Last week, I was in a barn shoeing a horse that has had a bad case of thrush for, what I understand, quite a while. The owner and team have done a fabulous job of treating the issue, and when looking at the foot, it seems that everything has been resolved. There is no give-away thrush smell, the frog appears to be healthy, and the collateral grove looks clean. Though when I spoke to the owner and trainer and asked if the horse had a hard time engaging his hind end, I think they may have been shocked that I knew.
This horse had thrush deep within the central sulcus of the hoof – easy to treat if you know what to look for but can be extremely painful to the horse if gone unnoticed.
Check out this teaser where Jacqueline Karlsen details ways to treat thrush. The full video is for HorseGrooms Insiders subscribers.
The closest thing I can think of in comparison when explaining to an owner or rider is imagine having a blister on your heel. You will not want to put full pressure on that area. When a horse has deep central sulcus thrush, it may be very difficult for them to properly load. With the horse I mentioned previously, his thrush was in all four feet but particularly bad in the hind. Because of this he had a hard time engaging his hind and getting underneath himself. In fact, he had started to very openly revolt against it – first by pinning his ears then by bucking or kicking out.
The central sulcus is located in the center of the bottom half of the frog. On some horses, you may notice a separation in that area. This separation shouldn’t be there.
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Feature Photo Courtesy of Arnd.nl
I’m a farrier based out of Wellington, Florida, and part of the team at Palm Beach Farrier Services.
After growing up going through the ranks of barn rat to working student to groom, I eventually started managing horses in rehab and recovery programs. This led me to become fascinated with just how imperative proper hoof care is to the long-term health and wellness of the horse.
It is my goal, through HorseGrooms, to help educate others and give back to the horses that have given us so much.
