# Bruised hooves help



## CLB (3 September 2008)

My 10yr gelding suddenly went lame 4 weeks ago in trot.  I rested him and then hacked him lightly, still no better 2 weeks on I took him to the vet and he had xrays of his feet and was diagnoised with bruised feet.  My farrier recommended putting on pads under his shoes, and although he is no worse he is still not 100% 2 weeks on.  I am currently resting him and turning him out in a small paddock during the day.  

Has anyone else dealt with bruised feet, how long did it take to recover?  Is there anything else I can do to help him?

thank you


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## brightmount (3 September 2008)

I think what you're doing is right. Did the farrier put the pads on? If he went lame suddenly and the vet says it's severe bruising, then it suggests he stood on a large stone, which could have caused his foot to take a sudden sideways strain. He may have caused a bit of damage to the collateral ligament at the same time which wouldn't show on x-ray. This will heal in time with the management you are doing at the moment.

Hope he's soon back to normal.


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## AandK (3 September 2008)

i think you are pretty much doing all you can tbh.. maybe give him some arnica.? some people say it is good for bruises.!
depends on how bad the bruising is as to how long it takes to heal..  A once had very bad bruising on his front feet (caused by silicone pads incidentally) and it took him a couple of months to fully recover.. time is a great healer.!!


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## K27 (3 September 2008)

When one of mine bruised his feet we took the shoes off and applied Kaolin Poultice and box rested him completely for a week.  Also used  hot and cold treatment on the foot to bring out the bruising - a bucket of warm water and a bucket of cold and just let him stand there with the foot in the cold for 5 minutes then the hot water for 5 minutes or so and just keep switching between the 2- I did this a couple of times a day and I have to say it did help him.


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## wormhugs (3 September 2008)

Hi there,
My horse went lame when I was out hacking on Monday, went from cantering along, to having 3 legs. He managed to walk home ok and I got the vet out as I was 99% sure he had bruised his foot on a stone but I was also concerned that it may have been damage elsewhere (he has arthritis and I do worry alot!!). Vet confirmed bruised sole and said to give him a Danilon daily for 4-5 days and to soak his foot in epsom salts in warm water everyday to help draw out the bruising. He said removing the shoe would make it worse as the sore bit was more likely to come into contact with the ground.
Fingers crossed he will be back to normal soon!!
However my previous experience of a bruised sole was a bad one, again a back foot, and it led to laminitis as he took all the weight off his sore foot and the extra weight carried on the other leg triggered laminitis. Ended up with it in all 4 feet and rotated pedal bones behind.
If your farrier thinks pads will help reduce his pain levels, then I say go with that! 
Good luck and I hope he gets better soon.
x


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## CLB (3 September 2008)

Hi thanks all for your information, 

I will be soaking his feet tonight in warm and cold water!  

In answer to brightmounts question - yes the farrier has already put the pads on his feet.

thanks again, fingers crossed he will be back in work soon!


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## TayloredEq (3 September 2008)

I have used a hydrotherapy spa to treat my own horse with bruised soles. He was instantly happier.

I also believ Carl Hester used one with Escapado before he went to the Olypmics (Atlanta) in order to get the horse sound enough to go.


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## DollyDolls (3 September 2008)

One horse I know gets bruised soles all the time, until we used keratex hardener on the sole.

You need to make sure the foot is healed, then start applying it as per the instructions.  He went onto hunt once a week after with no more problems.


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## Marchtime (3 September 2008)

CLB if your farrier has put pads in already I wouldn't recommend soaking the feet as you'll damage the pads. My TB has silicone pads all year round as he suffers very badly from bruised soles. These pads are, however, not designed to withstand constant moisture and therefore in the winter have a tendency to disintegrate and fall out after four weeks or so. I would wait another two weeks and if your horse is not sound call the vet back out. Whilst bruised soles can take awhile to heal other underlying problems within the foot are often misdiagnosed as a bruised sole initially. X-rays can show thin soles but cannot confirm bruised soles. Surely if your vet was certain it was a bruised sole he wouldn't have x-rayed or is that just my way of thinking?


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## CrazyMare (4 September 2008)

When mine has bruised feet - its a wimp - she stands with her feet in buckets of water quite happily and refuses to pick them up, she steps neatly out when she is ready, so by this I presume it helps her feel better.


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