Pony still lame following abscess - any ideas?

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RoughcutDiamond

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Bit long winded I'm afraid but wondering if anyone has had any similar experiences.....

..Davie had a few weeks of intermittently just not "feeling right" through September though never lame, just couldn't putmy finger on it. Around 24th Oct came in from field lame with heat/swelling in left fore...wondered if this was the culmination of the"off" feelings so cold hosed etc etc overnight and when no change next day got vet out. No response to hoof testers, lame on left rein but visibly worse on right rein (but lifting head when left hoof landing). Nerve blocked left hoof, left rein a tiny bit better, right rein still awful. Vet (who was leaving practice that week) booked him in for x-rays/scans the following week. Box rested from that point.

5 days later leg filled, pony obviously very sore so called vet out (she has since managed Davie's investigations). Explained all the above, she did hoof test again with no reaction but decided to cover all bases, take shoe off and poultice in any case....did hoof test again and found abscess under shoe. Had a dig and the pus came pouring out, thick, black and smelling worse than any other abscess I've witnessed. So x-ray appointment cancelled whilst we poulticed and got abscess dried out.

Vet was out to yard on Monday so I got her to check things over and we popped him on the lunge only to find the lameness still present as it had been originally :(. We've spent the last 2 days at the clinic. Left leg nerve blocked up to mid cannon with a vast improvement, then really thorough x rays and scans (inc of right leg for comparison). Everything came back absolutely clear which from one point of view is great but it means we still don't have a cause. There is the option to block the fetlock joint and the tendon sheath but Davie has (since the abscess) a recurring oedema in the affected leg which goes down after a short walk and vet didn't really want to risk rying to nerve block through the swelling. Last option would be a bone scan.

In the meantime the suggestion is that the abscess may well have been building for several weeks (perhaps accounting for the "not right" feeling) and therefore the internal bruising/swelling it caused may just take time to come right. I am waiting on a detailed e-mailed plan of action from vet but broadly speaking it seems we are going to go for getting the shoe back on (sole packed and hoof floated as farrier sees fit), then try a strict exercise programme prob starting with 10 mins walk in the school daily.

Obviously I am glad his musculo-skeletal aspects have had a clean bill of health but am still anxious.......has anyone had similar experiences, or does anyone have any ideas??

Sorry is so long - Maltesers and a dram of Baileys all round!!
 
My boy was slightly lame right back from end of august and his absess only came out after a month and a half!! Never heard of it taking so long myself, but instructor said she had one that took over a month before! Sorry no help RE what to do next however as my boy did come sound afterwards.

How long did he had the shoe off and how long has he had it back on?
 
Shoe will have been off 3 weeks this Sunday, hopefully going back on sometime early next week. Has been box rested with a daily walk-out in hand since then (with hoof dressed!).
 
Ahh, my chap had his off for about a week and a half, and was still very slightly lame before we put the shoe on.. however thats because he was just slightly foot sore from not having a shoe on, after shoe was back on, no problems.. How severe is the lameness? could it be that hes a little bit sore without the shoe on?
 
Vet rated him 1/5 lame on left rein, 2/5 on the right. He does get footy on the odd occasion he's lost a front but that's only on hard/rough ground. Since the shoe has been off this time he has been in and hoof thoroughly dressed in the usual vet wrap/tape plus I bought a wee boot so that I could still graze him in hand without the tape getting wet and coming undone!! (soft I am!!!). So would be very surprised if it's "footyness". I do wonder how much effect being unbalanced for 3 weeks might have....just wish I couldwave a magic wand!! Have had him 4 years without so much as a need for an odd Danilon til now!
 
It may just be the abscess has not fully drained as yet. Our old TB was actually on 3 legs the other year due to an abscess but the vet struggled to find the source, he then seems to go 'footy' on both fronts. Turned out he developed an abscess in the other foot (due to putting all weight on that one). We sorted that but he was still horrendously lame on the original foot. It too a fair few weeks of vet and farrier visits and daily hot tubbing before we managed to sort it. We bought him some Boa boots for his fronts and this seemed to help a lot.

I would suggest hot tubbing yours each day in salted water. You may need to invest in some boots to help take the pressure off his feet. When my horse had an abscess that just didnt seem to go the vet did resort to antibiotics and this cleared it up fairly quick.

Abscesses can be a real pain to sort - some seem to be treated really quick but others can be buggers!!
 
I know the basic answer is as soon as the pus is found, poultic for a couple of days and keep foot clean, but in this weather even if you try and keep it clean, a little dirt will get in, try if you can still get from chemist Hydrogen peroxide( I hope if spelt it right) and squit into hole.
 
Thanks for the input guys - Ellie, just looked at your site, LOVE your boy and wishyou all the best for next season!

Ladyt25 - vet had a good further dig whilst he was sedated at the clinic without any "luck" and x rayed both hooves with no sign of further abscess. I would love to hot tub him but last time we tried it took 3 of us and even then we only really managed to get a quick dip here and there!!! He has just started a 5 day course of antibiotics, again as a "precaution", and is to have 1x Danilon twice daily for a few days so will see what happens I guess!
 
We had a pony a few years ago with a foot abscess which took ages to clear. In the end the vet suggested I pack the hole in the hoof with epsom salts mixed with petroleum jelly. This worked extremely well and the infection cleared up very quickly. Good luck!!
 
I seem to recall it took nearly a month for the abscess to finish draining when Oz had a nasty one earlier this year. He was very sore with it too for most of that time, and the vets recommended he have xrays to check the pedal bone wasn't infected (which it wasn't).

Even after the original abscess healed (which blew at the sole and coronary band) he had a secondary abscess come out of his heel and coronary band there, which still hasn't finished growing back properly yet, and the original abscess was back in February!!

So yes, it can take ages to heal :( If he was mine, I'd take comfort in the fact that the xrays are showing clear, and try not to worry too much yet.

In fact this was my thread at the time:
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=346614
 
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