My horses have been standing in mud lately and I'm afraid that they might have hoof rot, how do i treat it?

Question

i just need to know this before it is to late. i was cleaning their hoves and i couldn't help but notice that there was some white pouder stuff and it didn't smell to great. i just need to know if there is a home remiede or if it is just something else if it is what do YOU think it is?

Answer 1

This sounds like the beginnings of some fungus going on down there. The best thing to use is iodine. It will harden the hooves up as well as keep them from getting hoof rot. If you suspect that your horse already has hoof rot then you should use some of the bacterial stuff you can buy for hoof rot. After treating that then use iodine.



As long as it's muddy, you should put iodine on there to prevent problems in the future. This really helped one of my horses and I hope the mud dries up soon (I know what you're going through!).

Answer 2

The white stuff you are seeing is Thrush or Hoof Rot. It can be treated with a solution of 50% Bleach (the kind you use in your laundry) and 50% Hot water. Mix fresh each day in a spray bottle and after cleaning your horses hoofs, spray mixture on "V" part under hoofs. Make sure not to over-spray onto frog or skin. Keep horse on dry ground for about 30 minutes. Must be done daily for 5 to 7 days, if possible 2x a day, with fresh solution! Hopefully the mud will be gone with the good weather coming!

Answer 3

I don't think a horse gets actual hoof rot, but they certain can get thrush or other fungus to their hooves if wet or muddy too often.

I think you need to talk to your local vet before trying to self treat the problem. He can give you advice on what to use by your description of the problem. As you've probably noticed, people have many different remedies, but unless they've actually seen your horse's problem for themselves they're just guessing what to do! The treatment for trush is not the same as the treatment for other fungus.

Obviously getting your horses out of the mud is the first thing to try to do. If some of their pen is dry, but they still prefer the muddy spots you may want to use portable electric fencing or something to keep them out of that area for a while. Do your best to clean their hooves several times a day, and if you can even wash their legs and then pat them dry can help prevent another common problem caused by mud - grease heel!

Answer 4

First, get them out of the mud and into a dry enviornment, if you can. Make sure that you clean their hooves daily, and I would use something like Kopertox or Thrush Buster on them. I would NOT use hydrogen peroxide, the way one of the other respondents suggests, for this reason: it is very drying to the skin and it is a major counter irritant, and it can cause infections on its own. I would also take care to disinfect my hoof picks in a bleach solution after use ( bleach kills the thrush fungus) and to use a different pick for each horse to avoid spreading the infection around. Iodine works fairly well to treat this problem, but it's very drying to the hoof and it can lead to cracking with long term usage. Hope this helps.

Answer 5

You have several options here. Call your vet and/or farrier, describe what is wrong with your horse over they phone, they they can decided whether or not they need to come out. A call is free. It won't cost you a thing. Your other option would be to call your local horse rescue and tell them you have a horse you can no longer care for (let alone care about). They can come pick him up, they'll have a vet farrier do what needs to be done for him, and you'll save a ton of money every month since you would no longer have to pay for feed, hay, dewormer, the farrier, vaccinations, etc. Then since you're tight on money, you won't be anymore. Your third option would be to get a deer rifle or similar and shoot him in the head. If you go this route, an adult would need to do it so you personally wouldn't be able to but that's no big deal. I personally think option 2 is your best bet. Most "stubborn old horses" are in pain somewhere which causes people to think they're stubborn when really they are just hurting. At 20 he's most likely hurting somewhere. I'd bet my bank account that he's got some sort of arthritis somewhere and since it's cold it's bothering it. You're probably 12 so I won't be terribly rude to you since you just don't know, but your mother needs a slap upside the head for animal cruelty. It is illegal to deny an animal vet care and you can end up paying several thousand dollars in fines and go to jail for it since it's considered neglect and cruelty to animals. Be lucky none of us are willing to have someone trace your IP address to find out who you are or we'd have the police and a horse rescue on your property by the end of the week. So call the vet and/or farrier FOR FREE or give your horse away to a rescue. If you do neither, it shows that you don't care about your horse. And for future reference, part of owning a horse is paying for the vet in emergencies. If you can't afford a vet, you can't afford a horse. Period.

Answer 6

they sell products to treat thrush and fungus... just make sure you know which one your horse has. thrush treatment on fungus hooves will only make them worse! and dont get the products made to treat both... they have never worked for me.



Difference between fungus and thrush: If you swipe a hoofpick deep into fungus-infected tissue, it will smell "cheesy" like a yeast (Candida) infection. The back half of the frog peels off in deep layers, and the frog never becomes a wide, healthy triangle. The diseased tissue may be light gray in color; healthy frog is medium gray.

By comparison, thrush has a nasty, rotten smell, the tissue is black and slimy, and it tends to begin along the collateral grooves. Thrush is another wet-season problem.



if it's fungus, i've always had sucess with extra-strength Fungidye. also if you're willing to pay the extra expense, i'd suggest using Clean Trax from www.centaurforge.com (click on Hoof Care/Repair, then click Hoof Medications).



if it's thrush, i suggest Thrush-buster, but there are several other good products out there as well.

Answer 7

Im not sure what reason you have for having your horses in the mud because there is truely no reason why everyone doesn't have a sacrifce area with gravel or sand, but they probably have thrush and you can get medicine at any feed store. Then get them out of the mud!

Answer 8

Honestly...take the horse out of the mud. It leads to hoof ailments, yes, but he can pull a muscle or tendon from slipping.



You can get anti-fungus and hoof rot ointments/treatments through statelinetack.com or doversaddlery.com

Answer 9

my horse had the same thing... it turned out to be thrush...*she wasnt standing in mud... but in the ring she would go through it* ... my vet said to clean the hoof out with a very thin hoof pick and then apply coppertox to it....



it was white and kind of powdery and it smelled realllly badddddddd.... really bad..

* use gloves *





*be careful with handeling thrush it is also known as hoof and mouth disease i received it at age 9 and it hurt a lot... so be careful...and the meds tasted terrible... *when you receive it in the mouth you get blisters all down your throat and it is hard to eat anything... i ate a lot of ice cream milkshakes and smoothies and grew very skinny... it hurt alot**

Answer 10

Kopertox is an excellent thrush fighter.. as well as "durasole", kopertox is extremely smelly and will stain anything you get it on. But it's less expensive and faster working that durasole. Durasole is more expensive, but you use less and it doesn't stain or smell.



Try and keep your horses out of the mud, but if you can't, keep their hooves well picked and also I would put Vasaline on the outside and even inside, to keep them from getting too saturated and keep them also from drying out. It works well for baths as well, I always put vasaline on the inside and outside of the hoof before I wash down my horse (or I put a thick layer of "rain maker" and let it soak in for about 5 mintues before I wash them down), this way the water doesn't soak into their hooves. It will soften and eventually crack the hooves once it dries back out.

Answer 11

If it smalls bad and is soft, it is more than likely Thrush.

There is many products to treat. I like using Copper _ Tocks on the sole and Tough Stuff on the out-side (wall). if a real problem wrap his hoof with Duck tape after applying both.

Best bet is to keep him out of the mud.

Answer 12

I've tried motor oil, clorox bleach and Tea Tree Oil. It is tough to get rid of the thrush. But my horse is old and has had it a long time.The tea tree oil probably the most successful if use it everyday for a couple weeks. Good Luck.

Answer 13

thrush buster will fix that,



try turning them out in the hottest part of the day, when its likley to be less muddy



becaue if your horse is anything like mine, leaving him inside is not an option.



also when you bring him in, pick his feet right away, so that nothing gets left in there.



pads of his feet alonw with his shoes, might be a good idea for next time he gets his feet done, it makes hoof care alot easier.



just some sugestions,

hope you fine something =]

Answer 14

Get them out of the mud. If they have a nasty smell and white gunk in their hooves, they have thrush. Try thrush buster, it's great you can probably get it from you local tack shop, or order it online. It's purple and it stains clothes, so wear old clothes when you use it.

Answer 15

Get him out of the mud and get some hoof treatment. something for thrush.

Answer 16

why are ur horses standing in mud? how long were you aware of it? would you like to stand in mud all day? watch animal planet, those people get fined, arrested & loose their animals for such cruelty. horses are clean affecitionate pets that only want to please you any way they can so please be kind to them & get them out of the mud. i'm not even a horse person, never owned one but have ridden them. i'm a cat person but i know it's wrong to let animals stand in mud. is there a dry place they can go to get out of it, a barn perhaps? i wish i had the room for a horse, id love to have one or two, they're such majestic animals & have the pleasing personality of a puppy dog. ur so fortunate to have the room for them, please take care of them

Answer 17

hydrogen peroxide works well and it cheap and easy to find

Answer 18

call your farrier