Today the farrier arrived at 9:30am to do the horses feet. Poor Joe had abscesses in 3 out of 4 feet! The one in his front right was the worst, and when it popped there was a lot of drainage.
The good news is that it brought relief and he was able to walk around normally when John left. Joe is 31 years old, which is very old for a draft horse. John (the farrier) thinks that when they get to this age it is more difficult to fight off infections, so..... Ironically, Victoria, whose blog I read, has been having trouble with abscesses in her horses too...tis the season.
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Lori - Poor Joe! I do think it's partially something in a horse's immune system that causes the abscesses. Both my horses have had Lyme Disease since we moved to New England and the vet recommended Platinum Performance for them. I ordered it on-line and they've been taking it for about a week, so I'll let you know how that goes. The other miracle aid I've learned about is Animalintex. You wet the pads with warm water and use it as a poultice on the hoof. I don't know if they make medicine boots big enough for Joe, but I promise you that he'll feel better in a few hours if you use this stuff. The trick for me is to keep the holes where the abscess drained clean until they totally heal. Thank god for Ichthamol! Good luck - I'm feeling better that I'm not alone with this problem. This seems to be a bad year for abscesses around here. The wet weather, the rocks and stones brought up as the dirt is washed away by the rain, the tender hooves -- it's a major pain in the butt! Sorry to hear Joe is hurting.
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