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THRUSH, ABSCESSES AND FUNGUS
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| ABSCESS IN SOLE OF FOUNDERED HOOF |
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At various times there can be issues
like thrush or abscesses that need attention. There are great commercial preparations to help in either case. Koppertox, Thrush
Bomb, Clean Trax and White Lightening are great products if you follow the labels and stick with it. I personally, have a
thing about using what's handy instead of having to make a trip to the store. Here are some home remedies to help get
rid of these little nasties. Those commercial preparations are not designed for daily use as a preventative. They
are too harsh and drying to frog tissue (even if the ground is wet!). Try to avoid anything with formaldehyde, but if
you can't, just be sure not to get it on yourself.
There is a home remedy using bleach and water that
is popular, but I omitted it because unless you have nothing else available, it's way too harsh on the hooves. It kills
good stuff along with the bad, so please don't use it if you don't have to.
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Thrush (in frog)*
Thrush
is a fungal infection of the frog. It is caused by fungi (yeast) that are naturally in the environment
and even on our own bodies. A healthy foot has no problem keeping the fungus at normal levels. It's only
when there is something wrong with the hoof, that the fungus is able to reproduce rapidly. The symptoms of thrush are a soft spongy frog, with
possibly a tar-like discharge that has a distinctive foul smell all it's own. It may produce a white powdery coating
under layers of shedding frog. Sometimes all you will notice is that the cleft of the frog looks more like a butt crack than
a wide valley. This can create a very sore frog and the horse may walk tippy toe, and nothing short of curing the
infection will stop it. The reasons for thrush to develop are and I list them in order of frequency
in domestic horses I have trimmed. 1. Poor Husbandry.
Horses were never meant to stand around in their own feces or urine. The ammonia from urine can weaken the hoof. Yeast
and fungi are pretty much the same organism* and we all know mushrooms are fungi, and how do we grow them? In warm, wet manure
out of the sunlight. So a hoof that is face down in poop all the time is a prime breeding ground for fungi. So try to clean
the manure out of your horses's loafing areas.
2. Excess water. Now here's where I think you can take that to an extreme. CLEAN water doesn't seem to do any harm
at all as far as fungus goes, or even "clean mud". So we are back to that husbandry issue, or combine with another
factor (lack of exercise and poor trimming, but I'm ahead of myself here).Water certainly softens tissues, and could allow
the fungus to gain a foothold , pardon the pun! more easily.
3. Poor Hoof Care (by your farrier or the lack of one). MANY farriers trim away frog tissue, but it traumatizes the tissue
and makes it more prone to infections. Also, shoeing doesn't allow the frog to get enough stimulation, it begins to wither,
and is once again more prone to infection. Plus, shoes hold in manure more so than a naked hoof, and we are back to the warm,
moist, no sunlight environment. Neglect can do it, as well. Long hooves compromise the hoof as a whole, and again, leave it
more open to infection. If you still have your horse shod, even a barefoot horse, CLEAN HIS FEET with a hoof pick EVERY DAY!!!
And pretty much the times you don't want to are the times he needs it most-when it's full of manure and mud. Some
natural hoof fans say that the foot needs dirt in it to function. Well, that may be, but picking it out won't hurt, it
can fill up again with fresh dirt, and most domestic horses don't move enough to fling out (self clean) and pick up fresh
dirt. Plus, it's our chance to see if they need a trim or have any wounds or infections, so I think that is just an excuse
to be lazy. 4. Lack of Exercise Stalled horses suffer the most. Combo of poor environment and exercise,
not to mention the stress they have is much more than most pasture horses. Exercise works the hoof as well and keeps
it in fine working order. The flexing of the hoof capsule not only sheds the dirt or manure in the hoof, but it increases
circulation, and with blood flow comes healing. Just grazing in a pasture or hand walking can help keep the hooves from
a thrush infection. 5. Metabolic
and health issues. Insulin resistance, Thyroid conditions, recovering from founder, these can lend a hoof
to more thrush infection. Excess sugar in the diet (lots of grain i.e. corn with molasses is the worst) seems to have
an affect on some horses as well, yet another reason to cut the sugar and starch from the diet. Somehow these factors can
alter the pH of the hoof, make it more alkaline and that allows fungus to grow. Here are
some remedies you can try, once an infection is noted. None of them will be a lasting cure if you don't change the original
culprit.
ACV: (apple cider vinegar): You
can find this in just about any grocery store. Mix it 50/50 with water (or for sensitive skinned horses 1:3) and soak
the hoof 20 min-1 hour. This helps the Ph of the hoof be less thrush friendly, (more acidic) draws out abscesses
and clears up "scratches" on the heels.You can also keep some mixed in a spray bottle and after you pick out the
hooves, spray into the clefts really well as a preventative. It's cheap, it's harmless (it's even edible!) and
it works!
Borax: a
laundry detergent known as "20 mule team" is used as a soak as well.Mix about 1 tablespoon borax to 1/2
gallon water.This is for fungus/thrush.
Lysol Concentrate: mix 2oz, no more than that in 1 gal
of warm water. Soak about 20-30 min three times a week for wall cracks, bad cases of thrush or fungus. This is an off-label
use of this chemical, so be sure NOT to mix any stronger than stated.
Epsom salts: mix about 1 cup salt/1
gal warm water to help dry out abscesses. Soak for about 20 min a day, three times a week. This can be a bit drying to the
hoof, so if in doubt, use the ACV soak mentioned above. The salt is also prohibitive to the thrush/fungus so it was worth
mentioning, though the other remedies are more effective.
Pete's Goo:This is a creation of Pete Ramey (see my links page).For stubborn fungal
infections. 50/50 mixture of a triple antibiotic cream (like neosporin) and athlete's foot cream (1% Clortrimazole).
Mix thoroughly then apply with a catheter tip syringe to the cleft in the middle of the frog as deep as possible, A little
goes a long way and there's no need to smear all over the frog.Keep applying daily until the deep cleft is gone.
A caveat on this, I find that the use of women's yeast infection creams works a tad better. See my footnote about this
below.
A word on commercial
thrush medications. I don't like them. Most contain harmful ingredients that dry out the hoof and actually make it more
susesptable to more infection! If you have a severe case, no desire to make your own goop they will work to clear an initial
infection, but follow directions and DO NOT EVER use them as a preventative!!!! *I have always been told thrush was anaerobic bacteria, and the weird seemingly asymptomatic infection that
was only in the cleft (butt crack version) was the fungal infection. I did some research,and after hours of reading
about mould, yeast and fungi, how they grow and exist in the environment and how they infect people and animals, I firmly
believe we dealing with oportunistic fungal infections, much the same a oral thrush or yeast infections in humans. On my links page I list the main source of my research regarding
fungi if you want to check it out. I warn you, it's very boring!
Pictures: The first is a frog with a deep crevice in the
middle of the frog. You could sink almost an entire end of a hoof pick in there.This is a candidate for "Pete's
Goo". This horse is sensitive on sharp gravel, but otherwise seems comfortable.
The second picture is of a
newly de-shod, untrimmed, hoof that is very soft, all over and has thrush infection. Note the flaps on the frog that
can harbor even more thrush causing germs and need to be removed with a conservative trimming of the flaps.This foot
is very tender. Soaking with ACV would definitly benefit as well as a dry area with lots of exercise.
| BLACK GUNK IN CREVICES NEXT TO FROG |
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| THRUSH |
| BLACK GUNK, SOFT, TATTERED FROG |
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| THRUSH |
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ABSCESSES
| PUNCTURE WOUND THAT ABSCESSED |
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| NOTE THE SOLE SHED OUT |
| CRACK ON RIGHTJUST UNDER HAIRLINE |
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| "GRAVELED" EXIT HOLE |
Abscesses are basically pus pockets. They form from stone bruises and puncture wounds. An abscess is accumulated
dead cells and fluid leftover from the body healing itself. The body usually absorbs it and carries the debris away, like
if you've ever bruised your arm and the bruise fades aways slowly. Sometimes it doesn't all get removed that way,and
instead it builds up pressure, potentially causing pain and lameness, but it has to come out somehow.The hoof wall
is very dense, so the pus takes the path of least resistance, which can be in the bottom of the sole or work its way up to
the hairline and pop through the skin.
Many times this is called "graveling"
when it comes out of the hairline. Old timers used to think a rock traveled up the hoof and came out the top, though this
has to my knowledge, never actually been seen or documented. You will see this many times manifest as a horizontal crack or
hole that grows down hoof wall, even if the horse never shows lameness. This could also be from a horse stepping
on itself, causing a deep bruise and damaging the new growth, so it too grows down as a hole or divot in the wall.
The usual symptoms are sudden acute lameness in one foot. Sometimes the lameness presents as just a little
tenderness on hard footing, sometimes the horse appears "head bobbing lame" overnight. There is sometimes heat
in the affected hoof (compare to the opposite hoof) and there can be a bounding pulse, similar to laminitis, but only
in one foot (laminitis usually occurs in 2 or more feet). Rarely, the leg can swell. A farrier or vet can examine the
foot and find a soft, tender spot in the sole if it's a solar abscess. "Graveling" is hard to find as it's
encased in the side of the hoof. The once the abscess pops, you will know it. If you are lucky enough to be picking
out the foot at the time ,you will find a putrid smelling pus oozing out ranging in colors from white to red tinged to grayish
black. Rinse with a saline wound wash or peroxide and proceed with wrapping instructions below.
Abscesses in the sole tend to cause the most lameness due to their location. It's possible to actually open these and
cause them to drain, but I don't advise it. Cutting into the hoof invites more bacteria into it.It provides immediate
relief of the initial abscess, but is more likely to allow more infection and slows overall healing time. This is
a procedure best left to a vet. Abscesses will open and drain on their own when they are ready. Once it has popped, try to
keep the hole clean. The advantage to not cutting the abscess open is by the time it pops on it's own, the body has sealed
that pocket away from itself. If you cut it open, the body is still working on healing it and has an open blood circulation
to it, so any germs from the environment can now enter and go into the blood stream. It really is better to let them
pop on their own, unless it's an extreme situation, since it's nearly impossible to keep a horse's hoof clean.
Rarely, an abscess can cause swelling in the leg of the horse, making diagnosis very hard. Most horses would
NOT experience swelling anywhere but within the hoof capsule itself and would have symptoms similar to laminitis,
and most likely regulated to one foot. In such cases, consultation with your trimmer and vet would be prudent to
rule out any other potential problems.
Soaks can promote the "popping" of an abscess. Below are
some to try. Remember to use warm water for maximum benefit.
Apple Cider Vinegar: 1/2 cup to 1 gal warm water
for about 20 minutes. After abscess has burst, cut soak time in half.
Epsom Salts: can help draw the
abscess out, but is better for drying it out once it burst. 1 cup salt /1 gal warm water. 20min.
Poultices can
work, Animalintex makes hoof shaped poultices you can buy. Just follow the instructions. Change every 12 hours.
After
an abscess had blown out, soak the foot in borax (see thrush) or Epsom salt soak and place foot on clean surface, such as
a tarp of piece of plastic. Inspect for the opening and plug the hole with iodine soaked cotton balls. Apply ichtamol or furcine
and wrap with a cotton bandage or gauze, the continue with vet-wrap or duct tape, or an easyboot. Check twice a day and change
as necessary.
Or you can mix sugar and idodine and soak the cotton balls, wrap foot as mentioned before. I've had some success in plugging already drained abscess holes
with a hoof wax that had some antimicrobial properties. It helps to block some debris from entering, though it's not a
permanent filler.
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| EXIT HOLE OF AN ABSCESS IN SOLE |
| ABSCESS IS CIRCLED IN YELLOW |
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| THIS KIND IS OFTEN REFERRED TO AS "GRAVELED" |
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