4 hooves, 3 abscesses

[luxuria]

Sundance has been shod in the front for 8 weeks now. The first 4-5 weeks were the soundest I've seen him.

He got gimpy about 6 weeks after the shoes. I saw black, thrushy looking stuff around the shoes and tried to treat that. I didn't "dig" any deeper.

Farrier comes out today and I tell her he's been gimping. She finds 3 abscesses and/or stone bruises.

I swear this guy needs a full time farrier of his own!

We're going to try hoof hardener for his (very soft) soles. Does anyone have specific recommendations? (Please, no barefoot advice for this particular horse.)

[laterider]

Try a biotin supplement to his feed to improve the quality of his hooves. I use biotin + methionine + zinc that is quite good. Also in the winter I put 18% iodine solution on his soles (with a brush) to dry them out from all the moisture. My horse has crappy TB feet, grows a lot of flare and no sole, and this makes his feet better but still not great. He is shod in front only. So far in 3 years I have only had 1 stone bruise with him (knock on wood!).
Good luck with the abscesses, hope he is back to normal soon.

[Syrah]

Do I read this correctly that he went 8 weeks before a reset? If so, that's way too long.

Keratex (www.keratex.net) is the best hoof hardener IMO.

[sunchaser116589]

If he's like that with shoes, you need pads.
My mare has thin soles, and they're soft too. In the spring she can't walk on hard ground, like cement. No gravel, and she goes dead lame if she steps on even one rock.
Recently she's finally able to walk where she wants.
First off: turnout in the least rocky, and softest turnout area possible. Our outdoor arena is sand/rubber, but has a lot of gravel in it. The pastures are a tad rocky, but with the grass and ground, she's fine in it. The paddocks seem to be clay, and also have gravel in them from the walkway. So, she goes in the roundpen, which is sand and has very few rocks.
Second: 20mg or better hoof supplement. It will grow better hooves, and faster. It will take 6 months to a year to completely grow out, but it will help in the long run.
Third: (Make sure the abscesses are gone or just make sure to avoid those open areas) Find some iodine (I use the iodine wound stuff). Clean and brush the hooves thoroughly before and after you take him out. Then spray his hooves (just the sole, not the frog or heels) with the iodine after you do his hooves before you leave. I do it in the aisle so the bedding doesn't absorb it right away.
Do this once everyday.
Fourth: Venice Turpintine (Turpentine? I just refill my bottle with regular turpentine from the hardware store so it lasts longer). MY mare can only tolerate it every few days or it dries out her hooves. Brush a good amount on the sole and heels the day he's shod (after, of course), and about once every 3 days. If you need to, do it every 2 days. Work up to once a week. Right now, my mare only needs it every couple of weeks.
This needs to be done in the aisle, because the turp. is sticky. After a few minutes he can go in his stall. (MAke sure to close the cap tightly or else it dries out and you need to add more turp. to thin it).

The turp. will toughen his hooves. I see results the next day.

Fifth: Also, once a mouth I put thin hoof conditioner on the sole and frog, hoof oli/conditioner on the outside walls, and thick conditioner on the coronet band.

[luxuria]

Syrah, I can ask for more frequent, but she (farrier) said his angles look good and the growth was fine. In the winter, she says horses here usually need reshod every 8-10 weeks.

But maybe it would help him if it were more frequent.

I'm going to try the feedthrough supp and the keratex or iodine both.

At his worst, he didn't seem terrible. Not like when he had that horrible abscess a few months ago. This time was more "slightly off" but when I saw what caused it, I felt horrible for him.

Overall, he is happier, healthier (better weight), and curiously, more affectionate than he's been in the year or so I've had him back. So he can't feel too awful. But I want him to feel GOOD.

[Syrah]

Syrah, I can ask for more frequent, but she (farrier) said his angles look good and the growth was fine. In the winter, she says horses here usually need reshod every 8-10 weeks.

Take a photo for us. But I would run screaming from a farrier who said this.

[luxuria]

Syrah, I can ask for more frequent, but she (farrier) said his angles look good and the growth was fine. In the winter, she says horses here usually need reshod every 8-10 weeks.

Take a photo for us. But I would run screaming from a farrier who said this.

Urm....every farrier I've ever known says either:
- 6-8 weeks
- 6-8 in summer and 8-10 in winter

I've never heard anything else.

Maybe it's regional or due to ground differences?

What is customary where you live?

[Quelah]

lux, I'm in Ca, and all my horses (TBs, drafts, whatever) get shod every 6 weeks. No way could my TBs go beyond that. I think Sundance told you he needs to be done at 6 weeks. The 8-10 weeks mentality is generally that of the "cold banger ranch horse shoers" as my friend calls them. A healthy horse with a good diet actually makes their own biotin. Long term feeding of biotin will actually supress a horse's ability to make their own.

If you like this farrier, and are happy with her work, simply tell her you want the horse done at 6 weeks.

[Syrah]

lux, I've had horses on both coasts and in the midwest. Not regional.

6-8 weeks is what a lot of old time farriers will say. Most good farriers don't go that long. 6 weeks is the longest a good farrier will go for the average horse. My TB used to be done ever 4 weeks.

[Songs Mom]

Another vote for Keratex.

luxuria - DO NOT FIRE YOUR SHOER just because he feels that resets can go beyond 6 weeks. If the shoes are tight and there is minimal hoof growth, why pull the shoes and add extra nail holes and possible entrances for disease - you have him shoeing your horse because THIS IS WHAT HE IS TRAINED TO DO.

Current OTTB that I have had for 11 years (16H built like a WB) needs shoes year round. This summer for the first time in those 11 years, he needed to be reset every 5 weeks because the shoes would be falling off. So we changed his schedule. Now, we are on a six week schedule for probably one more reset (end of December) and will go to a 8-10 week reset unless I see his feet need attention sooner. Talk with your farrier and discuss your options. BTW, my gelding came off the track at age 6 with abscesses in ALL FOUR FEET!

If you feel your horse may benefit from pads due to thin soles - maybe he can get away with rim pads. Lift the sole a little further off the ground but not completely cover the sole.

Should you decide to do the iodine for his soles DO SOMETHING TO PROTECT HIS CORONARY BAND FROM THE IODINE. When you are holding up his foot to paint the sole, the iodine can run down the outside of the hoof and irritate the coronary band.

Again, there are not set rules on when your horse has to be reset. Only his hoof growth and exercise routine will dictate his resets. IMHO

[sunchaser116589]

Should you decide to do the iodine for his soles DO SOMETHING TO PROTECT HIS CORONARY BAND FROM THE IODINE.

Um, what? How can the iodine flow upwards to the band if you're holding the hoof up and painting the sole? And why are we painting in the first place? Just use a spray bottle. Two squirts and you're good on each hoof. No need to waste all that iodine by painting.

Quelah: If you're still watching this thread, can you pm me with more info on the biotin thing please? My mare has been on and off biotin supplements for a couple years and whenever I take her off it, with in a few months (after the good growth grows out) she has crappy hooves again.[/quote]

[BBBrown]

Keratex (www.keratex.net) is the best hoof hardener IMO. I like the gel Keratex best.

We have not had abscesses since we started using acrylic shoes. They stay on and he moves great. "Knock on wood", he has been good , with NO problems for about 3 years.

[jm]

FWIW - I tried to take my old TB barefoot. He really struggled for 5 months and I broke down and put his fronts back on with PADS! His soles are now really hard and thick.

FWIW - I am on a 4 week schedule because I have 2 mares that are upright in one front. So everybody gets done at 4 weeks. Sometimes in the wqinter - I can squeek out 5 weeks. The TB used to be fine on a 6 week schedule as well as the pony, but "girls rule" so they all get done at 4.

If the clinches are starting to get loose, then they need to be done. If clinches are still nice and tight - you may get by with 6-8 weeks - all depnds on how much foot they put on. I think because I live where it is always wet and humid - the feet tend to grow a bit faster. You are in a very dry climate and therefore maybe they don;t put on foot like horses in wetter/humid climes.

One of the BEST things I have found to promote REALLY FAST growth is spirulina. EVERYTIME I feed it - their hooves grow like weeds. I feed it for a week about every 4 weeks or so. It is a super powerful anti-oxidant loaded with super nutrients. GREAT stuff and it will enhance every aspect of his body from immune, skin, digestion to feet.

[Casimira]

My mare has been on and off biotin supplements for a couple years and whenever I take her off it, with in a few months (after the good growth grows out) she has crappy hooves again.

I'm not Quelah, but that is the reality of biotin supplementation. According to any research I've read, poor quality hooves that respond to biotin supplementation are not due to biotin deficiency (but it still works!) And many note the same thing that you did - once off biotin, the hoof reverts back to the less robust state. Just keep your mare on the supps!

[backyarder]

I don't think your farrier is wrong in resetting infrequently.Horses should not be shod by the calendar in my opinion, they need to be done when they need to be done..whether it's 6 weks or 10 weeks...mine vary , depending on weather, growth,work load....

[Cold Spring Farm]

Good lord, I probably sound as if I own this company, the way I am pushing this product....buuuut.....

I just used Podi C1O2 for an abscess (and am keeping the Podi Green, which is a C1O2 gel, in the crack from the coronary band blowout of said abscess) with terrific results.

Here's the link with more info....

http://www.stonemfg.net/clo2.htm

If you really have some abscesses going on, you might want to fumigate the hoof with this stuff, which is a two part solution that creates a chlorine dioxide gas. I did it for two days in a row when an abscess was "re-brewing" in my guys hoof, and it was amazing.

If the horse has soft hooves, there is definitely opportunity for microbes to take hold in the hoof capsule. Kill them off with the chlorine dioxide and then use keratex to harden the hoof.

I also have my guy on Smart Hoof from Smart Pak. He has great feet, abscess was secondary to an injury and I just want to get the crack grown out ASAP. This is the best hoof supplement I have ever used.

[MZM Farm]

C'mon folks, use some common sense! Each horse is an individual, some may need to be done every 4 weeks, others less often.

I have a great example. My TB gelding has TERRIBLE feet, somewhat crooked, one is clubby and misshapen slightly. He has been so lame after loosing his shoes and walking across a gravel driveway twice as to have an emergency call to the vet from the BO - she thought he foundered, on all four. That bad.

Over the years he has been happily barefoot, needed shoes at times, and at times needed pads as well. Sometimes his hooves grow very slowly and the shoes are good and tight at 10+weeks, sometimes we go through a spell he rips them off every 3weeks, grows his hooves fast and the shoes are "done" after 5wks.

I have had the same farrier for the past 15 yrs through all the changes in this particular horse and you know what?! He is sound and going at 22yrs, despite his quirky feet.

It is fine to give your opinion, but to tell someone you do not know to fire their farrier, is over the top, IMO.