I think this too. If the heels aren’t too tall, the sole and bars kept from overgrowing and the frog tidied up regularly then it is more difficult for the thrush to hide out and flourish. Obviously it won’t 100% stop cases, but it will dramatically reduce occurrence and severity.
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Has anyone used Therazure Hoof Clay? I just picked some up today - claims to work as a hoof pack, as a hoof hardener, and to kill thrush/fungus/bacteria.
I use chlorhexidine scrub. I was using betadine scrub on a cut and he didn’t like it. I think it was stinging. The scrub comes from the pharmacy, brand name is Hibiclens. I like it because it is like a lotion, doesn’t run all over the place. I had to get Hibiclens last time. It is red so it is easier to see where it is. I use gauze pads and work to get them into cracks and crevices. My farrier does what he calls flossing. He has a longer thin piece of fabric which he works into the sulcus etc. Then we add the Thrush Buster. I’m not using copper sulfate much because it can damage healthy and healing skin. It can be used for proud flesh also.
There is a quote that gets tossed around some of the podiatry-inclined groups (maybe Ramey said it?):
Hooves shouldn’t have butt cracks.
If you don’t have a deep central sulcus, it’s a lot less likely to develop any sort of thrush problem. If you have a deep central sulcus, thrush problems often enter a self-perpetuating cycle, as the thrush damages the healthy tissue and causes the sulcus to deepen.
Yet some horse people aren’t receptive to this knowledge: they believe a deep sulcus is normal and blame it on the horse’s conformation, genes, etc. These beliefs are held by some of the very people who should have education on this and be able to correct the problem, including farriers and vets.
It’s just one example of how knowledge of hoof pathologies is lacking among even the very people who are supposed to be trained to recognize and correct said problems.
Full disclosure, my horses currently have hoof butt cracks because my great farrier retired and I now have a lesser one. They didn’t have hoof butt cracks before, yet if you diplomatically mention it to the new guy, he goes “that’s just how their hooves are shaped.” I just say this because we are quick online to say, “you need a new farrier,” but a lot of times there aren’t any better options, even when you know better.
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Would high heels contribute to the problem? Seems the foot does not function as it should when the heels get high? Thanks
oh yes, betadine stings! And it’s caustic by nature, so if it HAS to be used (and sometimes it does) a weak tea-looking dilution is usually best.
Yuuuup and so many don’t realize they need to address BOTH issues - the thrush and the trim that likely allowed the thrush to take hold in the first place.
Say NO to butt cracks!
What you see every day becomes normal in your eyes 
And you are right, there are soooo many areas where competent farriers/trimmers simply don’t exist or, if they do, people KNOW they are good and they are booked solid or simply can’t go 25 miles out of their way for a single horse The struggle IS real. It’s why I learned to trim myself, which I fully know isn’t an option for everyone for a variety of reasons. But it IS an option for more people if they would just embrace the idea of learning and some physical work.
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[quote=“JB, post:46, topic:767037, full:true”]. It’s why I learned to trim myself, which I fully know isn’t an option for everyone for a variety of reasons. But it IS an option for more people if they would just embrace the idea of learning and some physical work.
[/quote]
I have wanted to start doing my own so many times. But I start getting serious about it and my old back injury rears it’s ugly head. 
But I think if this was a widely taught skill, all horse people would have a better understanding.
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I know you’ve mentioned that several times - ugh! Can you sit on a mounting block and use a Hoof Jack or anything else with a cradle? I have spondylolisthesis in my lower back, and even despite maintaining a very solid fitness routine, it sometimes just does what it wants, and I have to either kneel, or sit on a mounting block. No, it’s not the safest thing to do, but I’m not dealing with unknown or freaky horses LOL
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Just a friendly reminder to everyone reading not use chlorhexidine on the face ever. It damages eyes. 
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So anecdotes aren’t data but here is my experience of 1 horse
Farrier one: my half ass attempts combined with benign neglect and full time (24/7) turnout on terrain (steep hills, lots of rocky areas but some sticky red clay mud). No butt cracks.
Farrier 2: good professional farrier. Full time turnout, flat but no mud. No butt cracks
Farrier 3: questionable professional farrier. Stall with muddy run overnight and daytime turnout - half in mud. Giant butt cracks develop along with contracted heels.
Farrier 4: excellent professional farrier. Same turnout. Butt cracks begin to shrink. Move barns but keep farrier. Now horse has no mud and no run, but skimpy bedding equals horse standing on urine soaked bedding overnight. Mild butt cracks persist. Move horse home. More turnout. No mud. Mucho bedding. Rocks in parts of turnout. Same farrier still. Butt cracks disappear
Farrier 5: Good professional farrier. Still at home. While I don’t think this farrier trims quite as well, still no butt cracks.
So in my experience, farriers play a role and turnout conditions play a role in the butt crack wars.
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That’s a good idea. It’s not while I’m trimming that’s the problem, it’s the crippling sciatic pain plus lower back arthritis that are both aggravated by the position and start bothering me after the fact. Like, I could trim them, but then wake up the next morning in excruciating pain for the next several days or weeks.
I actually was very inspired to do them myself again this summer, but my back started getting sore and I lost my nerve to continue.
This is all due to a sidesaddle injury of all things.
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Could someone post an example of the buttcrack? 
I’m pretty sure I know what you mean but a visual would be awesome.
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This link has some great pictures:
https://www.equipodiatry.com/news/news-essays/fissure-formation-at-the-base-of-the-frog
Basically, in a healthy hoof, there is never a slit between the bulbs of the heels. There is either no appreciable space at all or the sulcus is wide and shallow and not a crack-like space.
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Yes! I hadn’t heard that saying, but it’s a good one, LOL.
If there is only a shallow crack in the central sulcus it is best to trim this into a more open shape, so that it becomes more of a dip rather than a crack. You can’t do that if the crack is deep, so you can keep it plugged up with a cotton swab and your treatment of choice until it grows and fills in enough to remove the remainder of the crack through trimming.
Ok thanks! This is exactly what I was thinking it was, just wanted to be sure.
I have had good success with a combo of White Lightning soaks and doing a Sugardine pack with a pad/diaper/poultice pad, vet wrap and duct tape to hold it in. You want to mix the Sugardine so it is a sticky paste like consistency. Sugardine is now my go to as we can no longer get any products with gentian violet in them (like Thrush Buster) in Canada.
So you just spray on the Hibiclens and leave it? I was looking at the instructions and they say to rinse it off, but of course those are instructions for human use, not for treating thrush in horses.
I have a horse with a “butt crack” that I want to take a go at and see if I can get rid of it. I have No Thursh powder but I find it a bit difficult to get it into the crack effectively.
I’m not @walktrot, but I use Hibiclens or whatever generic chlorohexidine scrub I pick up. I get a few gauze 4x4s (if you don’t keep a pack of non-sterile gauze 4x4s on hand, you can just cut/rip up a paper towel into similarly sized pieces). I stack them up, put a small squirt of hibiclens on the top 4x4, and wet the stack. You will get some dilute suds throughout all of them. Gently wipe/scrub the area with the first sponge, toss it, and repeat until you have removed any dirt/debris. You don’t need to stuff the gauze down deep in the crack if you can’t easily access the area- that will do more harm than good, just let the suds run into it in their own. I don’t rinse; the chlorohex is dilute enough I don’t find it irritating. Plus the last sponge usually has the least about, so it kind of wipes away any excess bubbles.
I went into more detail than you need, sorry about that.
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Lots of good suggestions in this thread. I’ve heard Hoof Armor can also help on clearing thrush as it has anti microbial properties.
