It is often a dramatic sight for owners and riders: from one day to the next, your horse suddenly shows severe lameness. The affected limb is increasingly rested or no longer placed properly on the ground. Occasionally, but not always, the affected hoof feels warmer than the other hooves. It is obvious that your horse is in severe pain and you suspect the worst. However, it is often just a hoof abscess. The colloquial term "hoof abscess" is misleading, as it is not an abscess or tissue growth, but a purulent inflammation in the form of an abscess. In such a case, please call a veterinarian immediately who can examine your animal, confirm any suspicions and treat it immediately.
A hoof abscess develops as a result of a purulent wound infection of the hoof corium caused by bacteria. Various factors can be responsible for the bacteria entering the hoof. A foreign object entering the hoof, kicking against the stall wall, incorrect shoeing, or incorrect weight distribution leading to bruising of the corion can all trigger a hoof abscess. Small cracks form in the horn layer, allowing bacteria to enter the corion and cause inflammation.
Due to the structure of the hoof, especially the hoof capsule surrounding the dermis, any purulent wound secretion cannot drain away and collects between the dermis and the hoof capsule. Large amounts of pus cause high pressure in the hoof, which is extremely painful for the horse. The fluid can spread through the pressure in the hoof and break through to the outside at points of lower horn density, such as the coronet, the ball, or the white line, and drain out. In most cases, however, this opening must first be created by a veterinarian. As soon as the pressure is relieved by the fluid escaping, a significant improvement in lameness can be seen. However, if the abscess does not break through, an untreated hoof abscess can hollow out the entire hoof and, in rare cases, cause the hoof capsule to detach from the hoof corium, resulting in what is known as "hoof loss."
In the early stages of the disease, there are usually no visible signs. Depending on the severity of the hoof abscess, lameness of varying degrees can be observed at a certain point. In some cases, the hoof is only placed on the tip of the hoof or increasingly rested. The hoof may be warm, and in some cases swelling may be visible at the coronet. However, the inflammation in the hoof can also cause the swelling to spread up the entire leg. The increased blood flow caused by the inflammation can be felt as a pulsation in the metatarsal artery (palpable at the back, on the side of the fetlock joint). In very rare cases, the general condition of the animals is also affected.
If you suspect that your horse has a hoof abscess, you should call your veterinarian immediately. The veterinarian will perform a comprehensive lameness examination to rule out hoof diseases with similar symptoms. The veterinarian will remove any horseshoes to gain access to the entire hoof. Using hoof examination pliers, they can then locate the diseased area on the sole of the hoof more precisely. Suspicious areas around the white line are carefully trimmed by the veterinarian until grayish-black pus is discharged. The black color of the pus is caused by the breakdown of already keratinized areas. If thick, yellow pus flows out, it can be assumed that deeper layers of the corium are already affected. Complications of deep hoof corium inflammation can include breaks in the hoof joint or the hoof roll bursa.
If only red blood spots are visible and the horse reacts to the pincer test on the entire sole, this is a non-infectious dermis inflammation, which is accompanied by similar symptoms but without pus accumulation. If nothing of this kind is visible but the symptoms do not improve, further investigations must be carried out, as it may also be a hoof bone, navicular bone, or hoof bone fracture.
If the painful area on the hoof is not clearly visible, it is advisable to apply a warm, moist hoof bandage for 2 to 3 days to allow the abscess to mature. Once the veterinarian has precisely located the affected area using the pincer test, they can carefully cut open the horn at this point to open the abscess. This allows the accumulated pus to drain away, relieving the pressure in the hoof and immediately alleviating most of the horse's pain. The resulting hole and the abscess channel are rinsed and disinfected. Your veterinarian will apply a hoof bandage to protect against reinfection and prevent the exposed corium from becoming exposed. The bandages are changed every 2 to 3 days until the inflammation has subsided and enough horn has been regenerated. Treatment with general anti-inflammatory and antibiotic medication depends on the severity of the condition and is decided on a case-by-case basis by the treating veterinarian.
If the hoof abscess has already drained at the coronet band or the ball itself, disinfecting hoof bandages should still be applied for several days. A known complication that can occur after the abscess breaks through the coronet band is a horn column, a cavity that forms between the hoof dermis and the hoof capsule. A horn column can lead to prolonged lameness and, in the worst case, must be surgically removed.
The best measures to prevent hoof abscesses are optimal husbandry conditions and regular, correct hoof care and trimming. Check your horse's hooves daily for foreign objects and remove dirt and small stones.special attention should be paid to hygiene in horses with poor hoof quality, as cracks can allow bacteria to penetrate more easily. Horses with very thin soles or particular sensitivity may benefit from horseshoes or special hoof boots.
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