Mary Allen
It swells up, festers, and puts the horse out of action: the hoof ulcer. Many riders can tell a thing or two about this sometimes long-term disease and often don’t even know where it comes from.
It starts from one day to the next. Suddenly the steed becomes lame and one of its legs swells. The vet diagnoses a hoof ulcer. It is treated and heals again. But happy too soon. The next one follows a few weeks later, then another and finally, the horse has several hoof ulcers within a few months. It has never had any problems with its hooves. An isolated case? No. If you browse the internet forums and talk to riders, this development is more common than you think. Why?
On the one hand, attitude is very important, says Michael Muller. The Swiss farrier works closely with animal hospitals and knows that, for example, an otherwise practical open stable can become a real problem in rainy times, even if the stable itself is dry. Since the horse has permanent access to the pasture, it often stands in the rain. The moisture moves into the hooves and softens them. And it is possible that the horse was recently ill, received medication, or a news feed that is too nutrient-poor.
Don’t Play It Down
All of this can lead to reduced hoof quality. If you then ride over stony dirt roads, it can happen quickly: A stone bores into the sodden hoof presses on the sole, and causes an abscess, a pus-filled cavity between the hoof horn and the hoof corium.
A hoof ulcer is not to be confused with laminitis, which can be fatal but should not be taken lightly. It is an inflammation that leads to suppurating abscesses and is the most common cause of lameness in our horses. It can be recognized by the fact that the diseased hoof is warm and swollen and the animals suddenly limp. They relieve the affected leg by introducing it because the pressure from the pus on the sensitive corium of the hoof is very painful. In severe cases, one speaks of a deep hoof ulcer. The inflammation penetrates the deeper layers of the corium of the hoof and can thus also strain the coffin bone and the coffin joint – recognizable by the often yellowish instead of gray pus.
Diagnosis is Usually Easy
It can affect any type of horse, young or old, competition professionals or leisure horses. Despite the frequency of this disease, its cause is often a mystery, so it usually remains with purely symptomatic treatment. “There is relatively little research and scientific evidence about hooves. Everything to do with hooves is very complex,” says Muller. In most cases, the culprits are objects such as stones or nails that penetrate the hoof.
But several other diseases can be considered as triggers. These include bruises, ball or crown seam injuries, horn cracks or gaps, and also the frightening deer. The latter is usually followed by coffin bone rotation, resulting in a sensitive sole. Since the quality of the horn usually decreases, the walls become brittle and promote the development of a hoof ulcer.
As difficult as the search for the cause may be, the diagnosis itself is usually easier. On the one hand, as mentioned, the hoof is warmer than usual and, on the other hand, the animal’s pulse increases due to the increased blood circulation. Using a pair of hoof forceps, the vet can squeeze the hoof to determine where it hurts. If the result is still unclear, an X-ray can provide information or at least rule out a fracture or something similar. If that is too expensive for you, you can also put on a damp hoof bandage to get the abscess to mature.
If everything points to an ulcer, in the end, it is a matter of letting the pus drain out. This is done by slicing open the hoof until a healthy horn is found. This is the only way to ensure that the bacteria do not continue to eat away. An improvement can be seen after just a few days, the bandage can be removed and after about a month the horse should be fully operational again. Unless, as in the case described above, it is damp and rainy for several weeks. Then the healing can be delayed for some time.
Shoes Can Also Have Negative Effects
But what can you do if the vet doesn’t have time right away? Then it is usually best to put a sweat pack on the hoof first. To do this, wrap a damp cloth around the hoof, put a plastic bag over it, and bandage the whole thing. Sauerkraut and soapy water wraps are also known as home recipes. For prevention, some horses are equipped with shoes. However, since every horse has a different hoof shape and gait and every shoe has different properties, this could also have negative consequences in the worst case, warns Muller. Attention must be paid to roll-off points, angles, and much more to avoid misalignments. “We don’t have x-ray vision. We don’t see what the shoe does,” says the blacksmith.