Advice on cut leg please

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vicm2509

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Got Baron in from field today and he has cut his leg
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First of all thought it was an over reach cut as it is in the same place, but on closer inspection he has tiny cuts about half way up his cannon just infront of the tendon. The over reach type cut looks like a gash and is deepish but not bleedin (although blood is visable), cuts further up look superficial but possible small puncture wounds. I am presuming he has done this on barbed wire.

Leg is slightly swolen on the outside of the cannon area but not lower down by the large cut. It is also quite hot.

Hosed leg for about 10 mins to make sure I got all the mud off and cooled it down a little, then put antiseptic spray on and plastered it with aloe vera gel. I have left it uncovered as if the smaller cuts are puncture wounds I did not want to bandage incase they do become infected overnight and his leg swells up with bandage on.

So I was planning to assess tomorrow and then poultice the whole leg (well from pastern to highest cut on cannon) for about 12 hrs to get anything that might be in it out then bandage it to stop anything getting in. Should I poultice for longer? And should I put anything besides warm water on the animalintex?

Just wondered if I am doing right thing or not? I dont really want to call the vet as it is not a huge gash and he does not appear lame, although will assess that properly in the morning.

I am a bit paranoid as last time he had a simalar gash on hind leg. We thought it was healed and 7 days later his leg blew up as he had cellulitus as dirt had been sealed in.

I know this should be in vets but I am going out soon so need quick reply, sorry
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First point would be to ensure your horse has had his vaccs against tetanus - otherwise he needs tetanus toxoid.
Secondly, I found it really hard to work out where the cuts were from your description - do you mean at the front of the leg, at the extensor tendon? But then how could it be an over-reach? Either way, you should try to determine how deep the cuts are - superficial wounds to the skin, or can deeper structures such as tendon/ligament be seen? If the latter, then you need a vet to come out and examine your horse and give antibiotics and probably NSAIDs. If not, you may be ok with taking good care - wet poulticing with Animalintex or similar. Be careful you don't bandage the leg too tightly - this would be worse than the cuts.
I'd be a bit careful about turning out in mud...and if there are small holes etc I'd probably use a vet gel...the one which comes in a little mushroom container (I can't remember the name at all!).
Hope your horse makes a speedy recovery.
S
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Yes agree with the tetanus. When I bought my horse, his jabs had expired but he had what we thought was a cold (was a fractured tooth!) so vet said to wait to restart them. In the mean time he came in with small cuts to his front leg, arrount his fetlock, back of cannon etc, turns out he'd been playing with another horse over a barb wire fence. I cleaned it and went back later to check and his leg was already swollen, rang vet who said he would come first thing in morning to give him a tetenus jab.
In the morning his leg was like a balloon, I was mortified but vet said it was to be expected, to cold hose, he gave him jab and thankfully he was fine.
 
Firstly his jabs are all up to date
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The main cut is where a normal over reach cut would be, just above the the heel. This is about 2cm long and looks more like a slice than a cut, it is not swollen around this area. The tiny cuts which are about 2mm and hardly noticeable are just behind the cannon bone, actually they may be on the cannon, but onfront on the tendon. These are the ones I think are possible tiny punctures. All cuts are on the front right leg. The swelling is in the cannon area, mainly around the middle and to the side and the front of the leg. Tendon area is not swollen at all but the whole leg from just below the knee right down to the pastern has heat.

He will be kept in until they are healed, when I said they were covered in mud, I meant from when he was out today. It was when I was cleaning it off I noticed the cuts.

Obviously if his leg is much worse tomorrow the vet will be called immediatly. I am just looking for advice really in how best to clean the wounds before I bandage them to keep them clean. As I dont want to bandage them and realise I have sealed in dirt and cause it to become infected.

Hope that had made it a little more clear, I was in a bit of a hurry in my original post.
 
Alrightey.
If his jabs are up to date, that's one less thing to worry about
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The cuts on the cannon sound minor...I'd wash them off with saline solution (aka water with salt in it) as it will clean wounds without damaging the horse's cells. Then maybe vet gel them (still can't remember the name tho
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) and leave them. I'd cold hose in the morning, and cold wet poultice with Animalintex.
The cut on the bulb of the heel is the one to worry about, as there are quite a few structures down there that really don't cope well with infection due to lowish blood supplies. If this cut is anything deeper than superficial, I'd be calling the vet for possible antibiotics as once infection gets in here, IME, it's hard to get rid of.
But I'm not a vet...just a horse owner...so you must make your own mind up (meaning don't blame me if he catches rabies and expires).
S
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