WARNING ..GRAPHIC PICS !!! I might have to put him down...any ideas ?!

[unionwirewoman]

Last friday my horse and a friends got caught up in our fence fighting with the neighbor horses . Took both to the vet and have been wrapping and medicating since then . My friends horse is looking better , but mine is now not putting any weight on the leg . Both horses were cut in the hock area . I changed his bandage tonight and the wound is very pus filled . I called the vet and he told me that if in a few days he doesn't put weight on it ...well you know . He did suggest pennacylin . My horse is currently on uniprim and bute with silver sulfadiazine as a cream . Any new ideas or suggestions would be great . Here are some pics .

these are the old bandages

 

[ljf24]

Ouch!!!

poor horse...hope it gets better

 

[Mrs. Glassman]

Bless his heart!
I don't have any advise, but I hope he gets better.

We had a horse with a pretty bad gash once. The vet had me give her shots everyday & spray it with some purple stuff (don't recall what). It's healed, but took some time.

Good luck & keep us posted on how he is doing.

 

[b.hromada]

Poor thing.

Do you think he's on a strong enough antibiotic? That is a horrible wound. I do hope he gets better, he is so pretty. Please keep us updated on him.

 

[hollyandty]

I am sorry about your horse. I have used Ichthamal (it stinks like tar but works great) when things looked like that and gobbed it on then wrapped it up. I would either use that or wonder dust. Cover it well with the Wonder Dust then cover the dust up with Bag Balm. The Wonder Dust will get rid of the proud flesh that is growing and allow the wound to heal better. I have used both treatments on nasty wounds and they have healed fine. Good luck.

 

[gaited horse]

Ichthamal works really well and so does furazone

 

[Emzyyy]

Oh I hope that doesn't happen!

Gorgeous horse!

 

[Mahonri]

Sorry, doesn't look good at all. I would probably make a poultice of sugar and iodine with antibiotic ointment and then feed penicillin orally.

Unless you see some improvement in the next couple of days the story is over.

 

[unionwirewoman]

The vet prescribed the silver sulfadiazine ( usually used for burns ) because it has a strong reaction to any infection that might develop . His and my main concern are infection . Once that gets into the system there is really no way to stop it . Any bandaging techinques would help ! His only lasts 1-2 days.....and that's with it slipping down . Has anyone tried human knee braces ? He did severe a tendon , but the vet told me they have 2 so it shouldn't be a problem . My problem is the infection .

 

[19hhbelgian]

I would definitely get that boy on some stronger antibiotics & clear that infection up. If the tissue has died, you might have to have it removed, which would include re-opening the wound up a little bit, but at this point yeah well. If the wound did start to heal from the outside, and not the inside out, it could easily have trapped bacteria in there, which would lead to a whole new ballgame. Since this is at the bend, it might require him to stay slightly immobile for a little while so that it can start to heal properly, and stay as clean as possible... Is he on stall rest only? How many times a day are you cleaning it? At least 2 is what I would be doing, plus ointment so that you don't get proud flesh growing in and closing the wound prematurely. You might also need the puss to be drained if it is as bad as it looks.

#1 is to start strong antibiotic treatment, and keep that bandage as clean as possible. I've never used icthamol on wounds, but have used it to treat abcesses in hooves - it helps pull out the infection, but it's messy... Not that this isn't

If I think of anything else I'll post again! Don't give up unless you have no other options - you can't just replace a good horse, and i'm sure he's a part of the family, which you can't ever fill that hole once it's dug...

Wishing you the best for your boy!!!!