How To Take Care Of Your Horse's Feet In the Winter

In the winter, horse owners must take extra care in order to keep their horse's hooves and legs healthy and in good shape! In this article, you will find simple, easy ways to treat such common problems as thrush, mud fever or scratches, white line disease, and keeping snow and ice out of your horse's feet.

This is a common problem in horses who live in a muddy pasture, or are kept in a stall that has not been cleaned of manure and urine properly. It is simple enough to treat, but it can easily get out of hand. As stated by AlphaHorse.com,

Equine thrush is caused by anaerobic bacteria that, when trapped in moisture, can create a fungal infection that slowly eats away at the horse's hoof tissue, particularly the frog area.

Thrush is fairly easy to spot in horses. The cleft of the frog will be particularly deep, and there may be a black discharge oozing out of the sides and bottom of the frog, that smells awful. In more severe cases, the frog will become rather ragged, and layers of the frog will fall off, exposing the sensitive interior. It is not often accompanied by lameness, but the horse will step gingerly.

No worries, though. It's relatively easy to prevent, and also easy to treat! To stop it in the first place, keep your horse's stall clean. Muck it out every day, and remove all traces of excrement. If your horse is kept in a pasture, make sure you employ tactics such as rotating pastures and graveling muddy areas to keep the mud down. Pick your horse's hooves out every day.

If you detect the symptoms of thrush in your horse, I would suggest calling your farrier or veterinarian for advice. Each professional has their own treatments that they personally believe work well, but you can also treat it on your own.

To begin treatment, get the horse into the driest area you can find. This alone often stops the thrush in it's tracks. To treat the thrush, first clean the hoof out thoroughly with a hoof pick, a stiff brush and a rag. You can also use soapy water if you choose. Then, soak the entire hoof in Betadine Scrub or iodine. You can get this at local tack or feed stores. For best results, use a clean, stiff brush to scrub the iodine into the hoof. Repeat this every day, after cleaning your hooves.

Personally, Thrush Buster has never worked for me. It was expensive, and didn't make a dent in my horse's thrush. I don't suggest it, but if your farrier or vet have complete faith in Thrush Buster, go for it. Another suggestion that I have is Tomorrow. It's actually used for treating mastitis in cows, but it worked wonders on my horse's thrush! It comes in syringe like containers. You simply clean out the hoof with your preferred method, and then stick the syringe tip into the cleft of the frog and squeeze in just enough to make the cleft 'overflow' a little bit. You can then hold the hoof for 30 seconds and scrub the Tomorrow into the hoof with a brush for best results.

Mud fever, or scratches, is also caused by mud. The skin on the horse's heels and lower leg will become infected, resulting in a painful scab. Again, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure! Keep the horse out of muddy and wet areas as much as possible in order to prevent this. Try to keep the horse's legs as dry and warm as possible. Put them in a stall with lots of dry bedding, if possible. Avoid getting their legs unnecessarily wet.

So your horse now has mud fever. In severe cases, you should contact your veterinarian. One of the easiest ways to begin treating scratches is by removing the scabs. This can be painful, but it is done so the infection can be treating easier. You may want to trim the hair around the infected area. Soak the crusts or scabs in luke-warm, soapy water to make the procedure easier.

Once that has been done, treat the affected area with an anti-bacterial. I use products such as Pevidine Hibiscrub. Then, leave the anti-bacterial on the skin for 5 to 10 minutes. Next, rinse the infected skin and dry gently with an old rag or towel. Make sure the area is completely dry before going to the next step. You may even want to use an old hair dryer to dry the skin! Next, apply Vaseline or baby oil to keep out the moisture. Repeat every day.

Don't forget to contact your veterinarian if the condition gets worse!

This is yet another health problem caused mainly by mud! White line disease is when the hoof wall separates from the laminae. It is essential that this is treated immediately, as it can cause severe lameness.

In order to prevent white line disease, make sure your horse gets regular trimming, all year. Keep the horse's living area as clean as possible, and do not apply excess hoof products (hoof polish, etc.) to the hoof. It can also be caused by poor nutrition, so make sure you talk to your vet about feeding your horse the proper amount and type.

To treat the hoof, there are a couple of homemade treatments that you can use. You can use White Lightning mixed with equal parts white vinegar, and use it as a soak. However, that can be expensive, even though it is considered the most effective. Another good concoction to use on the hooves is a mixture of half water, half apple cider vinegar. Use as a soak. Finally, you can use a mixture of triple antibiotic cream and athlete's foot cream together. Apply to the affected area on the hoof once a day.

Alert your farrier as soon as you discover that your horse has white line disease. Use whatever treatments they suggest. They may want to debride the area and give you a disinfectant to use daily.

Here's a simple tip to keep snow from building up in your horse's hooves! Apply Vaseline to the entire sole and frog of the hoof. This repels moisture, including snow, and will provide better traction.