Help - maggots!

Julie · Help - maggots!

Need help here - We took a hoof wrap off and our horse had maggots in the frog - just little ones. Can't cope with even looking at maggots. Farrier squirted some out with peroxide and said to carry on doing this. Anyone got a better, and preferably final solution to get rid of them!

jenlm

Julie, what was the hoof wrap for? If there is any necrotic tisue you will not get rid of the maggots. Soap and water will help but you have to scub and them out then wrap it andput him in a dry stall.

Julie

He had lost some hoof when he pulled a shoe off, so we wrapped his feet for a few weeks to get some growth and prevent any more breakage. this has worked very well - actually had plenty of growth a and no more breakage, the farrier was able to nail into much better wall - he has a band of brittle hoof for some reason. Just spoke to vet who said use normal deosect solution to kill them. He has had bad frogs for a while, we have only had him for a few months, he has shed one, and is doing the next at the moment. Having changed his management, hopefully he will have stronger walls and his frogs will improve with a better farrier now that we have him. Just seems like one thing after another with him!

new2thejourney

Just a little question here, but aren't young maggots good for eating out the dead and rotting flesh? Can't you just let them hang out until they eat up all the rubbish then treat the flesh?

Hoping more wise and educated can enlighten me on this one.
Karen.

jokersmama

Sterile maggots are used in wound care clinics for patients with wounds that won't heal. The maggots only eat the dead flesh and help to debride the wound. I think they are very beneficial for wound care. They do not eat live tissue so I think they would be helping his frogs. Maybe they will eat it faster than the thrush bacteria and you will have nice healthy frogs in no time.

appellativo

eew!

I was just reading Pete's book (Making natural hoof care work for you) and he pointed out that brittle, thin walls are the horse's effort to slow growth in a foot that is not being worn down adequately. Just a little tidbit to do with what you will. I could write a lot to deduce about that but I've found it's better if people want to know first, or investigate themselves

As disgusting as the maggots are, they will eat the dead and then grow up to be little flies so I can't see the harm, but like you said, I just think I'd have to remove them, clean the wound, treat as per your vet, rewrap, and check it frequently!

new2thejourney

Julie

they may be good but my stomach could not cope! the deosect has worked and they have now gone.

He only seemed to have a 2 cm band of poor hoof, the shoes have gone on ok now the hooves have grown a bit. he should be fine as I have changed his diet and he now lives out since he has been with me, looks very healthy and farrier is pleased with his hooves!

Newfman

A poultice of epsome salt and or animalintex would be good. If the foot is kept clean and dry, that should help as well.

Probably not a good time to point out that this appears to be a shoe related problem (your words) and that trying to fix it with the cause is a little....weird.

learningthedance

Julie

I have one horse barefoot, three with shoes. One of these was barefoot for two years, but had a much better stride length when shod despite having apparently good hooves. My horses have only ever lost two shoes in about 10 years. The one who pulled a shoe off is a new horse who is on loan to us, has good feet, but needs the shoes for the work he does, so thats that.

I had 4 horses barefoot and trimmed at my yard for over three years by the top EP in the Uk. All horses went lame at some point on the same leg in a three month interval.

Of those - one had navicular and was put down, one is barefoot and sold, and the other two are shod.

Barefoot would be my choice, if its best for the horse. otherwise I have a great farrier, who will do either - he likes barefoot too!

appellativo

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but is it true that shedding the frog is not necessarily a bad thing? It is normal for the hoof material to grow down from the corium, and it is constantly growing and shedding (and in some cases being trimmed!) I agree with the 'seeking contact' part.

But I am glad to hear that the problem is improving and he is out and doing better!

appellativo

Hi Julie, I want to make sure I understand correctly, when you said,

"I had 4 horses barefoot and trimmed at my yard for over three years by the top EP in the Uk. All horses went lame at some point on the same leg in a three month interval."

Can you clarify what and EP is? Equine Podiatrist? If so, who or what's standards bestowed the 'top' rank to him/her?

Keep in mind I am who I am and don't know the ins and outs of this person, your or your horses situations, so just bear with me while I play devil's advocate

I'm somewhat of an idealist so if you can't bear with me then just ignore me. (where's the hugs emoticon?!)

As I understand it, your horses were trimmed by this person for three years, and they all went lame at some point on the same leg in a three month interval (does this mean within a three month period of time, each of them was lame on the same leg, is that correct?)

I don't know if it was the trimming or if it was some other cause of the lameness, but from your post it seems that you think this person's trimming may be the cause. So this makes me think maybe this person, although being the top EP in the country....doesn't this mean that he still might not have had a good enough understanding and application of how to trim a hoof to enable it to grow in a well connected hoof wall, enabling the hoof to develop a thick sole and adequately deep concavity to enable the horse to be completely sound on all fours? This would happen in no more than a nine month's period of time, the time it takes most horses to grow a hoof from the coronet to the ground.

if this is the case, then each horse owner can do like myself and so many other horse owners did, which is to read up and watch videos and attend clinics so as to have an adequate (and by adequate I mean FULLY FUNCTIONING understanding) of the horses (hoof and otherwise but right now I'm focusing on the hoof) anatomy and structure and what hoof care regimen will allow the horse to grow a healthy sound hoof. I challenge nobody in particular, but beseech everyone to fulfill their responsibility to the horse to become educated to the point that the standard of hoof care in every country will rise up to where it needs to be.

If nobody's happy with the job their hoof care practitioners do in their area, and they learn how to do it the right way themselves, or find someone who DOES know, then those people who are not doing a good job will either get with the program or go out of business.

I went on another tangent about how no horse hay growers test their hay for at least NSC, to say nothing of minerals etc, and therefore so many horses have resulting body and hoof issues. If everyone demanded the growers test their hay, then they'd do it! The price may go up at first, for the first few hay growers that do it, but as everyone follows suit to gain business, the price will go back down.

Okay I'm done, thanks for listening, allowing my opinion, and even with all that said, and how I feel, I still concede that everyone is doing the best they feel they can for their horse, especially here on this site. I for sure don't want anyone to feel like I am attacking them, its just that Julie's situation brought up the subject.

Julie

Not worried about anyone attacking! just pointing out that I know a lot about barefoot so have looked at this situation from all angles. Yes i do think they were responsible for the lameness which was 4 horses in 3 months!

I did what I thought was best, found the best person I could, if he could not do the job, who could!