My horse has not one but two abcesses on a front foot. After a week of daily soaking and wrapping, with no end in the near future, me and my back are looking for an alternative to vet wrap and duct tape. Horse is still very painful. He’s t/o 24/7 - plenty of gunky mud I can’t keep him totally out of. Looking for a durable, stand-up-to-pasture boot for protection/cleanliness, and it needs to be breathable.
Good luck have spent hours searching for a solid breathable waterproof boots and still haven’t found what I’m looking for. Equine Fusion jogging boots appear to be the best choice, but costly. I too am constantly fighting abcesses and even hoof wall seperation from all the rain here in Florida. I’m sick of the wet conditions and the mosquitos are horrid.
I’ve been using Cavallo boots for the same purpose. I’ve been very happy with them. They are leather, so not waterproof, but they keep some of the moisture off. I’ve been using medicated foot powder in them as well. This is the best option I’ve found.
Someone else on the forums suggested using dry sacks for hoof boots and I’m here to tell you that person is a genius!
A dry sack is something used when camping, boating or at the beach to keep stuff dry. You can find them on Amazon and I think I paid $10 or so for two awhile back. The ones I bought are cylindrical so I just cut them down to a reasonable height removing the closure mechanism. I put the soaking stuff in, put the horse’s foot in and then use vet wrap starting around the pastern and going up to seal it all off. Presto chango, soaking boot.
They are pretty tough, but a shoe nail will wear through eventually but they are cheap compared to “real” soaking boots and last longer than saline bags.
these aren’t really breathable, just thought I’d share the tip anyway.
good luck!
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Thanks, everybody! Good to know!
The Davis soaking boot I found to be an absolute thing of beauty when I had to soak my horse’s hoof everyday for a puncture wound. I had tried the bag method and found it useful only as an emergency measure (YMMV).
The Davis boot made it quite easy to soak the hoof, and it’s easy to rinse out afterwards.
I liked the Davis soaking boot too during this ordeal. I could tend to a lot of other stuff (he also had an eye ulcer) and the boot worked like a charm. Just wish there was something equally simple and effective for the need to keep it clean stage.
