Sarah1
Well-Known Member
Hi all
Saturday morning we're all tacked up for our hack, we go out of the gate & bam my boy is hopping lame. He stood on a stone and I thought he'd twisted something as he yanked his leg away from it - couldn't see a puncture wound.
Cold hosed it and kept him in the stable until Sunday morning - took him for a leg stretch (in hand) as he seemed a little better and I had thought it was a strain/sprain of some sort, brought him back up to the yard lame again. Popped him in the stable where he started shaking & sweating (this could have been due to the pain or the fact that his field mates were out - though he did have the Shetland for company). I didn't want to take any chances so I called the vet. We had another horse put to sleep on Tuesday with a twisted gut and he wasn't showing typical signs of being in huge amounts of pain but his heart rate was sky high so we're slightly paranoid at the moment.
Vet came, put the hoof testers on and said she thought he'd badly bruised his hoof and that she thought he was heading for an abscess so since yesterday I've been poulticing it twice a day and have it wrapped in layers of plastic bag, duct tape & canvas boot so that he can be in the field where I know he's happier and more settled.
The thing I have been wondering is how does an abscess form from a bruise? Could someone please explain the mechanics to me? Also how long, generally, would you expect treatment to last?
In lots of years with horses I've never had one with an abscess so this is pretty new to me but having read up on it I've found that cold treatment soon after the bruising occurs can, in some cases, avoid an abscess?
Any comments are gratefully received!
Thanks
Saturday morning we're all tacked up for our hack, we go out of the gate & bam my boy is hopping lame. He stood on a stone and I thought he'd twisted something as he yanked his leg away from it - couldn't see a puncture wound.
Cold hosed it and kept him in the stable until Sunday morning - took him for a leg stretch (in hand) as he seemed a little better and I had thought it was a strain/sprain of some sort, brought him back up to the yard lame again. Popped him in the stable where he started shaking & sweating (this could have been due to the pain or the fact that his field mates were out - though he did have the Shetland for company). I didn't want to take any chances so I called the vet. We had another horse put to sleep on Tuesday with a twisted gut and he wasn't showing typical signs of being in huge amounts of pain but his heart rate was sky high so we're slightly paranoid at the moment.
Vet came, put the hoof testers on and said she thought he'd badly bruised his hoof and that she thought he was heading for an abscess so since yesterday I've been poulticing it twice a day and have it wrapped in layers of plastic bag, duct tape & canvas boot so that he can be in the field where I know he's happier and more settled.
The thing I have been wondering is how does an abscess form from a bruise? Could someone please explain the mechanics to me? Also how long, generally, would you expect treatment to last?
In lots of years with horses I've never had one with an abscess so this is pretty new to me but having read up on it I've found that cold treatment soon after the bruising occurs can, in some cases, avoid an abscess?
Any comments are gratefully received!
Thanks