Abscess Help

bananas_22

bananas_22

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Just wondering if I could ask for some of your experiences on the below please:

My WB came in lame on Sunday night with a hot front hoof which we guessed would be an abscess. Got the farrier out first thing Monday morning, shoe off and confirmed abscess near the toe. Drained this and wet poulticed for 48 hours, dry poulticed until this morning and he was walking around quite happily last night. Farrier comes back out lunchtime today to see if he can put the shoe back on and horse comes out the stable lame on the other foot. Other shoe comes off and horse has abscess on the other hoof in a very similar place! We are now back to poulticing again on the second hoof, but my question is this: would you be concerned about something in particular causing such a situation or put it down to "bad luck"?

Horse was last shod about 3 weeks ago and no signs of problems until this. He is a 17hh WB, but has fairly small TB-esque feet which he has been prone to losing shoes in the past before, although we have not had this problem so far this winter.

Any thoughts greatly appreciated!!
 
What's your farrier's opinion? I would be suspicious, but two points make a line, not a pattern... at the moment there's nothing to say it's not just coincidence. If your farrier doesn't think you need to pursue it, I'd keep a close eye on it, and if it happens again have a talk with a vet.
 
I suspect just bad luck, although some do seem more prone than others. One of my mares often has little spates of abscesses. Main thing is to catch them ASAP before they come out the coronet, as happened one time with her - and she was in the vet hospital at the time!
 
Thanks guys. Farrier's opinion is that it is bad luck too. I think he probably just has weaker hooves making him prone to it-joy! Will look into perhaps getting him some supplements/treatment to harden his hooves up.

We now have a bit of a nightmare trying to keep the original hoof clean as he won't stand on the second one to lift the first up to cover it again at the moment! :S With the first hoof, he was much more comfortable by the evening however, so perhaps we will be able to get them both treated and covered tonight and on the road to recovery.
 
I would put it down to bad luck too.

If you speak to your vets you will probably find that they are seeing a spate of abcesses at the moment. It seems to be that when you get wet then drying fields followed by wet fields followed by dry etc again you seem to get more abcesses.

I had a horse somet years ago who got one in a front hoof, that cleared up and he immediately got one in the other front hoof. No sooner had that cleared up than he got another one in the original front hoof. He has not had another one since.
 
eggs said:
I would put it down to bad luck too.

If you speak to your vets you will probably find that they are seeing a spate of abcesses at the moment. It seems to be that when you get wet then drying fields followed by wet fields followed by dry etc again you seem to get more abcesses.

I had a horse somet years ago who got one in a front hoof, that cleared up and he immediately got one in the other front hoof. No sooner had that cleared up than he got another one in the original front hoof. He has not had another one since.
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Lol, oh good-I'll stock up on the animalintex ready for the third one then!!

Yeah, it makes sense that they would be common with the moisture levels fluctuating so much. Think I'd better install a TV in his stable to relieve the boredom!! :D
 
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