Hole in hoof

[Deleted]

Does anyone know how to plug a hole in the sole of a hoof? The hole is through a old-ish injury which is slow healing. The problem is that the horse lives out (no stables currently available) and the hole just keeps getting full of mud. I've tried just taping it up but she wears through the toe quickly. When I get the mud out, she's fine on it. There appears to be no infection but I obviously want to keep it that way. Has anyone tried hoof putty or anything like that?

[Sarah W]

Hi Liz,

Have you tried silage tape instead of ordinary tape to wrap the foot? I found this a lot more robust. (I'm sorry, I can't bring myself to use an emoticon!)

[Cameo]

Hi Liz,
My farrier told me this - which is fairly simple, and strangely seems to work...
Spray into the hole a bit of iodine/purple spray (if yourhorse doesn't like the spray then spray it onto a bit of cottonwool away from teh horse) and then use a small bit of cottonwoolabout the size of a tenpence peice,
and push it deep into the hole.
Keep pushing and use a hoofpic if you have to to just keep pushing it in.
You will be surprised how much is squashes down.
It needs to be fully in and if necessary put another peice in on top.
None muxt be sticking out.
That's it!
Stayed in my horse's hole. Even in mud.
The key is squashing it in.
Goodluck.

[VeronicaF]

Hi Liz, I echo what cameo has said too, you could also use stockem tar, ???if thats the right word? you can get that from most good horsey feed shops or farmer shops
love Vxxx

[Bonita]

I second the Stockholm tar. It's messy until you get the hang of it, but really does the trick. My old boy used to suffer from seedy toe and would get a little hole at the front. I just used to plug it with stockholm tar and cotton wool - that would stay in through both riding and turn out. When he was stabled I would just scrub it clean, purple spay it and pack with cotton wool.

The secret really is in the packing of the cotton wool!!
You need to really pack it in really well, I found a smallish screwdriver to be better for this than a hoof pick.

Good luck.

[Deleted]

I had been a bit reluctant to pack anything into the hole as when it's packed with mud is when it bothers her. I've since had another idea given me - superglue cotton wool in. Anyway, as there seem to be varitions on the same theme, sounds like it's the cotton wool treatment, then.

On the Stockholm tar, do you know how it works, i.e. what is it's effect? I've heard of it being used for thrush before but haven't actually used it myself.

[Red]

Never put superglue anywhere near your poor equines hooves!

Do all that the above say, but miss out the superglue!

If you do not know by now, superglue was a product developed by the americans during the vietnam war to bind up wounds quickly before medivacs on the helos!

[omo]

Hi Liz, just wanted to add that although my first thoughts were with the packing and stokholm tar, but that when my pony had a hole in his sole the vet advised against anything other than covering as necessaryand flushing out with iodine solution even after the horn behind the original sole was quite hard. He was not being ridden, so that wasn't an issue, but I used nappies or parts of to cover and taped over with duct tape which would last roughly 24 hours.

[LouiseB]

Hi

My mare Alma had a horrendous abcess last year which resulted in a big hole that had to be dug out by the vet/farrier. Once treatment had finished we plugged the hole with a loosely packed piece of cotton wool which was then retained in place by stockholm tar.

This was easy to change when required and meant that Alma could go aback out 24/7 without having to be concerned about her loosing boots or bandages or getting any rubs or getting dirt trapped.

[wendyihts]

How about using Keratex hoof putty to plug it? It has some natural disinfectants in it.

[varkie]

Yep, I use Hoof Putty on my guys when they need it. Very good stuff!

[Deleted]

I thought it might be useful to add that, since this problem a couple of months ago, I've discussed it with my trimmer and a vet. Both seemed to agree on the cotton wool route as being the best, with Stockholm tar if the ground is wet. The negative I things I have heard about hoof putty are that 1) it can actually block regrowth and 2) it is not easy to remove to check what is happening underneath. I've not had any personal experience with it, though, so this is just hearsay. Maybe someone has thoughts on this?

[varkie]

I used to use Hoof Putty quite a bit when Bess was going thru barefoot transition, and can honestly say that these two things were never a problem for us. Feet regrew with no trouble, and removing really wasn't too much of a problem - it seemed to work its way out after a while - most days I used to renew it.

However, different things for different people - it may well be that other people HAVE found the things you mention.

[amber]

I am a fan of the purple spray and cotton wool plug also!! Once a week I'd also unplug it and scrub it with a solution of Tea Tree Oil and warm water.

[sugar]

Another fan of the cotton wool plug. Borax works well as a disinfectant and for getting rid of hoof bugs like thrush, seedy toe and wld. I scrub my boy's feet twice a week with a solution of 2 tablespoons of borax mixed into a gallon of water (that much will last for ages).