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Post by missyclare on Aug 21, 2005 8:12:34 GMT -5
I'm having a new adventure with a hoof crack these days. My horse has a crack running vertically up the front of his front hoof and I've been trying to grow it out since last fall. My horses get light work and I don't shoe them. The farrier has been warning me that shoes may be necessary in order to fix this. Then I heard about an idea from a friend about using Gorilla Glue to prevent the crack from continuing to split upwards and holding it until it could grow out. Well, I was dubious at first, but gave it a try. Since no soft tissues had been compromised within the crack and the horse wasn't sensitive with it, I went out to the field where he was and washed his foot out with Betadine and a toothbrush, gave the crack a bit of straight Betadine, then let it dry to "damp", then put in the glue. At this point, the horse saw something greener and decided to walk away. The foot went down and that was it. The next day, I checked on the foot and Wow! The top of the crack was shut down tight like I had clamped it for the last 24 hours! The bottom of the crack was still gaping at the ground and figure the glue must have fallen out when I put his foot down. I have since done this whole proceedure once a week for the last three weeks and I think it's working! The white line is growing in and it's almost like the edges of the crack are starting to reach for each other. (ofcourse, that's not the way that a crack grows out, but darn if it doesn't look that way!) The important part is that the top of the crack has stayed down tight and I am confident that we will see the end of this thing in a few months. I am in hopes! It was an American friend's farrier that gave this idea and I thought I'd never be able to find Gorilla Glue, but there it was, right in the front door of Office Depot! I'll report back soon and let you know how it's going!
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Post by galloping minnie on Aug 21, 2005 12:53:37 GMT -5
Do you have any pics you could share? My mare has had this problem for a couple of years. Thanks for the tip. Will definitely try this and will try to take pictures. ;D
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Post by missyclare on Aug 21, 2005 14:06:55 GMT -5
Sorry, no pics. The crack was about 1 1/2" long to start. After the first week, the farrier trimmed and now the crack is only 1" long and becoming "hairline" in appearance. I suggest you clean the crack well, then the Gorilla Glue says one side should be damp, so I just put the glue on while the hoof was still damp. You'll have to check on it every 3 or 4 days. and cleaning and re-applying the glue if the crack looks exposed and open again. My goal is to hold the fort till the hoof grows out. Good luck with this and the pics. Post back and let me know how it's going.
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Post by missyclare on Sept 12, 2005 7:47:06 GMT -5
Well, I haven't put the glue in since the initial once a week for 3 weeks. The crack remains hairlike in appearance and is continueing to fill in and seems to be stabilizing itself. I think it's amazing, considering the hard ground, fly season and all the "stomping" that's going on. The farrier is due to come out soon and I'll have to push him for an opinion. The last time he was out, I was just starting with the glue and the thought was new to him and all he had to say was that it filed o.k. (I think he'd rather I paid for shoes,lol) So, I'll ask him again about what he thinks of the progress we've made and hopefully get a better answer out of him this time. So far, so good!
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Post by missyclare on Sept 18, 2005 1:33:22 GMT -5
Well, it's been about 5 weeks since I started with the glue on this crack and am seeing changes. I had to put the glue on again about once a week for the first 3 weeks, but haven't for the last two weeks. On the outside of his hoof, the crack has remained hairline at the top with about a 1/8th" separation at the bottom. But also, the crack looks to be shorter in length, as well as fazing sideways. It no longer has the look of "going straight thru everything" and that feeling of hopeless endless vertical splitting that I had when I started. When I picked up the hoof and looked at that side, I noticed that the hole where the white line is, is fillling in, like an island that has grown up in the middle of the hole and is reaching for the sides. Darned if it doesn't look like the break in the outside edge of the hoof isn't reaching for the other side! Like the whole thing is filling in with new growth and bridging. I remain even more hopeful of an excellent end result! The farrier will be here in a couple of weeks and I'll ask him again and hopefully will get a better answer, now that there are some evident results and gives up on the idea of getting to put shoes on! I don't think the crack will be erased with this next trimming, but maybe the next one....  ;D ;D ;D |
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Post by missyclare on Sept 21, 2005 23:20:57 GMT -5
Well, there's been another major development in my hoof crack story. The bottom of the crack blew out. It looks like a little tiny robot with a perfectly square mouth walked up and bit Walter's toe. The back of the square (highest up the hoof) is not so far back into the hoof that I am alarmed. My first thought was "Holy Mackeral! Is this a good thing or not? The glue seemed to hold the area of the crack really well. The rest of his hoof is chipped and ragged except for this area. I filed down the edges of the chips, sprayed betadine in this square hole and tried to get Forshner's to stay in there, but wasn't successful. 24 hours later its not looking so square and deep. The new growth of sole and white line is still intact underneath. Weird, but I think it had to blow out as it grew down and started taking more brunt from the ground. So school's still in on this one. I quit the glue applications. I just don't see the need for it now that it's no longer a crack. I'll just have to wait until the farrier comes or it grows out, or both. Now poor Walter's hoof is the shortest of all of them, so I need to get him out to balance things all around. I let you know......
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;D ;D ;D