rubs from boots- now using socks, how long to wait for them to heal

[baylady7]

Hello all!
My guy was doing great in his new boots, but yesterday ended up with rubs that were raw. We did some galloping in the ring, but my guess is that the rubs were working their way there and just manifested themselves yesterday (before I had seen dents in the hair). So, I went and bought the “socks” that go with them (they are Cavallo Simple Boots) and hacked at a good walk for 35-40 minutes today. One of the rubs was fine but the other had opened. So I am going to give him some time off from the boots so the rubs heal over.

How long do such things take? Today is WEDS, should they be healed up in a week or so? I am going to probably hack him barefoot on the grass path around the farm this weekend for 30 min each day. Otherwise he will be just on his usual 24x7 turnout until then. My understanding about the socks is that they prevent rubs but if he already has them they cannot help that.

What have your experiences been? Btw, I am oiling the heck out of the leather of the boots to soften them up in the meanwhile.

[PRS]

I have the Old Mac’s and they come with a “gaiter” that slips into the boot and covers the heel area and wraps the pastern with neoprene. I don’t know why they wouldn’t work with cavallos. I’ve never, ever had an issue with rubbing with my boots. I would think that any rubbing my boots would do, happens to the neoprene gaiter and not my horses heel. I would think though that you should wait until the abrasion is completely healed…probably 2 weeks or so. Can he be ridden without the boots until then?

[matryoshka]

I’ve occasionally had boots rub. When I was conditioning for an endurance ride I got two different types of boots so that if a rub appeared I could switch styles to alleviate the sore spot. I changed between Epics and Old Macs (my horse had wide feet). It took a couple of weeks for the original rub to heal completely (that was from the gaiter on an Epic at the front of the pastern, and it may have been more of a cut than a rub).

Here’s the thing you need to figure out. Did the rub occur from excess movement of the boot or from too much pressure in that spot? If it was caused by pressure, then a gaiter is only going to make them tighter. If it was caused by rubbing, then a gaiter may be enough protection to keep it from recurring. As it is healing, the wound will form a bump, making it that much more likely to rub. I know how my own feet feel with a chafe. Even if you wait until it is scabbed over, rubbing from the boot, even through a gaiter, will pull the scab off and you start back at square one. So I did not put my horse’s boot back onto the rubbed spot until it was completely healed.

My current horse, Frank, gets rubs from his Old Mac G2’s (they go over the coronet like the Cavallo’s do). This is the first time I’ve had chronic problems with rubs, and I suspect it is because his one foot is a bit clubby and the boot hits him in odd spots. If I don’t put the gaiter on, he gets a rub at the heel bulb. Sometimes the seam of the boot in the back causes the problem. Ugh.

For him, I’m getting him a pair of Epics, again so I can switch him back and forth if need be. I’ll probably mostly ride him in the Epics and only use the G2’s when the trail will be particularly rocky.

[Nike13]

My new Classic Equine ProTech bell boots are rubbing my gelding’s fetlocks and spinning a lot. Has anyone ever tried a neoprene pastern band under bell boots? if so, did it work? All this talk about socks and gaiters got me thinking. Maybe I’ll give it a try.

[craz4crtrs]

I have several pairs of Old Macs and when my fjordX was barefoot for a long hilly ride a few years ago, I used vet wrap and wrapped his heel bulbs well and no rubs, even in loose sand. The gaiters didn’t go over his hoof well, he wears a size 8 Old Mac, but the vet wrap worked great.

So if the horse can’t be completely bare foot, I would put a medicated gauze pad over the rubs if they were raw, then vet wrap and even duct tape if necessary. Not thick layers, but enough to cover well.

My fjordx will be barefoot now for the winter and until he starts wearing his feet too short, May or June, then just fronts. He wears his boots for a few rides until his feet toughen up, and if the ride is going to be wet or sandy, I’ll wrap his feet.

[baylady7]

Thanks!!!

We are doing okay now with the pastern wraps- rode for 2hrs Sat and 30 mins Sun- no rubs in sight. The boots stayed on well through some sucking mud on two river crossings. Otherwise lovely rides. Mostly walk on Sat but trotted and cantered a bit on Sun.

[RedHorses]

Another trick with starting or healing boot rubs is to use duct tape. On raw or new skin rubs I put a bit of tape upside down to keep the stick of the tape off the area, then the longer strip over top (I don’t feel I am explaining this very well). The duct tape provides a very thin, slick protection for rubbed skin.