Packing the crevice with medication-soaked cotton is fine, but I’d be reluctant to wrap it. Again, you want air to get to it. This is why you’ll oftentimes find this condition in horses with contracted heels, or deeply underslung heels. If the farrier is shoeing too tight, I’ve found that they’re pre-disposed to this condition. Similarly for horses with no sole, too much bar left, flat footed, squashed frogs… the air just cant’ get in there especially if they’re not moving around which creates a certain amount of movement in the hoof itself.
Of course I don’t mean the hoof capsule is fluttering around… but just like the roots of your teeth, which are fixed, there’s a certain amount of ‘give’ that keeps a horse healthy.
I’ve found the soaks – like Clean Trax – are great for making the hoof appear harder on the outside but if the deep thrush isn’t addressed by medicated cotton packs, it’s like proud flesh. Heals on the outside, but inside you still have a problem.
I like the mastitis treatments for getting in there. You have to drag bits of cotton through the creased many times first to debride the dead tissue and gook before stuffing in the mastitis treatment (Today or Tomorrow, or if your’e old it was Hetacin-K). Keep dragging cotton balls through as deep as you can. When they come up clean, THEN you can insert the medication and either block it with a clean cotton ball, or soak the cotton ball then jam it up in there.
I’ve found these types of thrush to be exceptionally painful as well. Keep your head and face out of the way while doing this, because one swipe a little too deep, and hoss is going to let you know.
Best of luck.