Advice - nail in foot

[gingermegs]

My granadaughters native pony aged approximately 25 unfortunately got a rusty nail in his foot about 1" deep, I called the vet and she pared some of the sole away and said he had pus in the foot. I was told to poultice for a week which we did using animalintex etc. He was walking sound so i stopped poulticing and removed his b andages. He is now limping again and I have had to start poulticing again. Any advice? He is a great pony for a six year old, young at heart and i am wondering if he will come sound at his age.

[valerie n scout]

ohh poor fella..am not sure but I do hope so xxx

[harveydales]

Awww poor lad. It sounds like there is still a pocket of muck in there and another abcess is developing. This is not unusual after a nail injury and he should come sound once everything has drained out but can take some time. It will be good for the pony to walk about as it will encourage it to drain out.

[SuzieP]

It can take a while for a nail injury to heal. I think probably poulticing and draining and trying to stop any more muck getting into the hole is the way to go. Maybe an immune system boosting supplement might support the healing as well, especially as the pony is an oldie. I do hope he makes a full recovery.

[Minnie]

After standing on a 6inch nail yesterday morning and spending all day in hospital, I can fully sympathise with this horse!!

[Debbie]

Yikes! Sorry to hear about both injuries.

Tet jab is the first thing that comes to mind. When my filly came in from the field with a nail in her fetlock, the first thing they wanted was to give a booster, even though she'd had a tet jab only 6 months before.

The others are right, it can take a bit to get the infection fully gone. I hope it gets cleared up fully. He sounds like a gem of a pony

[gingermegs]

Thanks everybody, it has put my mind at ease that it might take a while to heal. Was wondering why he had started limping again. He was given a tet jab Debbie by the vet but I thought she would have given him an antibiotic injection as well with him being old.

[mickey]

Not much point giving antibiotics when it's the hoof as they dont tend to be very effective.
I'd go back to poulticing and see if anything else comes out. My mares currently on box rest for the same sort of thing- too muddy to turn her out as it'll just fill the hole and Ill be back at square one.

[Miz.Dales]

Can sympathise with you as my sister's cob stood on a bolt which nearly touched his pedal bone it was the worst day ever. The vet out and parred away to get it out and a bit more of his hoof and give him both tetanus and antibiotics jabs we where told to dry poltice for a week, the vet also told us to clean it with warm salty water and then syringe diluted (can't remember how much) hydrogen peroxide (from the chemist) into the hole which worked really well it healed in around three/four weeks and he could be ridden again. Hope your boy gets better soon and he's fully sound again.

[gingermegs]

have been steeping his foot in hottish salty water with a few epsom salts added, Might try syringing with hydrogen peroxide. Thanks.

[merlinalison]

When Merlin had this (having also stood on a rusty nail) the vet came initially and pared everything back. He then had wet poultices twice daily for a week and then once daily for a further week. The farrier came two to three times a week for the first couple of weeks to keep the hole open (a lot of the problems occur because the hole in the hoof closes up before all the pus has fully drained so you need to keep the hole open until it's completely clean and dry inside). Merlin then had to be shod with a special plate on that foot to cover the hole and stabilise the hoof until it had grown out. If this is still going on, i'd speak to your vet again and get your farrier to look at it too.

[Deleted]

Not sure I can give any better advice than the vet, but I had a similar incident with Felix several years ago. He got a nail in his foot ( a little too close to the frog for comfort!!!) and he was rushed to the vets (horse on isle of Wight, vet in Salisbury) for emergency operation to remove it. His odds of pulling through weren't great but he ended up fit and well again. I cant remember how long Felix was lame (it was about 12 years ago!) but after lots of poulticing and rest he became sound again with no lasting effects apart from not being able to insure his foot. Hope your horse gets better soon!!!!!!