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Ask The Vet: Mud And Horse Health

Feb 24, 2017

By Dr. Lydia Gray

How do I prevent thrush, scratches, and other springtime health concerns?




Q: With this time of year comes lots of mud and generally wet weather. What is the best way to prevent thrush, scratches and other diseases that come with spring?

A: This question was answered by SmartPak’s Hoof Health Consultant, Danvers Child, CJF (Certified Journeyman Farrier)

Providing regular maintenance and encouraging structural integrity of the hoof capsule is a primary concern when seeking to avoid problems associated with wet environments. In fact, my friend, Dr. Steven O’Grady, says the best tool for treating thrush is a farrier’s rasp. In effect, he’s saying that regular maintenance will minimize hoof capsule distortions and flares which provide pathways and "trappy” areas that hold and breed bacteria.

Nevertheless, in high moisture seasons, areas, and climates, it’s often necessary to provide more than regular trimming, especially when we look beyond thrush and add things like scratches to our list of concerns. While it’s often impossible to avoid the increased moisture, we can try to minimize exposure to muddy areas and tall grasses, sometimes through simple measures such as altering turn-out times to avoid heavy dew, by running the mower more frequently, or by ensuring that our water troughs are not overflowing.

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