My horse is lame after a fall; is it mud fever or the injury?

I would still be very suspicious of a hoof abscess. I would recommend having her checked out by a vet to see what is going on. Some abscesses can be tricky to diagnose and they may not even react with hoof testers, but a good equine vet should be able to tell what is going on after a lameness exam.

Your horse could have an infection. Sometimes they can get an infection in the hoof that can cause some swelling in fetlock area. It may be a good idea to have your vet examine her and possibly give her some antibiotics and anti-inflammatory meds. I hope this has helped. Thank you for using pet coach.

Poor Sadie! I would call your equine vet to come and see her. There are many things that can cause lameness in the cannon bone and pastern of a horse including strains and sprains of the ligaments, fractures of the bone, or arthritis among others. The vet can do a lameness exam including flexion tests, nerve blocks, and possibly field x-rays. Once the cause of the lameness is found, the vet can discuss treatment options with you.

That looks like an abscess may have ruptured in that location or it's a puncture wound/injury. Both can make a horse lame. A hoof abscess doesn't always smell. I strongly suggest you get your vet out there to check him. If the vet doesn't think it's an abscess then he may need to have x-rays taken to make sure there is not something stuck up inside the hoof or that there are no fractures present (like a fracture of the coffin bone). While you are waiting to have the vet out I would confine him to a box stall or at least a very small paddock and I would soak the foot in warm Epsom Salt water to see if that will help draw out any infection that might be present. Soak for 10-15 minutes twice a day. Also, if you can, I would put a boot on his foot to protect it and keep it clean. Do they sell Easy Boots in Ireland? Either an Easy Boot or something similar. https://www.easycareinc.com/our_boots/easyboots/Easyboots.aspx I hope this helps. Best wishes. If you have more questions please post again.

Based on your description it sounds like Colin may have suffered a puncture wound with something in his rear end. The lump you are seeing could either be some purulent fluid building up inside, or it could be a foreign object that is still inside (whatever it was that caused the puncture). If you are feeling significant amounts of heat emanating from the affected area, it is likely there is an infection brewing. The area may have to be lanced, drained, and then the horse treated with systemic antibiotics. The dragging of the left toe is hopefully not related to an ascending infection to a joint, but instead I hope it is just from a generalized pain from whatever Colin is feeling. If you have some bute or banamine around the house, I would consider using some until you can get a vet out to come and check things out. Hope this helps!

I would be extremely worried that this laceration went into his pastern joint on his worst cut leg. The only way to know is this is for a vet to do a joint tap. I know you said there are no vets around but I'm not really sure what you expect us to be able to tell you over the internet. He needs to be examined in person and have some testing done to figure out why he is so lame. It could also be that tendons in the back of the leg have been cut or it could be both. If the joint is infected it needs to be flushed sterilely under anesthesia otherwise it will never get better, only worse. I have no idea what antibiotics you are giving him or even if it is the correct dose. Do you have anti-inflammatories to give him like Bute or Banamine? How much does this horse weigh so we can tell if you are dosing him correctly? I'm not sure we can be of much help without a lot more information. I strongly recommend you do a private consult with me or one of our vets so that you can get more one on one help and we can chat back and forth asking you the questions we need answers to.

This looks like the result of a chronic trauma or infection creating a proliferative skin inflammation (that is why it looks like a lump). A check up, appropriate disinfection and possibly antibiotics or antifungal meds (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. Disinfection can eventually be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths.