# Prone to abscesses in front hooves- suggestions?



## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

Agh. So last year, around the end of August, beginning of September, my mare came up lame- long story short we finally figured it out to be an abscess- and we decided to let her go barefoot through winter and then shoe her in front come spring. Well, before our first shoeing of the spring, she had another one. Right after it was drained out & healed up, she had the fronts put on, and no more problems. This was all the farrier suggested to prevent future abscesses. 

Well, come today and she's lame. We suspect an abscess simply because she's had them before, and since there's no obvious wound to her legs otherwise. So, for now, it looks like I'm stocking up on epsom salts. 

I guess my question is, other than soaking in the salts & warm water after she gets an abscess, what can I do to prevent them? Obviously I want her to be healthy & not in pain, so I can deal with going out to soak her feet, that's fine. But I'd rather not have her be in pain to begin with. :/ While it's not as important as keeping her healthy, I also miss out on riding her, and preparing for our shows that we like to go in. 

Sigh. Okay, so to sum it up: Horse is prone to abscesses in front, has been shoed in front to hopefully prevent them, but that isn't doing much, anything else I can do to prevent abscesses?


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## HollyBubbles (Jun 22, 2009)

*sigh* I feel your pain, my gelding has had 2 in the past 3 months (he has one right now :\ )

The first time I had the vet out and she prescribed him all the normal painkillers/anti inflammatories etc.

-Biotin. Get a hoof supplement with Biotin in it (I'm using Strong Hoof at the moment, but my vet recommended Farriers Formula, its just nobody stocks it here)
Follow the directions for the supplement and hopefully it should help. But don't expect to see results just like that, as far as I know, the supplement only works on the new growth that grows in once horse is on the supplement, so it can take months i'm told, so see a difference.

Is she in wet/muddy conditions, eg is it winter where you are? (Thanks mother Nature, ugh)

-I put up a thread yesterday in the nutrition part of health asking about Farriers Formula and other hof supplements, so the suggestions on there may be of some benefit to you.

The vet also suggested to me that yes shoes should help, because it is winter here and so Mitch is in mud most of the time, so shoes should help to lift his hooves off the mud a bit.


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

No, it's currently summer, and we're in a dry spell as well so no mud. 
I'll see about finding a supplement.
Thanks for the advice.


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## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

I wish someone in the equine medical profession would come up with an answer.

IMHO, I think it starts with the horse's immune system because I personally know of two horses with recurrent abscesses. Their lifestyles and health don't begin to resemble each other.

*Horse #1, a registered APHA,* lived on ten acres of lush pasture with no rocks or stones. Reasonable amount of mud vs. dry because we're talking the OH/PA border.

The Owner changed his feed and farrier as many times as she had the options, took him to every highly qualified vet within 100 radius, even had her hay ANNND pasture soil tested.

Zip, zero, nada - nothing helped, nothing in the tests showed anything.

This was her only horse, she missed a year of riding trying to fix him, so sold him to someone that used him mostly in the arena environment and he was kept in stall much of the time. That helped but still not 100%.

*Horse #2, a registered Paso Fino,* lives on seven very rock acres in Tennessee, near the Kentucky border. He was formally diagnosed with Cushings & Insulin Resistance about four years ago.

Needless-to-say this horse is on a very strict diet that does NOT include grain. He is drylotted during the day, turned out with a grazing muzzle at night, so he can be with the other two horses, of whom he is the dominant one.

The Owner cannot keep him free from abscesses and he has Foundered once on her. Until the cushings hit, this horse was a rough and ready-never-had-an-issue trail horse. He is 22.

He now abscesses so bad that he is completely unridable and can't even carry her granddaughter around the yard a couple times.

I gave those two instances because I am well-acquainted with both of these horses who, once the abscesses started, never became completely sound again. The APHA is a lot younger than the Paso Fino, so my thought is his immune system is much stronger and that's why he doesn't YET have the issues the Paso does.

All I have done is put forth more questions than answers. Based on these two horses, who live completely different but well cared for lives, I'm not sure the OP will ever see her horse abscess-free:--(

I sure hope so, and when that happens, please share what you did with the rest of the horse world because this seems to be an increasing issue.

It just has to be related to the immune system and somehow to diet. Maybe not the current diet, but enough of a bad diet in a previous environment to cause these particular horses permanent damage.

I dunno-------------------------------:?:?:?


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## StormvaleQHStud (Dec 16, 2010)

So here is a cheat cheaper supplement for hooves that will perfect the coat as well. Cheat answer? = gelatine. A tspn a day in feed and you should start to see a huge difference in hoof growth and coat condition within two weeks. It helps it grow out quicker and stronger and even feeding all 5 of my horses with it I still haven't run out and I've had it nigh on 3mnths!!! And the best thing? It only costed me $30 for a 1kg bag. Awesome money saver. One bag with 5 horses lasts me over 3mnths!!!!!!!! What you should notice is a line horizontally across the hoof grow out and down (kind of like a founder line but there is only one ripple with gelatine not heaps like founder) and above that line straight smooth healthy hoof and below that line all the old rough hoof (big difference I swear even for horses on 6wk farrier trims) an if your horse has rough longer hair you can actually see it grow out Luke a line as well that moves down the body length and one side is nice soft short new healthy hair and the other side the rough longer older hair. Amazing to see!!!!

Also if horses constantly knock their fetlocks that can bring on abcesses too an that one can't really be prevented even with the best pasture fences they can still do it.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## StormvaleQHStud (Dec 16, 2010)

* meant to say like a line not Luke a line. **** iPhones!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Silvera (Apr 27, 2010)

How is she weight wise? If she is continually getting abscesses then you need to look at the underlying causes. On of the main causes of abscesses is an overweight horse. Humans have a bad habit of killing our horses with love. We want them fat for some reason. This adds on extra stresses to the body and you can literally blow the feet off your horse.

Now, I'm not saying that your horse has this problem, but it is something to look into.


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## equiniphile (Aug 16, 2009)

Excel's had three in the past year. Such horrible feet. The biggest thing is to keep his feet dry from mud and bacteria. Mud and moisture is horrible for them, which is why my guy popped two this spring.


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## WhoaNow (Jan 18, 2011)

Silvera said:


> How is she weight wise?
> If she is continually getting abscesses then you need to look at the underlying causes.
> On of the main causes of abscesses is an overweight horse.
> Humans have a bad habit of killing our horses with love.
> ...


Ditto this.
Generally 'easy keep' horses tend to be the ones with the chronic abcess problems.
It is diet related.
I found with my 'easy keep', tend to abcess frequently QH, 
that *controlling the diet*, using a *hoof supplement/hoof ointment*, and *regular 6-7 week scheduled trims* made a BIG difference.

Good luck, it can be very frustrating:wink:.


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

Well, I wouldn't say she's overweight at all. She was when we first bought her, but now I would consider her at a good weight. She's trimmed every 6-8 weeks, and I try to be out almost every day to either ride or groom, so her hooves are picked out frequently. 

Is there a hoof supplement anyone can suggest? Should I look into SmartPaks?


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## WhoaNow (Jan 18, 2011)

horseluver2435 said:


> Well, I wouldn't say she's overweight at all. She was when we first bought her, but now I would consider her at a good weight. She's trimmed every 6-8 weeks, and I try to be out almost every day to either ride or groom, so her hooves are picked out frequently.
> 
> Is there a hoof supplement anyone can suggest? Should I look into SmartPaks?


I use Biotin II 22x (United Vet Equine).
It is a hoof supplement, and probiotic combined.
Has worked great for me.:wink:


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

I'll check that out, thanks.


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## StormvaleQHStud (Dec 16, 2010)

Gelatine!!!!! Cheaper and does the same thing as the expensive ones! Seriously 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

I'll look into that too.


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

horseluver2435 said:


> Horse is prone to abscesses in front, has been shoed in front to hopefully prevent them, but that isn't doing much, anything else I can do to prevent abscesses?


How is being shod supposed to prevent abscesses? Where are the abscesses bursting in her feet? how flat or otherwise are her soles? How straight/well attached the walls? Can you put up some hoof pics for critique? Recurrent abscesses generally signify unhealthy feet & other underlying probs of which abscesses are one symptom. Depends on the cause as to specifics, but there's a lot you can do to prevent them. Check out my signature links for more info.

Re supps, don't just focus on the feet(because the feet are actually attached to & part of the body:lol, but treat her as a whole - whatever's missing/imbalanced in her diet needs to be supped in order to help her health, feet included. That means that a diet analysis would be the best place to start, but to work out the basics, a program such as feedxl.com is fantastic resource. I agree that gelatine can be a good supp. It is basically protein, including many essential amino acids. These are but a few of many essential nutrients that may be lacking/beneficial, so it certainly isn't a 'be all' by any means. Likewise, biotin is one well known nutrient that may be deficient in the diet if the horse doesn't get adequate green pick, but it's just one of many, that will just be wasted if the horse doesn't need it or is lacking other nutrients which help utilise it.


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

Just taking farrier's & vet's advice about being shod, I suppose the thinking is sort of stabilizing her hooves & trying to keep them off the ground & away from bacteria. 

The first and second abscess burst in the heel, in the bars, I suppose. 
As far as the other questions go, I don't know enough to say. Unfortunately I don't have a camera that I can use (don't have one of my own and my parent's is on it's last legs) right this minute, but I could arrange to borrow a friend's within the next few days. 

As far as supplements go, I'll check out the link and see what I can do.

Thank you for commenting.


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## HollyBubbles (Jun 22, 2009)

horseluver2435 said:


> Just taking farrier's & vet's advice about being shod, I suppose the thinking is sort of stabilizing her hooves & trying to keep them off the ground & away from bacteria.
> 
> The first and second abscess burst in the heel, in the bars, I suppose.
> As far as the other questions go, I don't know enough to say. Unfortunately I don't have a camera that I can use (don't have one of my own and my parent's is on it's last legs) right this minute, but I could arrange to borrow a friend's within the next few days.
> ...


That was what my vet was saying aswell, but in saying that the reason she said it was because of the mud here and we want to keep his hooves out of it, you already said it's not muddy there etc but I see the reasoning of keeping her shod 

Ouch! Mitchs abcesses come out through the sole of his hoof, which I imagine would heal faster than the heel. Do you keep it wrapped up until it's either completely closed over or until it's grown out?


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## Shadomoon (Jul 15, 2011)

My gelding popped abscess after abscess last year when I got him. I had no idea what was going on. At one point he blew from his frog and was a few millimeters from the bone. Not to mention it about killed his frog (and we are still working on growing it back). The vet I was using at the time's best advice was pack it, put on a full metal pad with shoes, and keep him like that. I was using a farrier at the time who was giving me a basic "pasture" trim. I was pretty close to doing it but then I thought, if he blows again with a pad on it won't drain, and the frog could never get medicine to heal. Thankfully I decided against it and stayed barefoot.

Everyone trimmer I've talked to since then has said the only want to prevent and abscess is correct trimming. Instead of just trimming to make the hoof look healthy, a view of how the horse loads its weight on that foot, x-rays of how the bones are in the leg, and trimming to make the horse healthy. My horse is "easty westy" in the front and cow hocked in the back. He was loading toe first and even went as far as rotating his foot when he would place it. If you'd see him walk, it is almost like he has to think about where to put his feet. Proper trimming par his conformation and his "issues" has severely decreased his abscessing. He is on rocks, mud, grass, dirt, etc. He comes up with a rock in a foot here and there but we don't gravel. If he does blow an abscess he doesn't come up lame in the least. Sometimes we'll see the classic "black tar" when we are cleaning his feet but you'd never guess he had abscessed. Considering he use to abscess so bad he'd be three legged for over a week and he'd blow out of 4-5 holes (I wish I was kidding), having an abscess once and awhile that blows out very lightly and he is still running around like a nut says loads to me. 

I think in this case you should have a long look at how your horse moves and your horses leg conformation. X-rays may help too. My trimmer used the x-rays as a guide for trimming. I think a trimmer or farrier could do the same thing. Abscesses can happen due to excess pressure, which would mean the horse's movement and the hoof aren't on the same page. It took me many many months to realize what was going on, in that time I think we abscessed at least once a month. Of course this same horse hadn't seen a farrier in 6 months before I got him... 

As far as hoof supplements, I used the Dumour Hoof with good results. Biotin is a great source for hoof and hair growth. I've found what works wonders is straight alfalfa in their diet. Obviously not large amounts (as can cause founder and colic issues) but I add a small amount of soaked cubes to their morning food and it really promotes a good hoof growth IMO.

Good luck!

Pat


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

Thank you all for commenting. It does get really muddy in spring & fall, so that's probably why we put them on right away. 

I will ask to come out the next time the farrier is out so I can talk to him about trimming. 

Thank you for all the advice!


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## zurmdahl (Feb 25, 2009)

I don't have much to add to what has already been suggested, but I knew a horse who was constantly getting abscesses in one of his back feet and they ended up getting X-rays and he has some sort of deformity that made him more prone to them and because of that he is only in limited work. I don't think that's what's wrong with your horse, he got them one after another and they would take weeks to drain, but it's just something to keep in mind, I don't want to scare you though!


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

I don't think that's the case for her, but thank you for sharing.
Hers have been very spread out & only take about a week to drain & heal up.


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## AmazinCaucasian (Dec 10, 2010)

Vettec Sole Guard will work good if you want to build an extra layer of protection to armor-plate those feet. Vettec products are expensive, but they WORK!!


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

horseluver2435 said:


> Just taking farrier's & vet's advice about being shod, I suppose the thinking is sort of stabilizing her hooves & trying to keep them off the ground & away from bacteria.


Shoes can help 'stablise' a hoof when needed IMO(say for fractured pedal bones), if they have full pads, or bars & frog support. If they're standard metal rims, they do nothing to stablise the hoof because there ain't nothing underneath for support. Also provides nothing in the way of protection from stone bruises, assuming the horse has thin soles/weak frogs. Not that I understand why 'stablising' the hoof would be desirable in this situation anyway. The more the hoof is able to flex when loaded, the better the function, therefore the health & healing can be. In addition, whatever the method of shoeing, the constant pressure & reduced circulation they produce can actually cause necrotised(dead) tissue, which is one cause of abscessing. Heel abscesses may also come about from contracted heels, which are difficult to address while shod. 

As far as the idea of shoes keeping the foot off the ground to keep it out of mud, this just isn't logical, unless perhaps if you had extremely thin mud covering flat concrete, but how else can 1/4" of steel otherwise be at all effective for that?? It's not the bacteria in the ground that's the problem - that's everywhere - it's the horse's susceptibility to hoof infections because of hooves not functioning properly(which shoes can contribute to) which leads to thrush.

In saying the above, you probably have a basic idea of my attitude:lol:. I'm not at all dead against shoes tho, just that I don't believe they're best, or even helpful in many cases they've been 'proscribed' for. I also am not expecting - or even hoping - you would take my word for it, or just discount your vet & farrier just because 'someone said'. However, I think this is a good illustration why it's so important for horse owners to educate themselves, learn & weigh up ALL the pros & cons of whatever approach & not just trust blindly to whatever 'expert' may be at hand:wink:, because it depends on the 'expert' & where they've learned, as to their opinions too - they're not all the same. In your search for info, make sure you look up whatever you can find of Dr Robert Bowker's work - there you will find some science from one of the world's most respected equine lameness 'experts'.


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## horseluver2435 (May 27, 2009)

In this case, I've had to trust all four people telling me the same thing- my trainer (also one of the BOs), another BO, the vet & the farrier. Unfortunately when she was first shod I was still in school, and both the vet & farrier come out during the day. I have not spoken with them yet, but will see the farrier (hopefully) the next time he is out.

That being said, I trust all four of these people with her care, but I'm very thankful for your input. As this is what they have told me to do, I believe I will 'stick with it'. 

Again, thank you very much for the response. I can tell you have a wealth of knowledge that you like to share.


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