[Blue Smoke]

My trimmer recently suggested I try to soak my horses' hooves since TB (soaking cotton balls with it and stuffing into CS and collateral grooves) and scrubbing with dawn is no longer controlling his thrush. She recommended soaking with CleanTrax, White Lightning, or something of the sort for at least an hour 3 times a week for a few weeks to begin with to really get deep down and evict it. Topical No Thrush between. I just looked at prices of soaking boots and they were outrageous for only a single boot. Has anyone made their own soaking apparatus? If so what did you use? Good or bad experiences with any treatment? Better luck with topical treatments only or is soaking like this truly more beneficial? Anyone soak using a diaper and duct tape for thrush?

He has recurring central sulcis infection. It gets better, then he sheds frog tissue, and it is back in no time, almost like its hiding under his frog and causing it to slough off at the heel, but all looks good at surface level for a time, if that makes any sense. He is also having issues with abscessing, never through hoof wall, but blowing through the softer heel/frog area. He is sensitive on hard surfaces, definitely from frog pain, and I'm having a hell of a time trying to build his frog up because of this on harder surfaces.

Thanks for your time

[Simkie]

There's really a lot of discussion around this in this recent thread:

http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/sh...h-update-*help

I would start there

[reay6790]

Agree with the above poster-

I do have a clubbed hoof horse and I have found that inserting Tomorrow into his heel crevice (where the deep sulcus thrush is) and spraying the underside of the hoof with Zephyr's Garden works quite well.

[Blue Smoke]

Thank you, I will go check out that other thread. I guess I should've looked better before posting.

Never heard of Tomorrow, I will also go look that up.

[mlb722]

I used old IV fluid bags from an equine vet as soaking boots, with duct tape. It worked pretty well.

I've dealt with deep sulcus thrush with my mare for years. She had some big issues from bad trimming and shoeing previous to me owning her. I used white lightining soaks. IME it will not truly go away until the trim is right and everything grows out.

I also spray twice daily with an apple cider vinegar and tea tree oil mixture I make myself. It's very cheap and effective.

[pony baloney]

Get a bottle of this: http://www.spectrasan.com/spectrasan...nt-information

In the past I soaked with Clean Trax and hated every second of it. My current trimmer recommends this (same exact stuff as the pricey spray KC LaPierre sells with his own label) and it works. It's odorless, doesn't sting or stain and easy to use. I just clean his hooves and spray it on. It got rid of his mild WLD, which needed soaking in the past and he hasn't had thrush since using this.

Handy stuff to have around during flu and cold season too.

[Blue Smoke]

Yeah we are working on the trimming, he has contracted heels and had long flared toes from bad shoeing practices, so that doesn't help the matter any. His toes have come back much and his angles are becoming more upright every trim, I am pleased with his progress in that department, I just need to kick this thrush out of his frogs so that can improve.

Good call with IV fluid bags. will they just give you used ones?

[Tom Bloomer]

Got any photos of the bottom of your horse's feet?

[Blue Smoke]

I have have some from November, I will post them when I have more time later. I can take some recent ones when I go out to do chores tonight.

[Blue Smoke]

Wasn't able to take pictures tonight, but I have ones from the end of November. He is on a 4 week trim cycle.

RF
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...48D625F2CA.jpg

RF
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...48E9F45F8F.jpg

LF
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...4921AF4EBC.jpg

LF
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...4C04DF18C5.jpg

[PNW AMTS Dealer]

I would hit those with a good White Lightening soak followed by maintenance with no Thrush dry powder treatment. I have a miniature with contracted heels, deep sulcus thrush and white line seperation at the toes. I had been treating them for a year with Thrush buster, Tomorrow, ACV and Tea tree oil. These things barely helped. The vets diagnosis was that he was club footed since he would not load the heels. I did the WL soak twice in a month and it made nearly miraculous changes. He was able to load the heels, we have gradually brought his angles down, they have decontracted, and he no longer looks club footed. The WL treatment is worth the time & money IMO. I just got the WL gel and will be using it next to see if it is easier and works as well.

[Trinity3205]

IMO his heels are being left quite high. Lower them and get the frog engaged with the ground better.

[Tom Bloomer]

Wasn't able to take pictures tonight, but I have ones from the end of November. He is on a 4 week trim cycle.

RF
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...48D625F2CA.jpg

RF
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...48E9F45F8F.jpg

LF
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...4921AF4EBC.jpg

LF
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...4C04DF18C5.jpg

Those heels appear to be 3/8" to 1/2" longer that I would leave them and they are also slightly sheared indicating issues with M/L ground plane orientation - which puts all of the soft tissues in the back of the foot under constant shear stress during the stance phase of every stride.

Fix the mechanical problem and the thrush will go away on it's own.

[Blue Smoke]

I will definitely be having these issues addressed. Thank you very much!