If you deal with horses then you have figured out by now that the old saying that if a vet had to choose one tool to take on a desert Island it would be the Hoof Tester (assuming there are horses on the Island-:).

An abscess in the foot is very common and I believe that many vets and vet owners have had cases where the horse is lame and after a thorough examination, nerve blocks etc. Someone says, “Why don’t we try the hoof testers?” and the horse goes flying out of the barn with pain.

I have already seen a couple of these cases – “an Undermined Sole”. This happens when there is an abscess or “gravel” under the sole and instead of draining to the coronary band or the bulbs of the foot. The infection keeps spreading under the sole and prevents the sole from growing new healthy tissue. The only cure for this is to get the farrier or the vet to start chopping away at whatever seems to be infected and allow the healthy sole to start growing again.

One thing that’s worth mentioning is the use of Epsom salts and Ichthammol. From what I have seen, most cases do not benefit when the foot is soaked in Epsom salts (with an attempt to “draw out” the abscess). What is very beneficial is Ichthammol, it softens the sole and usually drains whatever needs to be drained. Best results come from previously trimming the sole and applying Ichthammol for 48h (with a bandage) twice in a row (that would be 4 days). Usually the Epsom salts and water tend to harden the sole and promote a situation where the abscess or infection cannot drain out adequately leading to the Undermined Sole.