What You Need to Know About Thrush

Attention horse owners:

• Does your horse's hooves have a foul odor? Im not talking about the usual odor, I mean a really bad odor.
• Is there dark discoloring on either side of the frog in the sulcus?
• Does the hoof sole flake off easily?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, your horse could have a bacterial infection known as thrush. If you do not check your horses hooves often, thrush can go unnoticed for a while. Thrush is not accompanied with lameness in the beginning stages, but if it goes untreated, lameness can develop. The bacteria grow best in moist, warm, unsanitary conditions with low oxygen.

Treatment of thrush includes:

• Picking out the feet 2x daily.
• Applying a commercial thrush treatment such as Kopertox, Thrush-XX, Thrush Off, or applying a home remedy such as a diluted bleach mixture or iodine. (Remember to pick hoof thoroughly before applying thrush treatment, and ask a vet before using home remedies to make sure it is safe for your horse)
• It is best to keep your horse in a dry, clean environment to allow for healing. Once a horse has had thrush, it is more susceptible to get it again.

Prevention is similar to treatment:

• Pick horses hooves daily.
• Keep horses environment as clean and dry as possible.
• If your horses are stalled, remember to clean out their stalls often.
• Remember, proper farrier care can prevent a wide variety of hoof problems.

Photos from:

www.ezpetsupply.com

www.equinehoofpro.com