Using leeches to heal a wound

[flossyrossy]

Hello, I'm hoping someone out there can share their experience of using leeches to heal a wound. My horse sustained a very nasty injury at the weekend when he impaled himself on a gate latch. He is due to come home in a couple of days and my vet has suggested the use of leeches to help the blood supply to the wound, thus assisting it to heal. I can't find any information on the internet about using leeches specifically with horses and would really appreciate any advice.

 

[kerilli]

i think they're supposed to be very good for getting rid of excess blood (haematomas etc), i'd definitely use them if vet advised it. a friend of a friend used them on a horse fairly recently, fwiw.
really hope your lad makes a full recovery.

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

They're very helpful in some circumstances in human medicine. As they bite the skin, they exude anticoagulants into the area they will be feeding from. This keeps the blood from clotting too soon. The anticoagulant and sucking action means that injuries where the normal blood supply has been crushed or damaged in a way that prevents it reaching the tissues can be restored very fast. If you go down this route, can you put another post on here hun? It would be great for all Forum users to know whether there's an effective treatment out there that our vets may not have thought of. Good luck with your ned and hope his injuries heal soon x

 

[mtj]

I've got personal experience of feeding a leech. Not medicinal or voluntary

I can confirm it doesn't hurt and it does make you bleed well. Don't go wandering around Borneo rainforests unless you want to join the munched club

. And yes, I was wearing leech socks.

 

[alwaysbroke]

Used them years ago on a plastic surgery unit, usually with success to help the blood supply to grafts.
If vet recommends I would give it a go.
Hope your boy recovers quickly.