Paring Down
The pictures in this post are not for the faint of heart. You've been warned.
My old horse Cupcake has been plagued with hoof abscesses this fall. I thought the last one—the really bad one—was getting better when it actually was getting worse. It had been oozing for a week, I'd been dousing it it with peroxide to get rid of the icky stuff, and I'd had Cupcake on Bute for a few days to kill the pain. I took her off Bute on Sunday evening, and the limping returned.
This morning, the abscess had crusted over, and Cupcake was limping noticeably again. I figured she needed antibiotics and called the vet. He called a bit after noon to say he was on his way. I pulled her out of the far end of the pasture and she followed me down the hill. I was clipping the hair away from her leg, when the vet arrived.
He examined her and decide that the antibiotic would work best if it were injected close to the abscess. He vet-wrapped a tourniquet around her leg, injected her leg, and vet-wrapped the syringe to her leg so the medication would drip down for 20 minutes.
In her younger days, Cupcake wouldn't have let anyone stick a needle in her leg, but she didn't flinch for this procedure. Didn't hurt that I was feeding her carrots at the time, though.
Cupcake has very long hair, so she looks like an alpaca or something here. In the picture below (only mildly gross), you can see how her hoof was trimmed back two weeks ago and how the abscess looks at the coronary band:
What he found when he dug out her hoof was a long wad of dead tissue—about the thickness of a pencil—extending from where the dark hole is to the coronary band. With that icky stuff now gone, Cupcake should soon be on the road to recovery.
Graphic photo warning: In the photo below, you can see the black hole under his thumb. If you draw a line from that to where the abscess popped on her coronary band (visible under his finger) , you'll have an idea how long that wad of dead tissue was.
He packed and bandaged her hoof, and put her Davis boot back on. It'll take six months for the hoof to grow back. In a week or so—when the hoof has dried out—we can fill the hole with silicone caulk or epoxy. She'll have to wear a boot for a while, though.
However, she feels better already.
My old horse Cupcake has been plagued with hoof abscesses this fall. I thought the last one—the really bad one—was getting better when it actually was getting worse. It had been oozing for a week, I'd been dousing it it with peroxide to get rid of the icky stuff, and I'd had Cupcake on Bute for a few days to kill the pain. I took her off Bute on Sunday evening, and the limping returned.
This morning, the abscess had crusted over, and Cupcake was limping noticeably again. I figured she needed antibiotics and called the vet. He called a bit after noon to say he was on his way. I pulled her out of the far end of the pasture and she followed me down the hill. I was clipping the hair away from her leg, when the vet arrived.
He examined her and decide that the antibiotic would work best if it were injected close to the abscess. He vet-wrapped a tourniquet around her leg, injected her leg, and vet-wrapped the syringe to her leg so the medication would drip down for 20 minutes.
In her younger days, Cupcake wouldn't have let anyone stick a needle in her leg, but she didn't flinch for this procedure. Didn't hurt that I was feeding her carrots at the time, though.
Cupcake has very long hair, so she looks like an alpaca or something here. In the picture below (only mildly gross), you can see how her hoof was trimmed back two weeks ago and how the abscess looks at the coronary band:
Meanwhile, he pared the hoof down more so the abscess could drain downward.
What he found when he dug out her hoof was a long wad of dead tissue—about the thickness of a pencil—extending from where the dark hole is to the coronary band. With that icky stuff now gone, Cupcake should soon be on the road to recovery.
Graphic photo warning: In the photo below, you can see the black hole under his thumb. If you draw a line from that to where the abscess popped on her coronary band (visible under his finger) , you'll have an idea how long that wad of dead tissue was.
He packed and bandaged her hoof, and put her Davis boot back on. It'll take six months for the hoof to grow back. In a week or so—when the hoof has dried out—we can fill the hole with silicone caulk or epoxy. She'll have to wear a boot for a while, though.
However, she feels better already.
~
posted by Becky Mushko | 7:38 PM
3 Comments:
Oh gosh... poor baby. Let's hope this does the trick and she heals up. She's lucky to have you for a mom, Becky.
Di
Wow, she has the typical Cushings coat. Poor old girl. You're taking good care of her.
Poor horsey. Good thing she has you for a mom!
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