What is an abscess?

A hoof abscess is the most common cause of lameness that hoofcare specialists find. An abscess is the removal of necrotic tissue. When the circulation first returns to a damaged area, i.e. the corium tissue destroyed due to the coffin bone sitting on the sole, the blood vessels widen and inflammation results. Dead cells are decomposed and their building materials are reused. White blood cells migrate in and treat the dead tissue as a foreign body by encapsulating it and then dissolving it into pus. The resultant collection of pus, while it is inside the body, is very painful (there is no space for it), but it is normally not infectious. The pus has protein-dissolving properties which will find their way out of the hoof capsule and drain (normally where the hard and soft horn meet). It can take about a week for the first symptoms of warmth, swelling and pain or lameness to occur. Lameness can be so severe that an owner can think the horse has broken or torn something due to the horse limping on three legs. Weight loss can also occur due to the pain. An abscess can also be reabsorbed and on trimming you can find a black cavity. 
 
Here at EQHC, we believe that there are two types of abscesses.

Internal (Most Common) 
Caused by incorrect lever forces of the hoof capsule pinching on internal tissues. 

External
Caused by environmental bacteria entering into the hoof capsule via the lamina corium. 

Whether an abscess is internal or external, prevention and treatment is still the same. 

Our abscess test

We do the following test to identify if your horse has an abscess:
  • ​Do a physical assessment of your horse and check for cuts or other injuries.
  • Identify which leg is lame, i.e. limping 
  • Walk your horse for 10-15 minutes in a straight line; your horse will be lame at first but improve with movement. This happens because a pinching pain is no longer in one area.
  • Stop and park your horse up and let it eat grass for 10-15 minutes. This will cause the pain to go back into one spot.
  • Walk your horse again in a straight line and if your horse is still as lame as the first time you walked it, this is a common sign of an abscess. 

Abscess Treatment

  • ​Clean your horse's hooves regularly.
  • Have them trimmed by a Holistic Hoofcare Professional.
  • Soak the hooves twice a day in a soaking boot filled with a mixture of water and apple cider vinegar.
  • Walk your horse in a straight line 2-3 times a day if possible and for as long as your horse can endure it.
  • Increase your horse's food intake.
  • Treat pain with homeopathies. Refrain from using conventional painkillers because this can reduce the pain too much that the horse can over do movements and can result in a different injury. 
  • ​Allow time for all the dead tissue to make its way out where it needs to. This can take anywhere from 3 days to 4 months.
  • Don't prematurely pop the abscess by digging into the hoof capsule trying to find the abscess. You just expose other parts of the horn that will have to heal too.