Hoof woodpecker at coronary band and hoof wall level in forestry environement working horses

Abstract

Hoof woodpeckers or penetrating foreign bodies in the hoof are frequently found in working horses. A special pathology is encountered in horses that work in forestry environment. Unlike the metalic foreing body (so called clou de rue) that just penetrate the sole, the wood goes in by hammering (by sudden pressure). Movement between the hoof and the 3rd phalanx causes the foreign body to advance in depth. The study was carried out on a number of 54 working horses in the forestry environment, males, aged between 4 and 14 years. The diagnosis was established on the basis of the clinical examination and the history, the radiological examination being inconclusive. As a particularity, the fragmentation of wooden foreign bodies does not occur at the time of extraction but at the time of hammering through the hard tissues due to the forces that determine the change of the penetration trajectory. Restraint was achieved by physical and chemical means (sedation and anesthesia). The wound was cleaned and then the hole in the hoof wall was widened with the help of the hoof knife. The foreign body was extracted using a thick forceps or a dental extraction forceps. The dressing was changed every 48h until healing. The wound had been washed with potassium permanganate solution (KMnO4) or betadine 10%.