
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The betadine is good, but koppertox will be better
It's a super drying agent and can be found at most feed stores. And the ferrier will know about it too
If you use it be very careful b/c it really stains and does not come out of anything |
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Annab
True Blue Farmgirl
2900 Posts
Anna
Seagrove
NC
USA
2900 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 03:51:47 AM
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If its any consolation, we have had a time w/ one of our rhinos and foot/nail abcesses too. She is an older animal. It's hard to treat those critters that need all 4 feet, especially when they weigh a lot.
The most recent abcess had us doing hot water soaks twice a day, flushes with water for 8 minutes twice a day and packed with Silvadine cream or SSD (the generic). This stuff really works but is available by RX only
Hope the issue is resolved quickly
It's been really wet here in NC too all winter, so I feel your pain! |
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Flower
True Blue Farmgirl
66 Posts
Shirley
Kentucky
USA
66 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 06:10:40 AM
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Just a question ... is it better to leave a horse barefoot or to shoe her.. why or why not? Dakota is barefoot right now but I will be soon calling to have her feet trimmed up and I was wondering if I should shoe her. Thanks
Be a blessing and have a Happy Spring |
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MaryLD
True Blue Farmgirl
861 Posts
Mary
New Braunfels
TX
USA
861 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 07:04:53 AM
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Diamond is doing better. He still won't let me or my husband pick up his foot, though. But he is limping less, and eating more. I think he's going to be ok.
The farrier is coming tomorrow. I think I just lost it at the turning point, the place where you can't take it any more, and things start getting better on their own.
I'll pick up come koppertox, though.
Shirley, in terms of barefoot or not, it's a personal preference. I perosnally beleive that shoes restrict the hoof conformation unnaturally, and that they can constrict the actual size of the hoofs. The horse should have better traction/ slip less while barefoot. If riding or driving on cement/ pavement, shoes or hoofboots may be preferred. I have ridden my Haflingers in all sorts of places ( not pavement except short parades) where horses " must be shod" in order to ride, and they have done fine. This includes backcounrty trail riding and packing where everyone thought I was crazy to take an unshod horse. Haflingers are from the Alp originally, and mine have been barefoot all their lives.
I have had very, very good luck finding skilled barefoot trimmers. Some trimmers just trim the hoof as if to put on a shoe, and then leave the horse barefoot. That method may be substandard, leaving the toe too short. Leaving parts too long way later cause splits/ cracks in the hooves. These are not problems I have had.
The horse has to transition from shoes, and it takes about a year to grow out the constriction and toughen up the callouses. The horse should still be rideable, though. How fast they toughen depends on the terrain you have and how often you ride. SOme people put pea gravel around the watering trough to encorage callousing. I never have done it, but it is supposed to be a certain depth .
Diamond had a lifetime of shoes, a wet rocky winter, and a recent history of poor nutrition working against him. The boots my trimmer reccomended were at www.renegadehoofboots.com. The are supposed to be the most physiologic boots. You call to place an order. Those boots are supposed to last 10 yrs. One of my Haflingers came from neglect and also took time to grow out a healthy hoof. Nutrition is very important.
My horses have a trim every 6-12 weeks depending on conditions and time of year. The cost of a trim here in my area is $30-$40 per horse. Cheaper than shoes!! We will put boots on Diamonds from feet if needed while he transitions to barefoot. Boots are often not needed, but our guy has gone through some past neglect and we want him to feel sound when ridden. Also, I don't want to leave him home if we ride on ground where the Haflingers can go barefoot and he cannot.
~ Mary LD
Haflingers- You can't have just one!
( I'm just one short of a drill team!) |
Edited by - MaryLD on Mar 29 2010 07:16:02 AM |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 07:18:01 AM
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Shirley- I prefer a well trimmed barefoot horse as well. I don't see a need for shoes unless you have an injury that requires it (like a bad split or something) and if as Mary said- there is going to be a lot of traveling on pavement. I plan on leaving my arabian barefoot unless I start seeing evidence that her hooves are wearing too fast.
I think the key is to keep an eye on your horse's hooves. If you are going about the normal activities that you and your horse do and the hooves seem to be getting chewed up or wearing fast or unevenly in a short amount of time- your activity might require your horse to have shoes.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
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MaryLD
True Blue Farmgirl
861 Posts
Mary
New Braunfels
TX
USA
861 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 07:24:06 AM
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Alee and I have breeds that are well known for going barefoot.
Alee, how would you find a good barefoot trimmer?
I always asked picky people AND like minded barefoot people, LOL! And I got a second opionion after talking to a trimmer.
~ Mary LD
Haflingers- You can't have just one!
( I'm just one short of a drill team!) |
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Hosanna
True Blue Farmgirl
466 Posts
Hosanna
Alton
Virginia
466 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 07:55:35 AM
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I had a rescued TB last year that had a huge, nasty abscess and we struggled with it. I had my farrier open the abscess (a sole abscess that also wrapped around the side of the hoof in the wall) and it drained out all kinds of blood and pus. It was a LOT.
I irrigated it with diluted iodine and rinsed with lots of water and packed furazone in it. Then I bought disposable baby diapers (about 6 mos. size), wrapped the hoof in a diaper or 2, then did a hoof wrap with Coflex (better than vet wrap IMO)and topped that off with about a half a roll of duct tape. It would stay put for about two days that way. (He was stalled 1/2 the day so he was not moving around a whole lot.)
We had his shoes removed for all of this. Many of my thin-walled TBs require shoes, or they are LAME.ALL.THE.TIME.
HERE was the thing: The existing hole was small. Too small for everything to drain. Once my farrier started "digging" out the dead hoof around the existing hole, everything that was backed up in there was able to be released. My horse went from three-legged lame to walking normally in less than an hour, once the pressure from all the gunk was released.
It left a HUGE hole, but he got better fast. I'd have your farrier DIG OUT THAT HOLE. The problem is, if your horse is not handled easily, it is going to be hard to keep it clean, and it might get infected if you can't keep it totally clean and covered. (My OTTTBs are angels about this kind of handling, from being on the track. So, it was easier for me.) I had to keep up the hoof bandages for about 1 week, and just hosed it out every day after that for about 2 weeks, and the hole was "filling in" in no time. Zero problems after that.
You might need to get an antibiotic from your vet.
www.happilyeverafterhosanna.blogspot.com
www.thewindofheaven.blogspot.com
www.CarolinaRoses.etsy.com
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Faransgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
895 Posts
Beth
Houston
Texas
USA
895 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 08:40:55 AM
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I use to work at a rescue and about every other horse that came in had an abscess. Our Vet would come out and open them up and clean them up good and we would follow up the treatment by cleaning the foot then spraying it good with Dankins Solution and wrapping it backup with the diaper/duct tape method. I am putting in the link for making Dankins Solution. I know farmgirls don't usually like bleach but this stuff is awesome. I can't tell you how many wounds we used it on and the results were amazing.
http://doreen.mkbmemorial.com/NF/dakins.pdf
And my opinion of barefoot verses shoes is that if you can keep them barefoot you should. I worked with a herd of 40 when I first started working with horses and we never used shoes. We only had one horse that needed them and her feet had been damaged in a trailer accident. She was good 90 percent of the time but if it got really wet for a long time she would need shoes for a time. Working at the rescue we only put shoes on horses that had serious problems. And we had every kind of horse you can imagine. The only one that wore shoes all the time had foundered very badly and his owner had done nothing about it for over a year. We finally got a call on him and he was in really bad shape. We sent him to Texas A&M where he spent about 8 months and they got him back in shape but he needed shoes. We take our horses everywhere with no shoes even Parades. I stabled them once where there was a pond and when we turned them out the spent alot of time standing in that pond. There feet got terrible. It took about a year to get them back in shape once we moved them but they never needed shoes.
I find word of mouth the best way to find a good farrier. I would call all the vets in town and just ask them who they would recommend. Then I would maybe talk to the people at the local feed stores and if you have a farrier supply place. Then call the person that is recommended most. Also you might try contacting the closest Veterinary University (for us it is Texas A&M) and talk to the Vet there that teaches hoof care. Ours is very nice and helpful.
Then spending time teaching them to let you work with their feet is important. Just go slowly and at first just pick up the foot and put it right down again. Then when you can do that just pit it up and brush it off and put it down and just keep keeping it up longer and longer and doing more and more. If you need I can give you more details on the progression.
Farmgirl Sister 572
When manure happens just say "WOO HOO Fertilizer". |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 10:49:23 AM
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Mary- I am kind of the same as Beth. I speak to the local vets first. Vets usually have some farrier training and can give some great references. Then if I have some horsey friends that I trust in the area I ask them what they think. I also call the farrier and speak with them for as long as I can about their methods, their ideas on the hoof and how they deal with certain issues. If I can't get a hold of them and they don't call me back within a business day they go to the bottom of the list. Then once I pick on I let them come and trim hooves, but I am always right there and watch and ask questions. And I also make sure to really look at the hooves before he leaves. I am pretty picky because if you don't have hooves you don't have a horse!
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
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MaryLD
True Blue Farmgirl
861 Posts
Mary
New Braunfels
TX
USA
861 Posts |
Posted - Mar 29 2010 : 2:12:44 PM
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I did the diaper treatment on Diamond ONCE. That's all he would allow. He is really not limping anymore. It was like he had to have a bad day of regression before he felt well again. The trmmier dug out the abscess on St. PAtty's day, but then the weather got wet again, and it's so rocky that Diamond was struggling.
I am keeping him in a stall, though, since the stall is easier to clean, and dryer, than the pasture!! I want him to heal up before I let him back in the pasture full time. Yesterday, he was tuned out to graze in out backyard, and he did fine.
I was asking about how to find a trimmer, since Shirley/ Flower had asked about going barefoot. I am happy with my trimmer. He worked for the SPCA in England, and the British Donkey Sanctuary. He also works with an equine osteopath. I'm not that big on vets. I would call one if needed for an animal, though.
Thanks everyone, for being supportive!
~ Mary LD
Haflingers- You can't have just one!
( I'm just one short of a drill team!) |
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MaryLD
True Blue Farmgirl
861 Posts
Mary
New Braunfels
TX
USA
861 Posts |
Posted - Mar 30 2010 : 8:09:02 PM
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The trimmer came today, and gave me some great news!
1) He said I was doing the right things, up to where I could no longer pick up Diamond's feet. I was doing so much of what the Farmgirls suggested BEFORE posting, and I was just losing my mind that the situation seemed to be getting worse. I had reached the breaking point when I posted, and all y'all were THERE for me. Thank you!
2)He was able to dress and wrap the left front foot. He said the old abscess was no longer infected and the site just needed to finish healing. He dressed it for me, for good measure.
3) I found out why Diamond won't pick up his front feet at all. He has an abscess on the front RIGHT foot now, too. Gosh, I was losing my mind about how the front left had seemed to be getting better, then everything got so much worse. Now I know why!! I though I was doing something totally wrong or missing something. Now I know what it was- the second abscess. Might have figured it out if he picked up his FEET for little ol' me.
4) Luckily, as long as no new factors appear, he is considered out of the woods, and just in need of finishing his healing. The second abscess is small and already closed. The night before I totally lost it over the abscess, it was suddenly POURING rain here, flash flooding with thunder and lightning. It was so dark, I could only see the horses when there was lightning. Otherwise, the rain was coming down in sheets, my boots were full of water, and I soaked all the way through to my skin from head to toe in jeans and a winter jacket. Diamond was easily led to the barn. ( I almost had to hogtie one of the donkeys to get him in, and his buddy just stayed put like it was a donkey sit- in!) Anyway, the next day was the day when Diamond was so much more lame again. I was so mad at myself for letting him get so wet and be on rocks, but the trimmer said that may have been what he needed to get the second abscess to open or to finish draining.
I am so, so, so ,so, so relieved!!!!!
Thanks everyone for the advice.
I'm so much more relaxed!
~ Mary LD
Haflingers- You can't have just one!
( I'm just one short of a drill team!) |
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Karrieann
True Blue Farmgirl
1900 Posts
Karrieann
Northeast
Georgia
USA
1900 Posts |
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Mnhorsemom
Farmgirl in Training
44 Posts
Kathy
Battle Lake
minnesota
USA
44 Posts |
Posted - Mar 31 2010 : 06:16:59 AM
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I had a horse years ago that got lymes disease, he then foundered in all 4 feet. He was abcessing in 3 feet at a time. It was a MESS. When I have one with an abcess I get the farrier to open it up (jmho but a good farrier has a lot more knowledge about the hoof than most vets)I will soak the hoof in hot water and epsom salts for about 20 minutes a day. When I get ready to wrap it I make a paste out of sugar and iodine, spread that over the hole, but a 4x4 gauze over that then cotton, vet wrap and duct tape. The sugar/iodine works really well. The sugar draws the infection out and the iodine kills it. Hope you guy is well on his way to recovery.
Farm House Formulas Battle Lake, MN |
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MaryLD
True Blue Farmgirl
861 Posts
Mary
New Braunfels
TX
USA
861 Posts |
Posted - Mar 31 2010 : 06:28:35 AM
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Dear Kathy,
Wow, you worked really hard for that guy!!!
You are only the second person who suggestred the iodine with sugar. Everyone else said plain or mixed with epsom salt. By the time I learned about the sugar, I could no longer pick up feet! A local guy said that the sugar results are quick and very, very good.
I agree, give me a barefoot trimmer over a vet for hoof care any day, JMHO. Differences in training as well as liabilty issues make it easier for a barefoot trimmer to give holistic care, and then the vet is there for complicated cases, emergencies, and so on.
Thanks for being sweet, Karrieann.
~ Mary LD
Haflingers- You can't have just one!
( I'm just one short of a drill team!) |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
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MaryLD
True Blue Farmgirl
861 Posts
Mary
New Braunfels
TX
USA
861 Posts |
Posted - Mar 31 2010 : 07:32:08 AM
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He has guaranteed amounts of biotin in his senior feed type feed, which he gets twice a day. I'm a distributer for Dynamite products, and I'll start him on Dynahoof once I recover from the cost of the extra farrier visits, shavings, hoof boots etc!! I ususally put all my new animals on Dynamite free choice minerals as well, and keep them on it at all times. Hubby changed jobs/ started a business, so I'm behind schedule with the Dynamite program right now. And so it is.
~ Mary LD
Haflingers- You can't have just one!
( I'm just one short of a drill team!) |
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Barnyard Buddies: Rescued horse- hoof abscess GOOD NEWS! |
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Rescued horse- hoof abscess GOOD NEWS!
