Abscess or soft tissue in the foot

[ndirish07]

My draft cross, who I affectively refer to as a Sherman Tank, has come up lame in his RF and I’d like to pick the hive mind. 3 weeks ago, he lost the RF right after being shod. He was quite sore. I wrapped for a couple days and then didn’t because I couldn’t get out. Farrier gets the shoe back on a week later (he travels a lot). 48 hrs after the shoe is on horse is perfectly sound WTC. He’s been lightly ridden because this is Kentucky, it hasn’t rained, and the ground is literal concrete and I ride on grass.

So now we’re to Sunday. I took him for a light conditioning mostly Walk Trot and the hill he chose to canter. Midway he took like 5 steps of “are you sound?” and then kept on like nothing was wrong and felt normal. I assumed it’s August/September and he probably just went through some even harder ground. Monday, he’s off on the RF. Vet comes Tuesday. He blocks to the foot. Xrays show some high and low ringbone but is otherwise unremarkable. His farrier got kudos for having the most balanced foot that should be in textbooks. Follow up ultrasound today of what we can ultrasound and same thing— totally normal-- but I’ve been advised to follow up for an MRI. Horse has not responded to any hoof testers, but there’s some heat in the RF today. We pulled the shoe and mashed around with the hoof testers to be sure. Oddly, he walked better at times or at least the same as when he had the shoe. I should add the horse walks better in a straight line and gets sounder the more he walks. He’ll actually walk totally sound. But once he stops and starts up again, the first 5 or so steps are pretty darn lame.

I’m all for diagnostics and to be clear I’ll do whatever he needs, but am I a totally horrible horse owner if I want to wait a week to make sure this isn’t just an abscess or bad stone bruise? I’ve known this horse for 5 years and he’s never, ever taken a lame step in his life. He hunts through trappy terrain like it’s nothing. He’s the soundest horse I’ve ever known. He hit a deep hole at a hand gallop, fell and got up like it was nothing. Now, he left me with my dislocated shoulder and ran back to the barn because it was feed time. #priorities

I’m just having a hard time rectifying what he could have possibly done when he’s only been hacking due to the heat and hard ground. If this was my delicate warmblood I’d be like yeah… he probably needs an MRI. But not this horse. Has anyone else experienced anything like this? I guess I’m just looking for validation on not getting an MRI just to find out its an abscess and if I would have waited a couple days it would have been apparent. Or he’s going to shred some soft tissue in his foot and never be sound again because I waited.

I really need to find another hobby that doesn’t tie my emotional well being to creatures that try to self destruct every day.

TL:DR: Super sound horse. Lost a shoe 3 weeks ago, was off when it happened. Sound after. Lame in the same foot with the lost shoe on Sunday after a ride. Blocks to the foot. Nothing majorly concerning on xray or ultrasound of what can be ultrasounded. We can’t buy rain here and the ground is concrete. I am a crappy owner for waiting to MRI?

Thank you!

[luvmyhackney]

Sounds reasonable to assume a bruise or a tweak somewhere and wait a week or two in my mind.

[TWH_Girl]

@ndirish07

I really need to find another hobby that doesn’t tie my emotional well being to creatures that try to self destruct every day.

Me too!

I think it’s okay to wait as it gives you a chance to assess the situation and see if it changes. However an abscess usually presents as ouchy every step vs something they work out of.

MRI is not the first thing I’d jump too, however, I only have surgical, colic and mortality coverage- not medical. If it seems like a hoof issue than start with X-rays and see where that gets you. It doesn’t sound like an emergency.

Have you given any bute or equioxx? How old is he? Is he shod or barefoot? This summer was wet for the first month and then rock hard since. The forgiving indoor footing is great but who wants to spend all summer in there?

[ndirish07]

He’s older teens. I don’t really know his age. He’s an unregistered draft cross we think is Percheron cross but he is a certified good boy. He’s been shod all around for the years I’ve known him; I’ve owned him for 3 years. We’re lucky to have an amazing farrier. He’s only ridden outside on grass, not in arena footing. This horse hunts on trappy footing and has encountered more crap and has never been off, not even remotely. No bute or other nsaids previously but I gave him 1 gram today.

That’s why I’m having a hard time mentally connecting the dots that he’s just taken a bad step sauntering to his run-in in his field of good footing and he’s done something sinister to his foot. He doesn’t play in the field; my warmblood can’t get him to engage with him despite his best efforts. Not saying it isn’t possible that he’s taken a bad step but candidly that’s my major disconnect here, but I feel like a bad horseman simultaneously. Self doubt is terrible. Horses…

[MapleFarm]

My Percheron cross fractured her coffin bone in my very good footing, very few rocks, pasture. I’m pretty sure she stepped on herself… So you just never know.

[Bonnie2]

Regardless of what’s wrong, he’s going to get a little time off. If he was my horse I’d give him at least a few weeks before the very expensive MRI. Treat it like an abscess, keep it poulticed and see where it goes. Good luck!

[GoodTimes]

I’d hold off on the MRI. And I say that as someone who did an MRI this spring for an on again off again lameness.
I’d give it at least a week or two and reevaluate. If he’s still lame than you could re x-ray, go for an MRI, or stick him on stall rest and see if there’s improvement.

The mare that I sent for the MRI had bone edema in both feet. Mild to moderate LF P3, mild RF P3. A mild focal lesion of the subchondral bone, LF fetlock. Mild irritation of the coffin joint on the RF, likely from off loading the LF. She just finished three months of stall rest, now has shoes and pads and has started going outside for a few hours in small individual turnout. I’ll start slowly riding her again.
She’s seven and while she appears to have good strong feet, that also looked good on x-ray, her short pasterns are doing her a disservice from a concussion standpoint.

[GraceLikeRain]

My understanding is that few horses have a true acute 0 - 100 tear situation. Rather, a micro tear starts and then it slowly becomes worse until it reaches clinical levels.

Fingers crossed you’re just dealing with a bruise or abscess. I don’t think stall rest or small paddock and waiting a week or two is a bad idea.

[ndirish07]

As an update—after talking with my farrier who suggested to treat it like an abscess for a week, I used a poultice pad and Epsom salts and got a massive abscess to drain out his frog! It’s actually starting to open at the top of his heel. All in the area where he blocked!

[AXM]

Oh, such good news! A relief for him and you!

[jvanrens]

Wonderful news! My daughter just went though the same with one of our racehorses. Took about two and a half weeks before it finally blew.

[ndirish07]

Documenting for posterity—my horses both subscribe to the go big or go home mentality. This abscess has blown out in 4 places and is still draining on the other heel bulb. I’m going to ask a priest for holy water to soak it in at this point.

[Bonnie2]

Might be worth an xray to see if there is something in there. That’s a long time to drain. Love the holy water concept! Hope you have a sound horse soon!

[MapleFarm]

I am on week 6 with my mare. She is a heavy horse - 3/4 Friesian, 16.3 and probably 1600lbs.

She got a stone bruise in late August - gave her 2 weeks off, was kind of sore bilaterally, treated with hoof hardener and sore relieving things. Came in sore RF at trot, gave her 1 week off and had the farrier out. She was completely sound the day the farrier came and hoof tested sound.

1 week later she came in NWB on RF and hot hoof. Farrier out, clearly an abscess in toe, to the outside. Did not dig it out, she has thin soles and we didn’t want to cause other issues. Soaked, soaked, soaked, poulticed, etc. Day 3 massive relief and very small opening in toe.

Kept up the soaking and poulticing, lameness back, hole closed. Had vet out to X-ray - no other problems but also no very visible abscess. The vet said it sometimes is that way, it really depends on the specific abscess

8 days later, finally it burst out the top. She is still a little sore so I don’t know what to do except keep on keeping on with treatment.

Notes for anyone else: Hoof Wraps soaking boot is a lifesaver, the Equine Slipper (blue with leather bottom) can be used in turnout and is much easier than duct tape, and acetaminophen worked the best for pain. Fingers crossed we are on the way to being healed… I hate it

[ndirish07]

I think our horses are reading the same book! My guy is also a big boy-- percheron/TB and he got weighed today and is 1,751 pounds. Based on the initial vet work, we knew it blocked to the heel. I think I short circuited the path and initially got a lot of it to blow out the frog… but not all of it. He got about 80% better right after, but I attributed that to the giant hole in his frog that was presumably ouchy. Farrier came out, found where he thought it started in the toe under the shoe and dug it out just to make sure nothing was residual in there. I got some out the heel to drain. Thought it was done and again horse is just sore from it all, which is understandable. And now it’s opened on the other side of the heel. It all clinically correlates to his vet work up, I just wish it wasn’t taking weeks to get to this point. Sending you virtual beer or cheesy nachos (or some other carb of choice) for your suffering!

[PonyApocalypse19]

Is there a specific support group for large horses with abscesses? I would like to join.
I have an 18hh Dutch Warmblood - last weigh in a few years ago was 1740lbs. He’s probably closer to 1800 with the muscle he’s put on.
But yeah 4 weeks ago had a heel abscess on the LH that popped. Was mildly unsound. Then I saw another dot on the other heel same foot - that had just came to head and it was draining. Then the farrier came out and his whole rear of his frog just sloughed off on the LH. Then more drainage back out of the first pocket after the trim. At the same time he was acting unsound on the left front - thought it was another abscess, had swelling in the leg and a digital pulse but couldn’t tell because he has a full pad on that foot. Turned out to be a bruise after we got the pad off. He not 100% but very close. He drives me crazy with all the abscesses - I’m getting him checked with a metabolic panel next week.
I found that bute helps a bit with him specifically to make him more comfortable so he can move and put more weight on the foot which ends up having the abscess find an exit path quicker. He’s funny though, I have wrapped his foot with poultice pads and usually at some point he takes the wrap off which means we’re officially done soaking the foot. He does get more sore if my farrier takes away some hoof after the abscess has popped. Usually takes about a week for the area to toughen up enough for riding in sand.

[MapleFarm]

Oh jeeze, sounds like you need a beer too! I’ve already hit the carbs a couple of times over this I’m tired and she’s tired!!!

@PonyApocalypse19 I think we do need a club; it seems like they are particularly bad on larger horses and harder to get rid of. Good to know they can be more sore after the trim with the abscess - had her trimmed yesterday and was annoyed that she was more sore today. Fingers crossed that will abate some with more time and draining!

[ndirish07]

Are we voting for officer positions in the “The larger the Foot the Larger the Abscess” club? 🫣

[PonyApocalypse19]

I’m so tired of the abscesses! I just want to ride my dang horse! He actually felt really good today and it’s been a week since his last trim/reset. Fingers crossed we’re over the hump and on the mend.
My farrier is really good and he’s used to working on the larger horses. He said that going from dry to wet sometimes causes abscesses to form as the hoof softens with the added moisture. Then they get like a grain of sand or small rock to open up the sole and blam bacteria and abscess. But it’s super frustrating waiting for them to pop and then heal.

[MapleFarm]

I know!! This weather has me itching