Arrival:

 

Griff arrived with quite a variety of issues to work through, including chronic Laminitis and stretch of the white line, EMS and a few hoof related issues too. Griff is here with his buddy Johnny. ​

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Within a week or so of his arrival, Griff became noticeably lame with the sudden onset of an abscess. This was monitored closely but grumbled away over the course of several weeks. Although abscesses are not normal in healthy horses, it is common for sick horses or those rehabilitating to experience them with a change in environment, diet, movement and/or trim. 

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Since the onset, Griff has been on and off lame. He originally had heat at the coronary band and to one side of the frog, and whilst he was lame to begin with, this improved temporarily. Then of course, his lameness worsened quite considerably. We typically allow abscesses to go away naturally, and don't believe digging them out is beneficial to the horse's ongoing hoof health or recovery. Instead, we allow unrestricted free movement whilst we monitor the horse closely and administer pain medication depending on the severity of the abscess. When the abscess looks like its popped, we start poulticing the hoof to help draw out the pus.

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Griff's abscess popped naturally at the end of September, where we have helped it to drain. Griff's lameness has significantly improved since. 

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As you can see from the photos below, this abscess was a biggen and had three exit points formed at the back of the hoof. Typically we see abscesses pop in weakened or softer areas of the hooves. In horses with Laminitic stretch, its common for abscesses to blow there, and for others, the heel, frog or coronary band is fairly standard. In Griff's case, despite his stretch, his abscess blew out the back of his heel and the side of his frog.