Can an abscess become re-infected?

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FrankieDurleigh

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Hello,
I'm fairly new with horses (getting back into them after 10 years) so i apologise for my ignorance.

My horse had an abscess on his heel, poulticed it and it was fine.
A week later he is now lame again (after being sound and his usual self) slight nod while trotting.
The weather hasn't been great as we all know, and with his field becoming very wet and muddy could this play a part in re-infecting the foot?
It's the same foot as before and i'm at a loss, i'm re-poulticing it and nothing has come out from what i can see, i have soaked the foot is Epsom salts and the foot is in a boot to try and help.
I'm worried it's making his heel very soft so any advice on how to help it recovering would help also.

Thanks,
 
If it wasn't totally clear the first time, it can be hard to tell, then the chances are some of the original infection was still there and has flared up, it may not yet be ready to come out which is why you are seeing nothing on the poultice, probably time to get a vet or farrier to take a look to ensure it is an abscess and that this time it gets cleared out fully before the hole closes up.
I have known then come back a few weeks later despite thinking it was well cleared up but it only requires a tiny amount of infection left to build up to another full abscess.
 
Thanks, i'll call my farrier to come have a look, if not then the vet.
He had a course of antibiotics after the first lameness had gone but i think in my ignorance i didn't keep it as clean or as dry as i should have and thus getting muddy and re-infected!
Frustrating! I have learnt a lesson now.
 
I'd give the vet a phone call sooner rather than later if I were you as your horse may need a longer course of antibiotics or perhaps a change of antibiotics. If the bugs are still there they can flare up pretty quickly and will be more difficult to shift if you leave it too long. Not an easy place to keep clean so you have my sympathy in this weather.
 
FrankieDurleigh said:
Thanks, i'll call my farrier to come have a look, if not then the vet.
He had a course of antibiotics after the first lameness had gone but i think in my ignorance i didn't keep it as clean or as dry as i should have and thus getting muddy and re-infected!
Frustrating! I have learnt a lesson now.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately it's not unlikely that the antibiotics are what caused this recurrence. Antibiotics are not normally given for foot abscesses.

Your boy did not have an abscess in his heel, most likely. It was probably simply the exit wound of a sub-solar abscess. The antibiotics probably only suppressed it enough for it to heal up with some bugs still inside. The blood supply to an encapsulated abscess is poor, which is how nature stops the horse getting septicaemia. So it's quite possible some bugs survived in there and are now multiplying.

Once it has broken open again, flush the hole hard twice a day with 3% hydrogen peroxide from a syringe, and keep doing that for at least a week after the horse is sound. Poulticing is not effective when the exit wound is higher up than the site of the abscess.
 
yes I had two reinfect last year so I learnt the hard way! The answer for me was to keep the hoof totally clean/covered and protected after the abscess for at least ten days.

as soon as the abscess stopped draining I dry poulticed for 10 days. This was a nappy on with a bit of duct tape then a corner of a strong feed sack/haylage sack duct taped over the hoof then a poultice boot like this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SHIRES-PO...rse_Wear_Equipment&var=&hash=item53efeefc34on over the top with some duct tape. I was then able to turn him out in the day to keep him moving and kept him in at night. I changed the dressing every 24 hours.
 
Whether antibiotics should have been used or not, the problem is now they have and the bugs haven't been killed off for whatever reason, they will come back there is a risk of a/b resistance developing so I still think the vet should have some input.
 
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