answersLogoWhite

0

For many years, it was thought that a tiny piece of rock or gravel entered through the bottom of the horses hoof, got lodged in there and caused an abcess. It's now known that is not true. An abcess is nothing more than a pocket of pus (infection) caused by a puncture wound. However, many people still refer to abcesses as "gravel". Often the puncture wound can be so tiny that you cannot see it. Because of what a horse walks on, all hoof wounds are contaminated and often get infections, which causes the abcess. Because these infections usually can't drain out from the sole of the hoof, the pus will travel the path of least resistance, travel up the hoof until it blows out and drains at the coronary band. This can take anywhere from a few days to many weeks. The horse will be in pain, (often severe pain), until this happens. Rather than wait for the abcess to blow out at the coronary band, it is much better if you call your vet or farrier. They can usually locate the abcess with hoof testers and will often pare out the pocket of infection with a hoof knife. (NEVER try this yourself!) This will help the wound to drain and will give your horse some measure of immediate relief by releasing some of the painful pressure the abcess was causing deep inside the hoof. This will also help tremendously in the speed of healing. Once the abcess has been cut out, your vet or farrier will advise you how to clean and care for the wound until it has properly healed.

User Avatar

Wiki User

17y ago

What else can I help you with?

Related Questions

How do you clean horses shoes?

you use the hoof pick to pick the debris out of the hoof and you can rinse the horses hoof out with the hose.


Do horses has divided hoof?

No


What is a Grazing hoof on a horse?

A graze just above a horses hoof.


Are you the horse on hoof it?

well a horses hoof is the same as our toe nail


What is the U shaped part of a hoof?

This is the hoof wall. This is the hardest part of the hoof and it supports the horses weight.


What is flaring in horses?

Flaring in horses refers to the outward expansion of the hoof wall near the toe. It is often a sign of poor hoof care or improper shoeing, which can lead to issues such as lameness or hoof distortion. Addressing the underlying causes, such as correcting the trimming and shoeing, is important to prevent further damage to the hoof.


Why clean a horses hoof?

If mud or manure gets trapped in the contours of a horses hoof, it can start to rot and in turn eat away at the hoof's tissue causing many problems.


What is a horses paw called?

Hoof


What is founder in horses tear in a horses knee lame in the hoof loss of shight in one eye or twist in horse intestine?

it is lame in the hoof


Why do horses have toes?

Horses do not have toes, they have 1 hoof on each leg.


For horses what is a founder?

Founder is a very serious hoof condition in horses. It is sometimes caused by eating too much sweet grass. The inside of the hoof (navicular) begins to deteriorate and if left unattended the hoof could get to a point where it falls off. The hoof becomes deformed if not treated within a certain amount of time and the poor horse is left walking on an uneven, crippled hoof.


Whats the bottom of a horses hoof?

The Frog