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  Discussion on Long standing infection and hoof abscess
Author Message
Member:
rtrotter

Posted on Saturday, Feb 26, 2011 - 6:52 pm:

This story begins a few years ago when I could not figure out why my race mare's one back leg would always fill up mainly around the ankle. She was never lame, she raced and raced pretty well, but in my opinion did not race up to what I thought her potential should be.

The vet had looked at her several times, blood tests were done, hoofs were tested and explored. The only thing that helped take the fill down was long term doses of Sulphur pills which because of the withdrawal times is difficult to do during a racing season.

Anyway, I have been dealing with this leg for years. Never could figure out the problem. Never seem to affect her soundness, but may have been affecting her performance.

Now fast forward to last year, same scenario, same leg, starts having attitude problems, we fix the shoeing issues, leg seems better but still not right, still filled and now the fill is in the pastern. Mare is racing poorly, not training well, not acting right, but not lame. We decide to quit for the season. Vet still can't find a problem. I basically leave her alone, turn her out and don't look at her from December 8th until last week ( Don't worry, hubby is a very good caretaker). The farrier was here a month ago to trim and reset shoes, no problems. Leg it still filled, even after 3 months out in the field.

Last Friday, due to 70 degree weather, my husband pulled the blankets, I went back at dinner time to help him reblanket the horses and found mare standing off the same problem hind leg. Leg was very filled from ankle through pastern, more than I've ever seen it, but she was not lame. Trotted up for her dinner and then trotted back for her hay. I left her alone.

I had the farrier coming early the next morning. Leg and pastern were filled. I had him do that foot first, lo and behold an abscess bursts as soon as he started paring out the foot. She was noticeably sore to thumb pressure at the toe and had a black track around the white line. I treat by flushing with betadine (per HA treatment for draining foot abscesses)stuff the drain hole with betadine soaked sterile cotton and put betadine on a hoof shaped animalintex pad and wrap up the hoof. Turned her out and repeated the treatment next day.

By day three, leg and pastern are almost back to normal, still some heat, so rewrap the hoof and the basically left her alone Thursday and Friday.

Farrier came today to recheck, leg and pastern normal, in fact better than I've seen it in quite some time. No soreness at all at the toe with thumb pressure, and she is acting more normal(for her).

So, while I can not ever know for sure. I am surmising that what ever it was that caused the leg to continue to fill for the past several years whether it was a splinter or something else, it has now worked its way out of her leg through her foot, never to return again (I hope).

I intend to get xray's done of the hoof, pastern and ankle to make sure that 1) this long term infection did not cause any damage and 2) to make sure that what ever has been stuck in her leg is no longer there.

I knew she was trying to tell me something, just by the way she was acting at the end of last year. I knew something was NQR, but not even the vet or the farrier could find it. I am just glad it is hopefully gone and that this racing season she shows what she really can do.

If all is well, next week, she goes back to work to get ready for summer racing.

Just thought I'd relay the story.

Rachelle
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Saturday, Feb 26, 2011 - 7:38 pm:

Very interesting Rachelle!

Thanks for sharing.

Hope she will now be completely "right."

Fascinating.
Member:
rtrotter

Posted on Saturday, Feb 26, 2011 - 8:13 pm:

Hi Vicki,

Today when I was reading the discussions under this article, I found a comment from Dr. O from 2003 related to this same scenario. Where healed injuries caused a problem years later. I think it happens more than we think as I have had other occasions where I've watched an infection ( or fill) travel down a horse's leg from a kick injury and come out a horses foot.

Most people do not put two and two together, or they weren't around when the original injury happened so, they think it's an original injury.

Horses are very strange animals and I think their bodies treat things differently depending on what that injury is.

Personally, I can not believe something like this could stay in her body that long and not create more of a problem, but since I have been dealing with this for several years and for the first time in several years the leg looks normal, I'd have to say that is exactly what happened.
Rachelle
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Saturday, Feb 26, 2011 - 8:19 pm:

It certainly seems that way, Rachelle.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Sunday, Feb 27, 2011 - 5:11 pm:

Hello Rachelle,
A hallmark of trapped infection is pain which strongly suggests that the filling you were seeing while the horse was sound was not likely to be do to infection. A sole that is painful to thumb pressure should be lame so I do not know what to make of the latest finding of soundness with a sensitive sole and what I can only assume is purulence from your description. Though I have seen thousands of sole abscesses I have never seen anything like you describe.
DrO
Member:
rtrotter

Posted on Monday, Feb 28, 2011 - 7:36 am:

Dr. O,

Then what do you attribute the long term filling to? and to what do you attribute the fact that the leg, since the abscess popped and drained has been normal?

To me it means something has been going on in that leg for quite some time and it took this long for what ever it was to work itself out of her body through her foot. I think the doses of sulphur pills may have worked against this happening sooner. But that said, I am glad this particular part is over and we can now get back to being the kind of race horse, I know she is and also get her back to having a better attitude than the one she developed over the last 2 years.

Only time will tell, if her way of showing pain was not through lameness, but through her attitude.

Rachelle
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Monday, Feb 28, 2011 - 9:22 pm:

I am uncertain what it is you are describing.
DrO
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