Posted by Danvers on April 01, 2003 at 08:49:38:
In Reply to: sole injury posted by kimberli on March 31, 2003 at 20:41:25:
: Hope someone can answer this, my 2 1/2yo QH gelding obviously stepped on a nasty rock, he was lame and leg swollen for 1 day, cleaned out foot, looked couldn't find a thing, took hoof testers to the sole and found he was very sore on the outside quarter of the sole, pared a small bit and found about a 1" crack and some gray fluid came out. I soaked his foot, gave him 25cc of pen., 2 tabs of bute, and put a boot on the foot. The next day swelling was down, and he was not lame. Its been 5 days now and tonite when I went out to check the sole and small piece of the sole in the crack area has peeled off and about a 1/4" of the, I think it may be the corium, is showing. He is still sound, attitude good, no fever, boot still on and still soaking foot. My question is (if I haven't confused anyone yet)shold I keep the boot on until the sole heals up, how long will it take to heal back up and do I seem to be proceeding with a proper treatment? I have vet teched for 10 years and am following the treatment as if it were a sole abcess. Any help or info. appreciated, thanks.
Hi Kimberli,
I'm not a big fan of boots. They tend to create the very kind of anaerobic environment that causes bacterial infections to proliferate (warmth, darkness, moisture). They do, however, help to keep the insulted area clean, and as they're being used in conjunction with a treatment program, they usually work. But I do think it takes a lot longer to promote healing when they're used, and I do think the hoof is generally weaker and more likely to distort or reinfect when they're used for prolonged periods. Basically, the drier you can keep the area, the quicker you'll get restoration of a natural barrier. If there's a pocket that you can pack a cotton ball in (medicated with some tamed iodine such as Betadine or Xenadine), that's your best bet. It'll keep the ick out, promote normal hydration of the hoof, and you'll be looking at a shorter recovery period. Rather than soaking, which will also tend to overly hydrate the hoof, I'm more inclined to use an Animal Lintex poultice.
All that said, if you've got something brewing in that you can't identify and that may be the sole corium, you should probably get the vet out to have a look. If it's proud flesh, it'll need to be cut back and treated; if it's corium, it'll need to have counter pressure applied.
~~Danvers