Hoof abscess repeats

[horsegalriding]

My horse had an abscess in the left hind, at the toe, back in April. Vet pulled the shoe, and it started dripping out. He opened up the channel, flushed it, and wrapped it. He was fine until about two weeks ago (we're in Dec now). The abscess was back in the exact same location. Pulled the shoe, soaked foot, inserted antibiotic, etc. for a week. Put shoe back on. Started riding. Today, the foot was a little warm to the touch. How common is this? What else can be done to get rid of this abscess once and for all?

[EventerAJ]

My mare had a similar problem a year or so ago-- abscess in the LH toe. I soaked it, it popped and drained, she was sound and life was good. But, sand or dirt worked its way back in there and the infection started all over again. I learned (the hard way) that it is VERY important to keep the hole clean and prevent stuff from getting back in there. Keep the foot wrapped for as long as you can, longer than you think is necessary. Flush the tract out daily (or twice daily) with a syringe of iodine. Use Cleantrax at the first sign of re-infection. I like to squirt an antibiotic, Cefa-dri, up in the hole and then pack it in with cotton or Magic Cushion. The Cefa-dri comes in a syringe with long, thin tip that is perfect for blasting the deep inner crevices. It works for punctures and other anaerobic infections, so I tried it on abscesses and had great success. :)

Ultimately, the foot needs to grow back (or grow out) to fill in the hole and resist reinfection. This can take weeks or months. As long as you can keep it clean, the horse can be turned out and ridden.

If the shoe covers the drainage hole, this could be both good and bad. My farrier cut away a bit of the toe in that area, so the location was still accessible to flush with the shoe on. As it grows out, you can eventually pack the hole with cotton or something to "seal it" beneath the shoe and prevent grit from entering.