Thrush treatment?

MaisieMoo

MaisieMoo

Well-Known Member
Oct 19, 2007
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Casper has pretty bad thrush at the moment.

The farrier suggested months ago I start applying Hoof Master purple spray on a daily basis which I did but it didn't clear it up.

He then suggested I scrub his feet regularly with warm salt water before applying the spray - again this has not cleared it.

I've heard suggestions such as plain old bleach, stockholm tar, milton disinfectant to help clear it - can anyone suggest a solution that might actually clear it this time? I'm loath to buy more hoof master when it seems to have been so ineffective!

Thanks!
 
BabyBear said:
Casper has pretty bad thrush at the moment.

The farrier suggested months ago I start applying Hoof Master purple spray on a daily basis which I did but it didn't clear it up.

He then suggested I scrub his feet regularly with warm salt water before applying the spray - again this has not cleared it.

I've heard suggestions such as plain old bleach, stockholm tar, milton disinfectant to help clear it - can anyone suggest a solution that might actually clear it this time? I'm loath to buy more hoof master when it seems to have been so ineffective!

Thanks!
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Milton Fluid wash twice a day and application of purple foot spray has always worked for us, cleared up quickly
 
Iodene.

I thought my mare had thrush once (thanks to an ill informed previous YO) so I spent a lot of time picking out all 4 feet (which was nothing short of a nightmare) and applying iodene.

I decanted it into a spray bottle so once I'd cleaned her feet I just sprayed it straight on - just be careful though as it stains quite badly!

I was also advised to keep her feet as dry as possible. Good luck though, hope you get it cleared up.
 
Daktarin athletes foot cream!! worked a treat on my old horse. I picked out his feet and scrubbed with hibiscrub then squirted the cream right into the clefts, packed it with cotton wool and left it overnight. Pretty much cleared up in 2 days
 
Minnie has thrush also, its been very stubourn, just like Minnie!

However, my farrier and I have come up with a process which is working...

Scrub feet with Iodine (very cheap from a normal chemist). Then get your hands dirty... get some cotton buds and clean in the gaps and wholes where the thrush is hiding. Keep getting them in till they start coming out clean. Then spray on Cyclo Spray, its used for sheep and stuff, it has an anti biotic in it too. Then I am using a Shoe nail to tease in some cotton wool into the gaps and crevases, push it deep in, then respray.

I am doing this every 2 days and it is clearing up very quickly. Getting the thrush out with the cotton buds and then refilling it has been the key I think, along with the spray. It is slowly keeping harder to get the cotton wool in so its working!

I am not sure if you can buy the spray from a horsey vet or what but its worth a call the them, or any other vet. My farrier uses the spray so if you struggle you could ask your farrier.

The thing to remember is that the thrush bacteria hates oxygen, so picking feet out daily is very important as well. I was always a bit ashmaed of saying my horse had thrush but my horses live out 24/7, feet picked daily and in a well managed paddock, its not a cleanliness thing for me, its just the damn soil and wet and dry weather.

Hope some of my post helps:happy:
 
we used to scrub them out with I think it was hibiscrub, then every day pour some cheap mouthwash all over the sole of the hoof :), I think is because it dries it out ?
 
Has the thrush started to cause crevaces down the side/middle of the frog? If yes then scrape out any gunk with a cotton wool ball, put wound powder down crevace and stuff a cotton wool ball in to keep powder in there then cover with thick stockholm tar (the powder dries and disinfects the wound, cotton wool and tar stop damp getting back in).

If no crevaces, I would leave horse in for a day to ensure feet stay dry, once dry spray with iodine and apply a small coat of stockholm tar on the affected area. I would do this once a day.

How long have you been treating the condition? If it's been a while you may need to ask the vet for something stronger like copper sulphate
 
Yes on his offside front the frog is actually flaking quite a bit an I'm removing large sections of frog.

He's always had some thrush but I have been trying for months to get this to clear up but to no avail.
 
I have used miton, blean and betadine to fabulous results.

put it in a spray bottle and spray it on.

All have worked for me.

nikki xxx
 
i tried everything going, nothing. then i tried field paste and its the only thing to have started working. xander constantly has thrush, just that it goes through active stages & dormant stages. for me its not cleanliness either, its the ground he's on that the thrush thrives on - a lot of the horses on our yard have it. the field paste does clear it up & keep it away most of the time, but bring on damp warm weather and we have no chance!
 
cider vinegar diluted half and half with water. Keep it in a spray bottle and spray on regularly. Capalldubh showed me this and you know what she's like with barefoot horses:D
 
There are links to feeds aswell with things like thrush. There is research to say that increased vitamins causes breakdowns and most commercial feeds have way over the recommended amounts. I have only recently learnt this and its something im looking into as i have always struggled with abbys feet too until more recently.

These horses are a pain!:stomp: (but soooo worth all the hassel)
 
I had a continuous battle last winter when it seemed like everything was always wet and muddy. I used to scrub out her hoof with either salt water or a milton tablet dissolved in water (depending on if I remembered to take it to the field!) and then sprayed with purple spray. I also tried athletes foot powder in the cracks which seemed to help but was raining so often when i was dealing with her feet I kind of gave up on this.

Once it had cleared up I sprayed it regularly with spray stockholm tar and this seemed to keep it under control for the last of the winter.
 
Thanks for the suggestions everyone - some nice cheap remedies to try.

Will let you know how I get on!
 
BabyBear said:
Yes on his offside front the frog is actually flaking quite a bit an I'm removing large sections of frog.

He's always had some thrush but I have been trying for months to get this to clear up but to no avail.
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Puz's feet used to be like this - using the wound powder/cotton method should help heal the bottom most part of the crevace and start sealing it up. I would also recommend that in this current weather, he doesn't go out in the field, his feet really need to be kept dry
 
Littles has terrible thrush when he came to me. I used Keratex fog disinfectant on his. It said to only use it once a week but I started with twice a week and purple sprayed in between times.
 
me_n_super_abby said:
There are links to feeds aswell with things like thrush. There is research to say that increased vitamins causes breakdowns and most commercial feeds have way over the recommended amounts. I have only recently learnt this and its something im looking into as i have always struggled with abbys feet too until more recently.

These horses are a pain!:stomp: (but soooo worth all the hassel)
Click to expand...

there may be some truth to this (as in personal experience) as xander has now been on simple system feed for about 2 months and his feet/thrush are looking better than they have done previously. he used to be on hifi lite \7 baileys lo cal. thought it was good at the time, but studies have proven that there is a lot more gunk & junk in even these 'light' feeds than they make out. he has improved all round (even sarcoids and colicky episodes on new grass) since he's been on his 100% natural diet. good enough for me.
 
The quickest method (and cheapest) for getting rid of thrush is hydrogen peroxide. It is about £1 from the chemist. Pick out hoof (if barefoot brush with wire brush ) then using big syringe, syringe and watch it foam.

For some reason many people gasp and look horrified at the mention of hydrogen peroxide. It is actually a skin cleanser which was to be diluted for use back in the day! If it gets on your hands it will turn your skin white until you wash your hands but does no harm!

Also hydrogen peroxide only eats the bad stuff, hence cleaning the hoof and allowing oxygen to get to the thrush bacteria which actually die from oxygen.

Using this method it usualy clears in a few days. I will only peroxide once a day and purple sray the other time.

As a preventative I actually use an agricultural purple spray which is in an aerosol can and is much stronger than the diluted horsey ones at half the price of hosey ones!!

Good luck with clearing it up!
 
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