Melted Mothball Hoof Remedy?

[nkgooch66]

Hey all! I had a new farrier (AFA Certified) trim my horses today and he suggested melting a couple of mothballs and pouring the waxy melted substance directly on my TB's sole as a remedy to toughen/strengthen the sole since her's are thin in the front. He swears by this "home" remedy, but before I consider it I am curious if anyone has heard of this before (because I had not) and if anyone has ever tried it and to what success? Appreciate your insight and experiences.

[Simkie]

Um, did you not see the episode of House where the cat died and the kid nearly died of naphthalene posioning?

Why on earth would you use something SO toxic when there are so many better options that aren't going to kill you?

[sublimequine]

Um, did you not see the episode of House where the cat died and the kid nearly died of naphthalene posioning?

Why on earth would you use something SO toxic when there are so many better options that aren't going to kill you?

Alright, wipe the foam from your mouth and calm down. :lol:

I've heard of this before, kind of the "old timer's" remedy for sore feet before we came out with MUCH BETTER products. :yes:

OP, if you want to help your horse's soles toughen up, I highly suggest Durasole, or Venice Turpentine. I use Durasole on my mare, and it works wonderfully. A bottle is not real expensive, and lasts a longgggggg time. It was designed by Tom Stovall, who I believe is also a CJF, and posts on this board.:)

Venice Turpentine also works, but in my own humble experiences, not as well. It's cheaper, but you have to use quite a bit more of it, so it really isn't more cost-efficient. It's also messy as all get out. :lol:

[nkgooch66]

I've heard of this before, kind of the "old timer's" remedy for sore feet before we came out with MUCH BETTER products.

OP, if you want to help your horse's soles toughen up, I highly suggest Durasole, or Venice Turpentine.

Thanks Sublimequine, I will check out Durasole...I appreciate knowing someone else had at least heard of this before, since in the 26 years of owning horses I had never heard of it.

[sublimequine]

Thanks Sublimequine, I will check out Durasole...I appreciate knowing someone else had at least heard of this before, since in the 26 years of owning horses I had never heard of it.

I've never actually SEEN anyone do it, but I've heard of it being done at the tracks longgggg ago. Probably well before my time. :winkgrin:

Anyways, Durasole is awesome. It seriously kept my mare out of shoes, because she was suddenly not tender-footed on gravel! :yes:

[caballus]

Better than any topicals is to walk your horse DAILY for at least 10 mins down a tarred road or driveway. That'll toughen up the hooves in no time.

[BornToRide]

:confused:Do those certified farriers not keep up with latest development when it comes to hoof care??!Are they not obligated to??!

I would not touch this recommendation with a ten foot pole, because it is very toxic!

[tikihorse2]

Not to mention, can you imagine the smell when you melted mothballs? EWW!!! :dead:

Kim

[Tom Stovall]

BornToRide in gray

Do those certified farriers not keep up with latest development when it comes to hoof care??!

Most of us try to keep up with the latest scientific developments, but few of us are into touchy-feely junkscience. (Aromatherapy and homeopathy need not apply) On a personal level, like most conscientious farriers, I try to keep up. Sometimes, I even teach; in fact, last month, I was privileged to assist Steve O'Grady, DVM, and Jason Maki, CJF, in teaching a hands-on wet lab at Texas A&M's vet school.

No disrespect intended, but when was the last time you were asked to teach a wet lab at your state's vet school? My hat size increased exponentially when I got the call because these folks are the heavy hitters and I am in awe of their knowledge and talent. I probably learned more than the students. :)

Are they not obligated to??!

There's no legislative mandate for certification in the United States. No one is obligated to stand for the meaningful tests sponsored by the AFA, GPF or JHU, or even the less meaningful test of the GPFA. Those of us who are successful in testing tend to keep up and the vast majority of us who are successful at passing the various certification tests consider them to be a starting place, not a stopping place.

Does the lunatic fringe do things differently?

I would not touch this recommendation with a ten foot pole, because it is very toxic!

I appreciate the endorsement! If you don't like it, chances are, it's got to be good because your ignorance of fixatives appears to rival that of your ignorance of trimming and shoeing. :)

[sublimequine]

BornToRide in gray

Do those certified farriers not keep up with latest development when it comes to hoof care??!

Most of us try to keep up with the latest scientific developments, but few of us are into touchy-feely junkscience. (Aromatherapy and homeopathy need not apply) On a personal level, like most conscientious farriers, I try to keep up. Sometimes, I even teach; in fact, last month, I was privileged to assist Steve O'Grady, DVM, and Jason Maki, CJF, in teaching a hands-on wet lab at Texas A&M's vet school.

No disrespect intended, but when was the last time you were asked to teach a wet lab at your state's vet school? My hat size increased exponentially when I got the call because these folks are the heavy hitters and I am in awe of their knowledge and talent. I probably learned more than the students. :)

Are they not obligated to??!

There's no legislative mandate for certification in the United States. No one is obligated to stand for the meaningful tests sponsored by the AFA, GPF or JHU, or even the less meaningful test of the GPFA. Those of us who are successful in testing tend to keep up and the vast majority of us who are successful at passing the various certification tests consider them to be a starting place, not a stopping place.

Does the lunatic fringe do things differently?

I would not touch this recommendation with a ten foot pole, because it is very toxic!

I appreciate the endorsement! If you don't like it, chances are, it's got to be good because your ignorance of fixatives appears to rival that of your ignorance of trimming and shoeing. :)

Tom, since you're in this thread and I mentioned Durasole, I have a question for you. I heard there's new laws against a set amount of iodine in products now, and that Durasole now has lower amounts of iodine in it? Is this true? If so, is it still as effective as the "old stuff"?

This is just a rumor I heard, so forgive me if it's all false. :lol:

[Mary in Area 1]

Actually, not only have I heard of this, I have DONE it.

The first time I was told about this was at Rolex, just after the Sunday jog. A horse I owned had been slightly sore at the jog, and we reluctantly chose to withdraw him. We were very upset, as we were convinced he was only footsore, and so we didn't think he was really "unsound".

One of the FEI vets at the competition came up to me and told me that should this happen again, that we should melt some mothballs and apply it to the hoof. This would effectively provide a topical nerve block to the very bottom of the sole and allow the horse to pass the jog.

Now, this vet warned me that it would only help temporarily and only if the pain was very minor and limited to the bottom surface of the sole. But the vet winked at me and said "I never told you this!"

Several years later, I was at the NAYRC and one of our horses had gotten a lot of sand under her pad on XC and it created a bump that made her sore. We iced the heck out of her feet and it was getting better by the hour. We were SURE it was the sole, so we bought the mothballs, melted them CAREFULLY (they are quite flammable) and applied them to the horse's sole just before the jog. She jogged PERFECTLY!

When the horse was presented, one of the members of the ground jury was the particular vet who had spoken to me at Rolex. As he walked around the horse, he sniffed the air. Our team was standing at the side of the lane and he looked around and saw me and gave me a VERY KNOWING LOOK. I started to quiver, thinking we might be in big trouble---

BUT, the horse passed! And, in fact, her team won a medal!

So, you see, the "old-timers" are not all bullsh!t. It may not be the best way to toughen up soles for long-term soundness, but it works in a pinch! ;)

[Tom Stovall]

sublimequine in gray

Tom, since you're in this thread and I mentioned Durasole, I have a question for you. I heard there's new laws against a set amount of iodine in products now, and that Durasole now has lower amounts of iodine in it?

[Mods, I apologize if you feel this is advertising, but I'm answering a question with this response, I'm not trying to advertise Durasole.]

In order to comply with the DEA regs that went into effect in September, 2008, Durasole has less than 1% titerable iodine in it. Fortunately, the iodine and potassium iodide in Durasole were included for their microbicidal properties, not for their ability to form crosslinks with proteins - they don't do that.

Is this true?

Yes'm, the iodine in Durasole is now a form of iodine called povidone-iodine because the dopers can't use it to make meth. Since it sucks as a marker, we added gentian violet, an extremely effective micorbicidal dye so folks could tell where they'd put it on the hoof. Durasole made since September 2008 will have a decided purple cast.

If so, is it still as effective as the "old stuff"?

We've increased the concentration of fixatives, our in vitro and in vivo tests indicate it's more effective than the old stuff and, most importantly, our feedback has been uniformly positive. Bottom line? The feds made us improve our product.

This is just a rumor I heard, so forgive me if it's all false. :lol:

As the lady said on the first Charley Pride album when she saw that he was black, "It's true, it's true!" :)

[Simkie]

Tom, since you're in this thread and I mentioned Durasole, I have a question for you. I heard there's new laws against a set amount of iodine in products now, and that Durasole now has lower amounts of iodine in it? Is this true? If so, is it still as effective as the "old stuff"?

This is just a rumor I heard, so forgive me if it's all false. :lol:

You haven't bought in a while, have you? ;)

Durasole is now purple and contains no iodine. And is even more effective for the change! Smells kind of weird, though.

[sublimequine]

Tom and Simkie; I told ya a bottle lasts a long time! Goes to show ya when I bought my current bottle. I've still got a 1/4 of a bottle left, too. :lol:

That's fantastic, Tom, that's it's an ever better product now! Once my current bottle runs out, I'll be excited to replace it with the new stuff. :)

EDIT; Mods, don't blame Tom or anything for discussing the Durasole, wasn't trying to advertise, just had a question!

[tikihorse2]

Since I highly doubt I'll be trying this one at home--or the barn--

don't melted mothballs reek??? :confused:

Kim

[JHUshoer20]

Hey all! I had a new farrier (AFA Certified) trim my horses today and he suggested melting a couple of mothballs and pouring the waxy melted substance directly on my TB's sole as a remedy to toughen/strengthen the sole since her's are thin in the front. He swears by this "home" remedy, but before I consider it I am curious if anyone has heard of this before (because I had not) and if anyone has ever tried it and to what success? Appreciate your insight and experiences.
Is sometimes done on racetracks as a hoof freeze. Is not as common anymore because there are other things available now that are easier to do and work just as good.
George

[equusus]

One of the FEI vets at the competition came up to me and told me that should this happen again, that we should melt some mothballs and apply it to the hoof. This would effectively provide a topical nerve block to the very bottom of the sole and allow the horse to pass the jog.

Now, this vet warned me that it would only help temporarily and only if the pain was very minor and limited to the bottom surface of the sole. But the vet winked at me and said "I never told you this!"



What I am wondering is, if there is a bruise and the mothball treatment can "mask" the pain enough to make the horse sound so you can compete, aren't you doing even more damage competing a horse with an active bruise? It isn't being healed, just blocked, so wouldn't you be furthering the damage competing with it? Making it worse?
How was your horse when mothball wore off?

[bird4416]

It has the added benefit of repelling those nasty hoof worms.:)

[equusus]

It has the added benefit of repelling those nasty hoof worms.:)

Don't you mean hoof moths?:lol::lol:

[Mary in Area 1]

The horse I used it on only had to jump ONE stadium round on soft sand footing and then had a vacation (it was the last phase of a CCI** at NAYRC). The horse's foot was properly iced and taken care of after the competition and there were no adverse lasting effects of the naphthalene treatment.

[LisaB]

I'm wondering if durasole and venice turpentine are legal at the fei. Then mothballs would be the only choice. Nice to know Mary!

[mvp]

Wow.

Sounds like moth balls have a purpose in the right time and place. I have been there. It's the last day of a four day-er. You know the footing as been hard so you have done everything right-- legal NSAIDS and dosages, and packed the hooves overnight. You are worried that your sissy of a horse will stop in the Classic because he stings himself landing from one fence. Chances are you're not doing long term damage to ask him to go, but it won't be pretty, either.

So if you wanted to go all mothballs on his a$$, how long does the topical analgesic effect last? Does the chemical test? Does the horse just reek?

You can tell me....I won't betray your secret or my source. Honest....well.... in this case.