horse injury,,, w/ pics

[mistee]

Looks like a few days ago my mare got tangled in some wire,, or something!

I noticed it on Thur night,, cleaned as best as I could then called the vet on friday... She couldnt come out but I did get some pen-g to start her on and some tranq to make it easier for me to get in there and give a good cleaning.. I have been putting a triple antibotic cream on it and bandaging it...

I wanted to post pics to get advise on treatment... I hope to get the vet out tomorrow..

I need to get better pic of the bottom laceration

 

[w c]

How long has the wound been there?

Clip the hair short from the whole area. Trim clippers do a good job.

Wash the area around the wound and the wound with plenty of mild soap. Do not use hydrogen peroxide or other irritating cleaners. Be sure all foreign material is out of the cut, but try to probe into the wounded tissue as little as possible and as gently as possible.

Thoroughly rinse off all the soap and water after cleaning, but do not spray a hard spray at the wound. Do not scrub or rub the area. Instead pat it dry with paper towels or soft clean cloth.

Confine the horse in a stall. Otherwise every time the horse moves, it will pull open the cut. If the horse is restless give it tranquilizer daily (or as often as needed) and put a very quiet companion horse in the stall next to your horse. Make sure the stall is very dry and clean. Remove urine soaked bedding and manure as frequently as possible.

Do not wrap the wound tightly or put pressure on it. Do not rub it with a rough towel. It might be better to leave the wound undressed until the vet arrives, if the vet is going to be there soon.

This is a very bad area for a horse to get a wound as every step tends to open the wound back up. So it is important at least for a while to get the animal confined so it cannot keep opening the wound up by moving around.

The other problem with a wound like this is proud flesh. That is when instead of healing normally, the body creates extra tissue in the wound. This tissue bulges out of the wound and is not normal tissue, it bleeds very easily, is very sensitive, and is very fragile. It can also keep the horse's leg from moving normally.

Leg wounds, if irritated, tend to form proud flesh. That's why to not scrub at, spray hard or rub the wound, and why to not use any irritating disinfectants or cleaners.

 

[mistee]

thanks right now I am applying a triple antibotic and gently wrapping it..

Stalling her is out of the question as she will take the barn down!!!! She doesn't in any form like the stall.. My stalls are open for them to go into,, her and my gelding,,, and she is fine but the second the door shuts she explodes!!!!!

I have locked them off the big field so she does have limited space to walk....

She is not lame at all w/ this and doesn't care if I clean it and bandage,, which is surprising as she can be funny w/ bandages and all..

I was out of town MOn,, Tue and Wed and my husband and 12 year old daughter was feeding.. I noticed it on thur evening when I got home.... I then cleaned it as best as I could and put cream on it.... I called the vet first thing fri morning,, she was busy, busy and said that if there was no swelling or lameness then she would come out on Mon if I still needed her..... I did get tranq and pen-g and a tetnus booster.... Fri i tranqed her so I could get in there and give a good cleaning.. Since then I have been putting the triple antibotic on it 3x's a day and bandaging......

At this point I dont think there is much the vet can do except advise me on the proper ointments / spray or dusts to use.... I will be callling the vet in the AM to have her come out..

 

[pawtraitart]

I would recommend getting a 3 step product like Matrix. I've also had good results with Vetericyn.

 

[dianneS]

Good luck. It doesn't look terribly deep, and its great that she's not lame at all.

A friend of mine just had a horse with a similar injury a few months ago. However, her horse severed the extensor tendon, completely cutting it in half. Her horse was indeed lame after that.

She's been very diligent in keeping the wound clean and wrapped. The vet comes out periodically to remove any proud flesh. Its healing nicely. The vet is really impressed with her progress. Even the extensor tendon is healing to the bone where it was severed and she's started doing light groundwork again.

I'm sure if you are very persistent with keeping the wound clean and treating it every day, your horse will heal up just fine! Good luck.

 

[mistee]

she is coming along great.. vet hooked me up w/ ointment and been keeping it bandaged.. i think it is looking great!!!!!

 

[pippy]

I was going to add - that you need to keep a bandage on as long as possible.

Removing the bandage/changing wound temperature and playing with it can be detrimental to fast healing.

At the most - once every 7-10 day remove bandage, scrub clean (you will only be removing the prelayed granulation tissue and this doesn't encourage PF - that happens in the early granulation stages) apply a topical treatment - my fav is activated manuka honey. Rebandage and leave well enough along for another week.

 

[w c]

Please, follow the directions from your vet, and change the bandage as often as s/he says.

Some dressings need to be changed daily, some every two days, some less often. Please, ask the vet and do what s/he specifies as far as how often to change the dressing.

 

[pawtraitart]

Good news! I don't see why she won't make a full recovery. The time between bandage changes depends on what you are using. I'm sure your vet told you what to do in this case. Please post more pictures as she heals.