Has anyone here treated EQUINE CANKER? (not thrush)?

Question

I rescued a draft from the killpen in May. He has bad canker in his front hoof. This is NOT thrush.

Has anyone cured or treated this?

Is surgery the only option?

Do you have any in-depth (non beginner) articles, books, or references I could read on the topic?

Any success stories?

Pics of his feet are here http://www.mayleen.com/horse/spongey.htm

If you don't know what canker is, visit here http://groups.yahoo.com/group/equinecanker/

THANK YOU!

Dilly -- please contact me or join the canker list. I'd like to share with you the info I've gathered.

I know 2 people who had canker cured by Dr Ogrady & swear by his technique:
http://www.equipodiatry.com/canker1.htm

I know one who cured it using daily soaks in White Lightning for 2-3 months and the "after" pics looked great. I also found one who cleaned up a mild case of it with CleanTrax

Also look at sterile maggot debridement as an option.
http://www.hoofcare.com/article_pdf/HoofcareMaggotsMorrison.pdf

Part of the problem with surgery is that if 100.00% of the tissue isn't removed, it's believed that the remaining bits will start growth process again. Regular small debridement may just spur new tissue growth.

Please consider joining us on the equine canker discussion list
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/equinecanker/

THANKS for your reply to me!

Reminder: this is CANKER not CANCER

Just had my horse operatedon for canker. Still looking for more canker information and/or post surgery follow up advice. Thank you!

Answer 1

Surgery is still the preferred treatment with followup antibiotic and or anti fungal treatment. However, lameness still occurs in to many animals. A novel after treatment might be considered that can reduce the potential of either continued infection or lameness.Bless you and may your horse fully recover.

LACERDA NETO, J.C., MARTINS FILHO, L.P., ALESSI, A.C. et al. Clinical aspects, anatomopathologic observations and treatment of six cases of chronic hypertrophic pododermatitis (equine canker). Arq. Bras. Med. Vet. Zootec., June 2001, vol.53, no.3, p.303-309. ISSN 0102-0935.

Two horses developed contraction deformities of the hoof. In the second group, one male and one female, each with lesions in two limbs, after surgical debridement of the tissue, the animals received daily applications of picric acid 5%, associated to local use of oxitetracyclin. Although one of these cases required a second surgical intervention for removal of the mass, the horses showed after a period of two to three months total absence of the infiltrative tissue. The use of local picric acid 5% and oxitetracyclin associated to previous surgical debridement showed to be more efficient than the use of antiseptic substances in the treatment of chronic hypertrophic pododermatitis.

Answer 2

Treatment is ofen ineffective and imporvement if it occurs is slow.
They recomend removing all the afected tissue and using 5% picric acid solution under the bandage. Or sometimes caustic agents are used like copper sulfate or ainc sulfate crystals.
Successful treatment with penicillin has been described when used at the rate of 3 million units given IM per day until improvment was shown. Then it was given at the same dose every other day until the condition was nearly cured theen it was given every third day. They also used penicillian ointment in the bandage. Treatment went from 10 days to 6 weeks.
After improvement was noted they used a aulfapyridine powder and the dressing should be kept clean. the horseshould be kept in clean surroundings and if possible on a dry rocky pasture.
They say the prognisis for this is gaured to unfavorable.
This in not seen that often today and is most often seen if draft horses with a unknown cause.

Answer 3

Canker In Horses

Answer 4

Hi, I am not sure if you are in the UK or the US but I too rescued a one eyed Belgian Warmbllod mare last December and within days found her to have canker and not thrush and like you I am desperate for a cure. She is affected in all four feet and was when i had her. We started treating her in December with weekly debridement of the affected areas of the feet and dressed them with soaked iodine pads and badaged them, i changed the dressings washing and drying the feet creafully and applying new iodine pads every two to three days. This treatment continued until April when my remedial farrier and vet agreed that we shoud shoe her with bar shoes to stabilize the heels and could turn her out and see what happened as things were improving quite well and debridement wasnr necessary on a weeekly basis. She coped well being out and at the end of the month I began to slwoly bring her into work and it seemed we had things under control and apart from some extra growth from the heels (protruding from the bar shoes) her feet didnt seem that bad if a little ragged. Well one month ago we had a wet spell here and despite keeping her in for a few days i noticed the return of the smell that i am sure you are familiar with, on picking out her off hind a section of frog fell away and revealed the tell tale white cauliflower growth that is canker. Needless to say i called the vet straight away and we began the debridement process again, I requested complete surgical removal and asked for a referral. The referring vet again did not think my mare was suitable for surgery and advised euthansia as (here anyway) successful treatment of canker is rare and as I have said she is affected in all four feet. But I have requested metronizadole which as I am sure you have seen from searches is a well recognised treatment elsewhere (but which is difficult to get here). I was also advised to rub her feet with meths and soap flakes however this did not work and i hasten to add was done for a few days before debridement). At present I have requested a biopsy and we are awaiting results as i did find a web page that suggested that in one case this was an (auto)- immune disease and as i say I am desperate for something to work/help. My mares coronet bands are swollen dry and flaky but also secrete fluid and the white stuff. Her chestnuts have recently fallen off and she has no ergots.
I can advise that after 7 months this is a long slow disease to beat and is heartbreaking to see your horse go through this - you have my total empathy. Tonight my horses OH is very swollen and I am very concerned that this disease has pregressed too far and that deeper tissue if affected. I hate to sound so negative but this is my experience and is current. If you find out anything i havent please let me know. I hope yuu have more success than I am at present and if I am able to treat my mare with steriods and i get a good result i will let you know.
Ps my mare is not lame and the bute is keeping her comfortable at present while we seek a solution if she wasnt i would not put her through this for much longer however at the moment is we cannt treat her with steriods then as advised by two vets I will make the inevitable hard decision and do whats right and let her go - I'll keep you posted if i can ( havent used this forum before)
All the best - web site for auto immune info insource list

Answer 5

Equine Canker

Canker is now rarely seen but is a serious infection of the horn
of the foot, which results in the formation of a soft, moist,
disintegrating growth of horn. It most commonly affects the hind
feet and is most often seen in horses kept in wet tropical
climates, or in large draught type horses. It is predisposed by
long heel conformation which results in deep sweaty sulci
adjacent to the frog.

What causes canker?

Infection is most commonly associated with bacterial and
sometimes fungal invasion of the epidermal horn of the foot,
starting around the frog and extending to the sole and wall. In
advanced cases infection may enter the underlying sensitive
laminae of the hoof.

How is canker diagnosed?

In the early stages, a foul-smelling, moist, vegetative mass of
horn is seen, although lameness is rarely encountered. The
characteristic, fragile, fronds of horn growth start at the back
of the frog and are sometimes covered with a crusty overgrowth.
In advanced cases, a cauliflower-like proliferative growth may be
seen along the heels, bars, sole and hoof wall and lameness may
develop at this stage. Affected horses may stamp the affected
foot, reflecting irritation. If deeper tissues are involved,
there may be swelling of the pastern and lower limb. Radiographic
(x-ray) examinations may be required to determine the extent of
the damage to the bony structures of the foot and the collateral
cartilages (sidebones).

How is canker treated?

Your veterinary surgeon will thoroughly clean the sole, sulci and
frog, debriding and curetting (removing) all abnormal, dead and
infected tissues, under general anaesthesia, if necessary. The
clean wound is then packed with sterile gauze soaked in
antiseptic solution (e.g. dilute povidone iodine) and the foot is
bandaged. The horse will often require treatment with
antibiotics, active against both aerobic and anaerobic bacterial
infections and so the cleaned area may be swabbed, to determine
which bacteria or fungi are present, in order to determine the
most appropriate antibiotic or antifungal treatment to use.
Tetanus antitoxin must be given, if the horse is not fully
vaccinated up to date or if vaccination status cannot be
confirmed.

Afterwards, you must ensure clean, dry stable conditions and the
bandage and antiseptic gauze pack must be changed every 2-3 days
until there is no more discharge and the tissues appear healthy
and healing. The horse must be kept out of wet and muddy
conditions until the wound is completely healed. When recovered,
the affected foot should be re-shod and any hoof malformation
should be gradually corrected.

How can canker be prevented?

Prevention is always better than cure and canker can be avoided
by good stable management, and regular foot care and inspection.
You should stable your horse in clean dry conditions and you
should exercise your horse regularly. Your horses' feet should be
regularly trimmed and shod, in order to avoid the development of
long heel conformation and to keep the frog healthy.


The prognosis for complete recovery for true canker is always
more guarded than for thrush. The prognosis for complete
resolution is poor for long-standing cases with spread to the
sole involving deeper tissues, because recurrence is common,
especially in those horses with hoof deformity.

Make sure that your horses are always fully vaccinated against
tetanus, an invariably fatal infection which can gain access
through hoof injuries.

Answer 6

My Yeast Infection Cured - http://YeastCured.uzaev.com/?AQYJ

Answer 7

1. Yogurt with live cultures 2. Use fragrance free soap 3. Wear cotton underwear 4. Use Interflora as frequent as you can (Sorry this is medication)

Answer 8

I don't know much (read anything) about it, but I would try to keep his feet as clean as possible and bandage his feet if nessesary to keep then clean. Good Luck

Answer 9

In many countries,facing a cancer at any organ,the first option is surgery.Earlier we used Radio Cobalt therapy.