To de-scab or not to de-scab?

[kgj66]

I have mixed advice about this from experienced friends/ different vets!

Among various injuries, my horse, after getting her leg trapped has cuts and scabs all around her coronary band and heel. It started as more of a deep graze, rather than wounds. I have left it alone apart from applying Botanical herbal cream and manuka honey. However some of the other smaller cuts that were higher up on the leg seem to have healed quicker where the scabs were taken off.

I have left these ones alone as they are closer to the ground and I was scared of them getting infected. The scabbing is quite thick and lumpy. I have been using a syringe to get the botanica in between all the cracks so it is not just going over the top.

What does everyone else do? I have found this subject to have very different opinions with people!

 

[Pearlsasinger]

It depends how deep the wound is, some wounds are better if they heal from the outside in, so need to be flushed out twice a day to stop a scab forming over the hole, which could trap infection inside. I wouldn't pick scabs off though, unless there was good veterinary advice to do so.