Last summer and into the fall, Freedom had an abscess that lasted and lasted. He was slightly off for some time and then terribly lame. Eventually the vet drained it at his toe, and then it also traveled up through the hoof and out through his coronary band.
The remains of that abscess are still with us. The damaged part of his hoof has grown out and now the hole, left by the abscess, is just at the point where it will threaten his hoof wall integrity and potentially make him sore.
With the benefit of hind sight, I realize I should have started him on a hoof supplement last fall with the goal of accelerating this hoof growth. Silly me. He’s on one now, so I’ll just have to wait and see. My farrier and I are already discussing strategies for keeping him comfortable. Glue on shoes may be on his horizon.
Have any of you dealt with the aftermath of a terrible abscess? How did you handle it?