Update on Booger , my pup , and my bad luck !! 7-22-09

[Judy]

OK, I have no experience with horses at all, but lots of experience with some gross people wounds (read bedsores.) The wounds of the OP's horse look to me like good granular tissue (the red areas) with a little pus interlaced, and possibly a little necrotic tissue, both of which are not great, but probably unavoidable, and certainly manageable.

I am not getting the whole proud flesh thing. In people, that would be granular tissue that is growing up or out in a way that would interfere with healing, and I really did not ever see much of it.

The OP's wounds look much cleaner and more well cared for than the roommate's.

What am I missing here?

 

[SangaChicken]

If you can get a cortizone shot that would do wonders for the inflamation. If not, just focus on the antibiotics and cleaning that wound up. If your roommate doesn't start cleaning her horses wound, she's writing his death sentence. Period.

As for your horses temp being 101.5, that's perfectly normal. Normal for a horse is 99.5 to 101.4, but heat/humidity/time of year can account for that extra tenth of a degree. He isn't running a fever, so don't stress about that.

Wrapping the wound is going to work against you in the proud flesh department. You need to leave it uncovered as much as possible. Don't worry about the dirt.. hydrotherapy it every few hours. Air, Sunshine, Water are your best friends right now.

Your boy is going to be just fine from the looks of it. You're doing a great job, and we're all proud of you!

 

[SangaChicken]

Quote:
For you and the original poster..

Here is some good information on Proud Flesh. Now, it says here to keep the wound bandaged.. and obviously there are going to be discrepancies in the information you're getting. With your particular wound being in the early stages, I think the majority of horse owners here would agree in telling you to wash it MULTIPLE times a day, let it get air and sunshine.. etc. But might wanna check this site out too:

http://equisearch.com/horses_care/health/illnesses_injuries/eqhumble530/

 

[Judy]

Quote:
For you and the original poster..

Here is some good information on Proud Flesh. Now, it says here to keep the wound bandaged.. and obviously there are going to be discrepancies in the information you're getting. With your particular wound being in the early stages, I think the majority of horse owners here would agree in telling you to wash it MULTIPLE times a day, let it get air and sunshine.. etc. But might wanna check this site out too:

http://equisearch.com/horses_care/health/illnesses_injuries/eqhumble530/

I appreciate the reply. I think I understand why this is so much more of a problem with horses than people now. I mostly saw it in uncooperative patients. Obviously, horses are going to be uncooperative patients. Makes sense.

 

[CountryMom]

Please get some SMZ tabs from your vet whether he is worth his licenses or not. They will help with the swelling and any infection from the inside out. Also go to the feed store and find yourself a tub of MSM. It isn't expensive and a great long term anti inflamitory. Continued use of bute is going to tear up his stomach and then you have a whole new set of problems. Having him not walk on the leg isn't a bad thing as you don't need him tearing up the pasture he is in thinking all is better. That will only cause him to do more damage to himself.

Now, your wound on your horse is basically closing up. There is no open pockets to the actual joint. The tissues is growing in with lumpy proud flesh. As a rule of thumb from my good horse vet down here, once you treat with granulax, panalog or most of the proud flesh medications on the market, you are not to wrap as it will burn the horse. Plus the medications make kind of a barrier of crush. Once that happens you are removing the proud flesh and should remove what crush you can when you hydrate the wound.

Honey from my understanding is a natural antibiotic. You need a proud flesh remover. You need an antibiotic internally. Topically you are only going to be treating more and more proud flesh. Once it starts to form you have to use something to remove it to stop it from growing. No amount of wrapping at this point is going to stop it. Like I did with my mare's leg cut, I allowed took the proud flesh growing in as a way of helping the wound fill in. Then I unwrapped and treated. I did have some cut off that was hanging off one of the edges (nothing like what you have), but I did not want the vet to cut any of the proud flesh from the actual wound.

You are on the mend, just need to switch plans. I have to agree with Sanga, your roommates horse is in trouble way more than yours. Keep up the good work.

 

[Bec]

WOW!! What a difference!! That is fantastic!!! Keep doing what you doing and taking the great advice from everyone here and he will be well on his way!

Is your roommates horse kept with yours? Maybe you could do some rinsing after you are done with your guy. Just a thought..something needs to be done for that poor horse, she should really keep a closer eye on him/her.


WTA: I just went back to the original thread...HOLY MOLY! What a difference that is!!!! I can't believe how far it has come! You are doing awesome!

 

[ozark hen]

You are doing absolutely a great job on your horse!

the leg looks so much better!!!

 

[nikevijo]

That looks sooooooooooooooo much better. He looks like he will be just fine. And yes your vet is an a**!

 

[SangaChicken]

Quote:
I tend to agree, but lets also look at the situation. We would like to think that all vets are in it to help animals and save the world one pet at a time. But for some of them, it is just a business. I worked as a vet tech for a little over a year before I was totally burnt out, by pet owners. I was a small animal tech and if I had a dollar for every young dumb couple who have been dating three months and get a puppy, but pass on Heartguard or other Heartworm medication because they can't afford it.. then are absolutely shocked when their dog has heartworms (no doubt from those romantic dates at the dog park), and then of course they can't afford the $700 treatment with a 50% success rate... for $30 a month you can insure against that with prevenative, and Heartguard will PAY for treatment if your dog comes up positive while being treated. Can't beat that. So, the point of this rant is that maybe the vet is burned out. Which is no excuse.. but also..

With all due respect to the original poster.. she mentioned a significant lack of funds/trailer etc.. the vet also has to consider whether or not he's going to be paid for his services, whether or not the owner can afford to sufficently treat the animal, etc. If the vet was under the impression that his services above and beyond the initial call couldn't be paid for, or that proper treatment for the horse couldn't be paid for, putting a horse down rather than letting it slowly suffer to the point of death is not a bad call. (Which is what may happen to the roommate's horse!). Fortunately for the horse, and all of us who are paying attention, the OP is intelligent enough to overcome her lack of funds and bust her butt to save her animal. 90% of horse/pet owners would not be/are not capable of doing the research and putting in the work she's done. If you don't have the money to properly take care of your animals with the best medical care available, you darn sure need to be able to work hard and do your best to provide the best personal care you can. I can't afford vet calls on 26 horses every time I get a shipping cold or suspect a colic, so I treat treat treat.

And finally, a good vet is going to worry about human safety first and foremost. No animal is worth one hair on a human head when it comes to safety, and the OP has mentioned that her horse won't stand for a needle, won't stand for water (They're making progress!). Both of these are due to a lack of respect for humans. If the horse doesn't respect a human, and needs to be twitched, roped, drugged for basic treatments.. the vet may have made a hasty (Albeit incorrect) call and presumed that treating this horse would be difficult and/or impossible, and that this would ultimately result in having to put it down. Sure, with enough funds, you can tranquilize a horse for treatments.. but again, the funds issue. No one knows the horse like the horses' owner, and clearly she has been able to work with him, handle the situation and make strides of improvement.. but the vet has to base his decision on what he sees. We don't know the temperment of the horse. Some of the most loved pets are crazy as a loon with everyone else, but can be handled by their owners. I have a cat that would take your hand off, but she's my cuddle bug. And she stays far away from anyone but me. The vet has recommended I put her down umpteenth times, as she suffers from severe allergies. But I can treat her, and we do just fine. (If she'd just stop scratching the sofa!).

Yes, the vet made some bad judgement calls. But based on the picture of the roommate, I can assume the OP is young also.. add that to the known temperment of the horse, the financial struggles.. the vet may have been making what he felt was the best call for both the horse owner and the horse in the long run. Maybe he shouldn't mix medicine with personal opinion. But we ALL need to keep in mind that he went through a HECK of a lot of schooling, a HECK of a lot of studying and a HECK of a lot of struggle to become a Vet. Whereas we.. have not. In this case, he made the wrong call. But in this case, the OP went above and beyond the call of duty to save her animal, and she's willing to put in the work. Most people would not have, and the animal WOULD have ended up dead, and the vet would have been correct to end it swiftly and in an affordable manner.

Let's cut him some slack and pray he had the right intentions, even if he was wrong medically. There are a million different opinions on treatment, and how something should be treated, and a lot of them will pan out and end up successful if the owner is dedicated to the cure. The OP is a great and caring pet owner. If she can use this experience to teach her horse some respect, and come out of it with him healed up and happy.. maybe she herself should consider going to vet school! We need more people like her in the field.

 

[TACEYPERKINS]

Hi Marisa- I did a little research on inflamation. You need to have a NSAID type of drug.
http://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/hrs3708

This will help with pain and inflamation. Some are better then others. Duralactin is derived from cows milk and is safer then other drugs. It is also safer then the Bute.
Here is some info from the Duralctin website.....
I have never used this personally, maybe someone else can chime in with some pros and cons on this med.

DURALACTIN-
For the long term management of chronic inflammation. Helps support normal activity and wellness

Active ingredient, MicroLactin

, contains factors that modify the neutrophil/endothelial cell interaction to reduce the emigration of neutrophils.

■Results seen in 4-7 days with peak effects in 10-14 days
■Does not suppress immune system*
■Palatable vanilla-flavored granules
■Give with feed
■One bucket treats one horse for a month
Equine Joint Plus
Contains: MicroLactin and Glucosamine HCl and Chondroitin Sulfate

Equine Joint Plus
■Helps support structural integrity of joints and connective tissues
■Helps maintain healthy joint structure and mobility
■Palatable butter flavored pellets
■Give with feed
■One bucket treats one horse for one month
Active ingredient per tablet..... MicroLactin

14,000 mg


Dose
1 scoop twice a day or 2 scoops once a day (scoop enclosed)

Good Luck~ Tacey