Dr. Valentine:

My 18yr old clyde had a severe gravel abscess in April, which blew and seemed to be healing. A couple of months ago, she went lame again and a few days later blew another small abscess in approximately the same area. Last week, she has now gone lame again. We have soaked and cleaned the hole that was left from the first abscess and I have packed the gravel opening with gauze. Today, she blew her third abscess just to the left of the previous two(I forget to mention all coronary band blow outs) I have soaked it tonight and packed the hole again at the base of her hoof. Is there anything else that I can do to help her recover. I'm concerened about her hoof wall integrity. It is now approximately over 3-3 1/2 inches compromised across the front of her hoof. Anything else I can do. Could we epoxy the hole in her hoof to stop more gravel abscesses for happening.

Thank you
Karen

My Belgian mare blew a terrible abscess a few years back. It seemed she was lame forever. I packed it with Icthamol drawing salve and it seemed to do the trick. But that poor hoof has been nothing but compromised over the years. She lost about half her hoof and I took her to the Farrier. He did Epoxy the hoof and made her a leather pad for the bottom to keep the gravel out. He did this untill it grew out. But it is still the one that has always stayed weak and thin no matter what. I would try some pads and epoxy if i were you and hope for the best. good luck.

Hoof issues, like gastrointestinal issues, always seem to be more severe when they happen in drafts. You will need the assistance of your veterinarian and farrier here. Given that she is developing repeated hoof infections, I would ask want to check for underlying Equine Cushing's Disease, which will predispose a horse to recurrent infections, and also make sure she is fed a good hoof supplement with plenty of methionine as well as biotin and other hoof-supportive nutrients, to help her to grow more hoof and faster. Good luck with this!