Finally an End to Annoying Thrush

In our last thrush post we learned what thrush actually is and what causes it to develop. We also give tips on how to recognize the first signs of thrush.

Today's post is about Amelie and her horse who had to deal with stubborn, long-lasting thrush. Amelie has found a way to combat thrush in her horse and has given us her experiences in writing. In the following, you can read how the two of the thrush declared war.

My horse has thrush and now?

Today I would like to tell you about the treatment of thrush or report how I managed to successfully combat thrush in my horse.

In the pictures, you can see very clearly the symptoms of thrush. Unfortunately, despite a few attempts at treatment, we were unable to get the thrush under control. But since my horse was in pain, I didn't want to give up his hooves and started a new try with the Stiefel products.

Before the treatment, I asked my blacksmith to take another look at the hoof and cut out the affected areas as best as possible.

Stiefel Strahl Protect

Once a day I applied Stiefel Strahl Protect to the ray and very carefully to the furrow. The attacked hoof frog should be protected from external influences such as ammonia and/or urine. In addition, Strahl Protect has dried out the frog a little and thus changed the environment in the hoof and made it more difficult for bacteria and fungi to multiply. Thanks to the well-shaped bottleneck of the product, I was able to treat even the deeper holes in the jet well.

Stiefel Hoof Hardener

The quality of the hoof horn was really bad. You could easily pinch the hoof almost anywhere with your finger. There was no longer any question of a firm hoof horn. So I used the Boot Huf Hardener on and under the hoof once a day. It took a while, but after two weeks the hoof horn finally got harder again. In addition, the hoof was also protected from the ingress of harmful substances by Stiefel Hoof Hardener.

Stiefel Zinc Plus

I also wanted to support the immune function and the formation of new horns and have decided to give Stiefel Zink Plus daily. I fed my horse 25g of Zinc Plus once a day (attention: information varies according to horse size and weight). Why did I choose Zink Plus of all places? Because Zinc Plus contains a high proportion of zinc chelate. Zinc chelate is best metabolized by horses.

Chelates are organically bound and can therefore be used directly and no longer have to be "broken up" via the liver in order to arrive at the right place in the body. Among other things, zinc is an important component of the horn, which is needed for a healthy hoof.

Willow Bark and Meadowsweet

Since I really enjoy treating diseases with phytotherapy, i.e. herbs and plants, I have selected suitable products that can help with my treatment of thrush. Meadowsweet and Willow Bark are said to help with regeneration and blood circulation in the hoof. So my horse got around 40g willow bark and 25g meadowsweet once a day. I chose these two products because they can relieve pain. My horse really enjoyed eating both products. But he didn't get both for longer than 3 weeks!

Nettle and Stiefel Kidney Herbs

As mentioned above, the detoxification processes are an important factor in causing thrush. So that my horse is supported in terms of detoxification, I fed him kidney herbs and nettle in addition. The kidney herb mixture has valuable substances to support kidney function and thus detoxification. The medicinal plant nettle is said to have the same effect. It also has a diuretic effect and can thus support the detoxification processes. I mixed 40g of kidney herbs and 40g of nettles into the food every day.

Of course, I paid very close attention to the hygiene in the open stable during the treatment. That meant: at least once a day peck, muck the box and freshly litter it. In addition, I always consulted my blacksmith and moved my horse regularly, at least 6 times a week - even if it was just a relaxed walk through the forest. Before moving, I cleaned the hoof with clean (!) Water and treated it with colloidal silver (200ppm). After the exercise, I then used the boots products mentioned above.

After only 5 weeks you could see a big difference and my horse seemed much more active and walked painlessly across the meadow.

I am totally happy to have started this experiment again and can recommend my approach to treating thrush. Of course, you have to deal with each horse individually, but the foundation stone of the treatment will probably be able to help every horse and every owner.

So STOP the thrush and finally put an end to this annoying disease.