Could it be laminitis??? HELP PLEASE

A

Annie&Amy

Well-Known Member
Joined
18 October 2003
Messages
496
Location
warwickshire
Visit site
I have done another post on this under foot abscess but basically my 23yr old cob mare was shod a week and a half ago. The next day she was a bit sore on one front leg but cause of her arthritis i just put it down to having to stand for farrier etc. She gradually got worse over a week and i had vet out this wed's, she was very lame by then although still weight bearing, she had strong bounding digital pulse and was sore when she had shoe removed, hoof testing didn't elicit a response. Vet said poss laminitis or abscess so poultice, box rest + bute.

She improved a little with stabling but no pus came out so had vet back yesterday and she cut away hoof but still no abscess, she is convinced it is one though. She was again sore having hoof pared away. Since yesterday though heat in hoof has gone and digital pulse + lameness reduced!!! Still no pus on poultice though.

Basically i'm panicking that it laminitis although it's only in one leg, she has never been laminitic and has been on same grazing for two years. But she was showing some signs ie, sore to turn on circle, putting heel down first when she walked and uncomfortable when standing but this has now all gone.

ANY ADVICE MUCH APPRECIATED, VERY VERY WORRIED MUM!!!!!!!
 
very hard to tell obviously, she'd have all those symptoms with an abscess too. i think it would be very unusual to get laminitis only in 1 foot though, but i'm not an expert.
i'd keep poulticing/tubbing it carefully, and keep her as if it is laminitis just in case, if she was mine.
best of luck.
 
Although it is very possible it is laminitis, I would be more inclined to suspect an abscess too. I had a mare recently with similar problems. The vet actually found it was an abscess in the bulb of the heel, not the actual hoof itself.
I would personally keep her in, on low quality feed and keep poulticing for a week more(no longer though)
I hope it resolves soon and isn't the dreaded lammi.
 
I agree it sounds more like an abcess but as there is a possibility of Laminitis if you treat for both by boxrest with hay and poulticing you are covering both possibilities as well as you can.
 
It does sound like an abcess. A friends horse has had abcesses in the past that have taken weeks to surface. Have you had your farrier out for a look? Maybe he will be able to shed a bit more light on it
 
I'm not a big believer in coincidences. So if your girl was totally fine one day and then was shod and the very next day after being shod she's NOT fine, I'd suspect something to do with the shoeing. My first thought would have been nail bind but obviously if the shoe is now off and she's still not right, it's more than that. I'd guess a nail has damaged something so could be an abscess but it could also be something that has been aggravated by a nail, if you see what I mean. I'd defo get the farrier out. I think that some abscesses can take forever to come to the surface though. Good luck and hope it resolves soon x
 
Our donkey was very lame last year and vet thought it was an abcess. Despite digging a very large hole and even using a syring to try and draw some pus out nothing appeared and poor lad was very lame for several days. A week of poulticing producing nothing, but about 10 days after original lameness the abcess burst out through the coronary band. As someone has already said you are treating her right for lami or an abcess so I would give it a bit longer and hopefully you will be greeted one day soon with a load of pus!
 
UPDATE - still no pus, hardly lame at all now with poultice on, slightly lame with it off, still didital pulse but much better. Foot not hot. Vet says 99% not laminits as no bleeding when horn cut away, continue poulticing and turn her back out to get some movment to hopefully expel pus. Any tips for keeping poultice on in field?? She is a good girl and doesn't run around xx
 
Tried animalintex, soffban, nappy, vetrap, duct-tape. Think the nappy's i've got are too small (newborn) as sometimes they stay on and sometimes not. Any new techniques etc etc etc
 
best thing is a shoof or similar, a plastic hoof-shaped boot.
otherwise, an old pair of jeans cut up (denim is very strong), or very very strong plastic, take a big square of material, taped over the poultice and then bandaged. shoof etc are best though because then you don't have to bandage tightly up the leg.
 
Just one other thing, when i took her poultice off on the thur's there was loads of black stuff but we wern't sure if it was thrushy stuff or pus (did smell++) but she still had strong digital pulse until sunday. Could this of been abscess, vets have said keep wet poulticing until abscess bursts xx
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top