Pus in foot... from oilseed rape or miscanthus bedding going between frog and sole??

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mustardsmum

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Bit of a long shot, have a mare on box rest who has (to add to my problems!) now got pus in the foot - not reason on box rest, she is recovering tendon injury that is all going very well and fingers crossed will be turned out soon... However, she hasn't been turned out in weeks, is kept in a spotless stable with rubber matting over which is a good bed of equinola or Farringtons Fibres and completely flat concrete yard with no stone in sight. She is walked and trotted daily according with her rehab program but vet doesn't want her turned out until she is back doing canter work without any issues. When I looked at her foot, I pulled a piece of either miscanthus or oilseed rape stem from between the frog and sole. Has anyone else had this happen, where it resulted in pus in the foot - is this even possible?! It really was quite sharp and it felt like it had gone quite deep pulled it out quite a way....? Poultice now in place and she does look more comfortable. Any thoughts greatly appreciated!
 
My horse got a massive abscess on her hind leg from a piece of rape straw working it’s way into her leg. In the end she had to go into the vets to have it lanced as it just wouldn’t open up with poultices. The vet was able to get his fingers into the cavity and pull out a large amount of what he described as being like foul smelling cottage cheese. My horse wasn’t even slightly lame throughout the whole infection and recovery though she was kept on box rest.

I have photos though I have trouble posting on here I will try.
 
I knew of a horse that was on Miscanthus bedding...very sharp and 'pointy'....poor horse ended up with a nasty wound to its eye where a bit of bedding had stabbed it! Not foot related, I know, but I now have a deep distrust of Miscanthus.
 
The bedding may have worked in where there was a weakness caused by the access? It may have stuck to the pus to start with?
The hoof is a fairly hard capsule and I think it unlikely that bedding would work in through a healthy hoof.
 
I can't imagine it being possible even with very poor hooves TBH, many abscesses start internally and that seems more likely to me and then the bedding attached.
 
One of mine got an infection inside his sheath from a piece of rape straw wedging itself in the skin folds. Very sore nasty and swollen sheath made for a very unhappy horse so I switched back to shavings after that vets bill.
 
Dream come true hope your horse is ok now, sounds horrendous; so does getting it in the sheath Lindylouanne. I am wondering if the others might be right and it’s got into something already established. Am thinking I might try auboise instead. She is more comfortable today and there was grey gunk on the poultice from between frog and sole so fingers crossed whatever it is it’s shifting.
 
I think it was on here rape straw was being discussed and people who grow it were saying it is full of bacteria and not really suitable as horse bedding. I did find it really sharp and prickly and while it's very absorbent Aubiouse is so much nicer but about twice the price. Glad pus has started to drain and your mare is feeling happier today.
 
skin isn't a hoof even if your frogs really are rubbish. For some reason F's sheath has always been much mankier on straw (didn't work that out until moved to livery without it) so I definitely think there are pros and cons to most.

I've had sharper miscanthus and softer miscanthus, all my rape straw bedding has been soft and treated so certainly not fully of bacteria until they poo on it.
I do prefer aubiose though, I use it for the guinea pigs :D, thankfully they don't get through enough that the increased cost matters.
 
ester said:
skin isn't a hoof even if your frogs really are rubbish. For some reason F's sheath has always been much mankier on straw (didn't work that out until moved to livery without it) so I definitely think there are pros and cons to most.

I've had sharper miscanthus and softer miscanthus, all my rape straw bedding has been soft and treated so certainly not fully of bacteria until they poo on it.
I do prefer aubiose though, I use it for the guinea pigs :D, thankfully they don't get through enough that the increased cost matters.
Click to expand...

Out of interest Ester, do you mind me asking which rape straw you use? I use Equinola but the last lot was quite prickly.
 
I haven’t had any problems with Equinola. When my horse got the abscess I was using a different brand which was much more roughly cut and had some spiked pieces.

I love rape straw as a bedding material so I have continued with it but use Equinola.
 
equinola or bliss, whatever got delivered when I was on livery. My first forays into other bedding as had always used straw at home before that.

The miscanthus we get from mole valley is pretty stiff stuff/not really chopped up enough IMO but it's stalking rather than prickly.
 
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