Red Horse Hoof Stuff - cannot get it to stay in!!

[Christmas Crumpet]

What am I doing wrong? Horse has a deep central sulcus and it is going up to the bulb of his heel. I have been scrubbing foot clean when he comes in, drying it, cleaning out with sole cleanse then putting hoof stuff in the gap, pushing it right in and then pressing down on top with some cotton wool to absorb the excess moisture then leaving him over night. It comes out whenever I ride or in the field. Its driving me potty.

 

[electric_circus]

I found the same with Red Horse products - great in principle and better in the summer when the ground is dry... in the winter not so much as the mud just pulls it out of the sulcus.

I'm guessing the root cause of the deep central sulcus is thrush since you are using Hoof Stuff? I personally have found the most effective thing to use on thrush/contracted heels/deep central sulcus/white line disease is a product called Clean Trax. It's not cheap and you will need to have his shoes pulled if he is shod (if the farrier is coming to your yard to shoe a number of horses, get them pulled first, do the soaking, and then have his shoes replaced last) but I found it to be effective in one treatment. It's a bit fiddly to do, but less fiddly in the long term than faffing about scrubbing and pushing paste into the sulcus every night. Been there, done that..! Hope this helps

 

[Tiddlypom]

Are you letting the sole cleanse dry out before you put the hoof stuff in? Gently pick out the central sulcus, spray with sole cleanse, leave the horse in a stable for an hour or two then pack the sulcus with hoof stuff. I work it in with a clean hoof pick. I've done this over a period of several weeks and it cleared up a persistent infection, which had resisted all other treatments including alamycin spray from the vets.

IME hoof stuff stays well put in deep crevices, but once the hole starts to heal and gets shallower, then it tends to fall out. But by then its job is nearly done, and just hoof cleanse is often enough.

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

Ah no I have been literally cleaning out hoof and spraying with sole cleanse then waiting a few minutes and putting hoof stuff in. I will clean it tonight then leave it till bedtime and put it in. Is it worth putting some cotton wool in the hole to dry it up entirely before putting hoof stuff in?

I have messaged Red Horse to ask them their best advice too!! But thank you for your help.

 

[MotherOfChickens]

dry it out, add hoof stuff and then 'blot' the hoof stuff with some tissue or gauze-seems to help.

 

[anuvb]

Ok - the best way of dealing with this is to get a ice lolly stick, break off tiny small amounts/threads not a lumpy, and use the lolly stick to push them right into the sulcus/hole. A hoof pick just doesn't get it in far enough in some cracks if they are tight/narrow. You really have to get it in as far as you can. Also if you do this you can keep layering small amounts until it is full, so if the outer layers come out the inner ones stay in.

As Tiddlypom said once the holes start to heal the stuff comes out more frequently, so at this stage I tend to pop it in over night when they are in the stable and just iodine or stockholm tar before going out. It seems to work well and has cleared up a grotty case of thrush for me. And no I haven't waited for it to dry before putting the hoof stuff in. Yes in an ideal world you would, but I do have a life outside of horses and not enough time to wait and I can't guarantee I would get it the deep cracks dry enough anyway, and this approach seems to work even in the grottiest cases. The key bit is to get it really clean (with a tooth brush and dilute solution of hibiscrub) before you put the hoof stuff in and don't put the cotton wool on over the top - that will only encourage it come out quicker.

 

[Arniebear]

Its either too wet for it to stick or your putting too much in, mine only ever fell out when i put too much in, try adding it in in really small pieces you can always add more on top to fill it up as it sticks to itself!

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

It could be because I am digging out the amount I think I need and putting it in as one big bit. So I need to do lots of teeny weeny bits instead!! Will try this evening and report back in the morning. Thanks everyone - much appreciated.

Good excuse to eat a Twister tonight - for the stick obviously!!

 

[Tiddlypom]

Erm, I'd be a bit concerned that a wooden lolly stick might splinter, how about a metal spatula instead? FGI, here are some pics of how I packed my horse's central sulcus with hoof stuff. (I took the pics to help show a friend what to do when she looked after the horse for a few days.) I'd been using the hoof stuff for a few weeks, so the central sulcus was already opening up nicely, and wasn't sore any more.

I prefer to use one big blob of hoof stuff, as it's easy to remove the lot when it's time to change it. I find that a hoof pick is OK.

With a cleft as deep as this, I didn't have any problem with the hoof stuff falling out. The frog has all healed and opened up now, but I still spray regularly with sole cleanse just to be sure. (And her shoes are off, now, hurray!).