Thrush, feeling awful. Looking for advice.

L&B

L&B

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So with it being a very wet winter this year it has been virtually impossible to keep my girls dry for any great length of time because of the sheer amount of MUD. I've done my best with what I have though, they've always come indoors of an evening to a clean dry bed, they have had their legs (heavily feathered) and hooves dried off and feet picked. Our livery yard is very stony.

I was mortified when my farrier attended to my youngest barefoot filly on Tuesday and unintentionally made her bleed whilst picking out her feet, then announcing she has thrush. She made it known she was in pain by almost knocking him flying as he ran his pick down the side of her frog :( :(
Farrier seems to think she's had a small stone caught in the groove down the side of her frog and this has allowed thrush to get in and do its worst. He says it's gone beyond the 'artificial frog' (??). I couldn't believe it! She has her feet picked every day. He said with the amount of damp, if I've so much as missed the stone, or it's been stubborn to get out when picking out for a day or two; that's all it would take. Doesn't stop me feeling like the worst mum in the world :'( :(

My poor girl is now footsore and hobbly at walk, no heat though. I have (following farriers advice) tubbed her foot with a dilute of hibiscrub and salt, dried her hoof off and laid her down a 3x deeper bed and now she is being Gold Label, purple sprayed twice a day every day.
The groove itself isn't as stinky as it was, but there is still a deep black gunky hole right in the corner of the groove of her frog which I can fit the tip of my little finger in and which she is flinchy about me touching... This is the hole we think the stone/thrush has created and I am attacking it with purple spray, squirting it right down there.

Can anyone else calm my mind or give me any tips or hints to help my girl?
Whenever I've experienced thrush before I've used a dilute of hydrogen peroxide in a spray bottle and it's been gone in 3/4days, never making them sore. Farrier says not to do that in this case as it's deeper, I've never seen it this bad before and I feel absolutely awful.

Vet is coming out for jabs on Wednesday next week, so if needs be I can have them take a look then.

Please no crit', nobody could beat me up more than I'm beating up myself. And donuts and coffee for anyone who read this far :)
 
Don't worry! it happens! I felt horrible earlier this year as I suddenly realised my old old mare had thrush so badly it had split the hoof grove right beyond the hairline! Totally freaked out about it - it's all sorted now.

I bought Hoof Stuff and Field Paste from Red Horse Products and OMG they've been amazing. Hoof stuff is like the new stockholm tar basically; it's a very fibrous white goo that you can use to plug holes in hooves, and it stays in pretty well. Field paste is an antiseptic medicated clay which you put over and it really does stay on even in the mud.

I washed her hooves every day for a week with either miltons (diluted), or Red Horse hoof wash stuff, then put the hoof stuff in the gaps and the clay on the top - left her in a few nights, and then gradually reduced the washing. Worked a treat. good luck!
 
Keep hot tubbing x 2 per day. You could dry poultice to draw out any infection for 24 - 48 hours hours. I also find iodine is quite good for killing the bad guys, but purple spray probably does the same job.

Don't beat yourself up too much. I know what the guilt is like. I've just taken my girl's shoes off and felt horrible for letting her walk around with a sharp pointy stone in her white line for a day.
 
Look up the red horse products (hoof paste, artimud, etc...). They work well and are IMO more gentle than hydrogen peroxide. They can stay on too even in mud (depending how deep and which product).
No point beating yourself about it, it could happen to anyone, just make sure you are doubly careful about it in future. Perhaps if you don't already have one get a little stiff brush to brush out the hooves as you pick out.

ETA: Iodine is really good too. I think there is iodine in purple spray. I think your filly is lucky as she is obviously well loved :).
 
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Thanks so much for all replies and kindness... Palindrome your ETA made my bottom lip go - you can tell I'm feeling emotional today lol!!

I will have a look at all of the things you have all mentioned. I'm trying not to tub her feet too much as it seemed to have made them very soft even after the first 5minute tub but they definitely need a scrub and flush each day!!
 
I think it's just been one of those kinds of winters where some ailments can be almost unavoidable.

Even being predominately stabled at the moment (restricted turn out), B gets a little 'thrushy' from time to time. I use Foot Master which works well. Thankfully he's not had full-blown thrush so far, so this is all I've needed. My friend has had to use peroxide to clear her's up.
 
One of my fillies had what I thought was an abscess brewing. Shut her in for a few days and hob tubbed her with epsom salts. She was fine after a few days and the ground dried up a bit.

You're onto it now so I'm sure yours will be fine. These things happen.
 
Well I am going to our local tack shop after work to pick up some more hibiscrub, purple spray and hypocare.
I have ordered some red horse 'hoof stuff' this afternoon but I am assuming it won't arrive until after the bank holiday weekend. Still worth having around at any rate!!

Thankyou all for kind responses :) they are really helping!
 
Hoof stuff darl, with out a shadow of a doubt and had I seen this earlier I blooming have some you could have started using. Loadsa love and don`t you dare blame yourself for any of this x
 
This winter's been a nightmare, there really is no reason for anyone you to blame you, sometime these things just happen.

I would go with the hydrogen peroxide myself, I don't think anything works as well as that.
My farrier also recommends rolling some cotton wool into a small sausage, soaking it in iodine, pushing it into the affected area (I use the back of a hoof pick to get it right down in there) and leaving it there for the day. Not only will this make sure the iodine stays in the area over a longer period of time but it will prevent the sides of the cleft rubbing together and causing discomfort. It has worked for mine on the two occasions he's had it. You can pick it out fairly easily with your finger if it hasn't fallen out already.
 
red horse stuff is great, it can be a bit tricky to get out the pot though!

If it ends up being really stubborn cleantrax or white lightening (not the cider!) are very good for it apparently
 
My cob came to me with thrush in all 4 feet. At night I'd wash them then puff wound powder right into the frog to dry it up. In the morning I'd squirt it with blue spray (not purple - that didn't do much; the blue's antibiotic) and then before turning her out packed her feet full of Red Horse field paste. It really is good stuff and the thrush has never come back.
 
Just thought I would update everyone...

I have ordered some cleantrax, red horse hoof stuff and red horse sole cleanse -- it all seems to be taking forever to arrive inspite of me paying for next day del. but I'm assured Friday it will be here (yay!). As per the instructions on the cleantrax, I had my farrier come out today and take all of the dead bits of frog and sole off of my wee fillies feet.

My, my, what a mess the thrush has made. She now has sheer sensitive frog exposed to the elements, it's all white and squishy and she is footsore on the hard!! The whole frog has just been eaten away at. Cue me sobbing once more...

So my plan of action is to keep as clean and dry as physically possible until friday. Come Friday, I will rinse her hooves off and apply the cleantrax. I will then pack the hoof with red horse hoof stuff to the hilt, and pray for a speedy recovery.

Can anyone see a flaw in my proposed actions?? I cannot believe her sensitive frog tissues are on display and I am PETRIFIED of her getting an infection :( :( :(
 
Sounds like a plan, honestly I just said to someone in PM that the red horse stuff continues to amaze me with how it can make stuff look much better. Frank's frogs have needed a little TLC because we were poulticing for a while, wet then betadine then he still had boots on in the field in the wet so they had got a bit unhappy. If I put the hoof stuff on or sole cleanse at night it looks 10x better the next day :)
 
This is so good to hear Ester, thankyou for taking the time to reply!! So many people have recommended the RH products to me, not least of all on this thread and including one very good and trusted friend. I guess their reputation alone precedes them! That can only be a fantastic thing :)

I really am worried about the wee girlies sensitive tissue being open to the elements tho' - would this be a concern of yours?? It's nigh on impossible to keep it 100% clean due to her insisting on standing in her turds :( but I guess flushing her feet each day until the 'hoof stuff' comes is my only option? My farrier seemed to swear that FRESH AIR was the best thing for her soles atm, so I'm reluctant to put anything over them until the RH stuff comes!!
 
The Cleantrax needs a soaking boot, you do not apply it, but soak the feet in it. One bottle does 2 feet. You have to use it within 1 1/2 hours of adding to water, enough time for 2 feet. They sell a boot for soaking.
 
Oh yes, I knew this. Perhaps apply was the wrong word. I am very poor at giving explanations/instructions in type. I understand you soak the feet in it for up to 45minutes a piece, then put on a plastic bag tied loosely at the top to allow the 'fumes' to work for a little while longer.
 
One of mine has developed truth on a front foot although it does not sound as bad as your girlie. I find a mixture of sugar and iodine packed into the frog cleft works well.
 
My friend had an ongoing thrush issue with her horse - absolutely nothing to do with lack of care or hygiene or anything else - he has very deep clefts to either side of his frogs and is a massive ID.

She battled with it using sugardine, zinc, iodine, all the products you can buy for thrush, but it was obviously something that had been rumbling on for ages. The vet came out, cut out a part of the hoof and it had gone under the frog. He was on antibiotics for a while, but the only thing that seems to be getting on top of it is a eucalyptos and formaldyhyde mix from the vet.

Not to worry you, but it had eaten away quite a lot of the sole and it was no wonder he was not a happy bunny - although not lame at all.
 
We had a similar problem years ago when we had no stable available and our farrier recommended a product called farriers formula, this comes both as a supplement and a paint on liquid. It was the liquid that he recommended.

Hope your pony is starting to recover.
 
Okay! Thought I'd update in the hope for a little more advice...
My girlys thrush has finally cleared; the farrier trimmed away most all of the grotty flappy frog and I used a combination of hoof stuff and sole cleanse - got cleantrax in stock but didn't use it. And the dry ground has helped no end. Her grooves and sulcus are still fairly deep. But there is no foul smell and no black goo. Her frog though is pretty solid and she is still short behind... Does anyone have any idea why this could be? She is booked in for her trim on 20th May, if she still looks short after that I am going to call a vet. I'm adamant it's a shortness coming from her feet, but I just can't pin point it... Can dry underside hooves following thrush do this? She has absolutely no sign of abscess... Hmm...
 
Of course not! I didn't think of that... Doh!! What a wally! :/
I can try to get some at some point! Not as easy as normal as camera on phone is broken!
Though as I say, the underside still has deep grooves but they are dry and clean and the frogs are plush looking now, and most of the underside is solid, she has a few whispy bits of frog that will need trimming off, but she is due a trim on 20th.
 
Just in case we can pick up on anything that has become a bit normal for you if that makes sense.
Any different on different surfaces?/downhill?
 
Damnit. I hope it's not done any lasting damage :( it's definitely all cleared up... Her heels are quite dry and cracked but certainly not thrushy... Oh I feel so terrible my poor wee mite.
 
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