What is thrush?

You know the smelly black goo you come across when you pick out your horses hoof. That's Thrush! Equine thrush is an anaerobic bacteria that is in the hoof. It eats away at the horse's tissue, particularly the frog and sulcus area. This bacteria lives in dark, wet places and eats its host. Graphic yes, sorry, but it is important to stress this point. A black discharge is often visible (- the black goo)

In the early stages, it is not as noticeable, (thrush hides and breeds inside the sulcus between the heels bulbs and in the deep grooves around the frog) but thrush is the first item to check off your list when a horse goes mysteriously lame or begins shying from typical farrier work. (Double your attention when the horse is housed in damp stalls or muddy corrals.)
NOTE: Look for a deep crevice in the sulcus between the heel bulbs. This is a certain sign that your horse has thrush. The can cause the horse a lot of discomfort and can be enough to make a horse lame.

REMEMBER - Thrush does not just "Show up" one day. By the time you see the black goo, the bacteria has been eating away at the tissue inside the frog and heel for weeks or months. After all, the black goo is simply the deteriorated tissue. That's why it smells. So when you finally do see the black goo, the bacteria has been in there long enough to eat holes through the frog.

Sulcus Crack + Soft Heel = Thrush

1. Using your hoofpick and hoof brush, remove all debris, manure and mud. DO NOT WASH. Thrush creates its own moisture, so adding more is counter-productive.

2. Once per day dust NT-Dry on the frog, heel bulbs, around the horse-shoe and into any whiteline grooves, and into the sulcus crack. NT-Dry is not caustic so there is no danger of overuse. (For severe cases, it can be used twice daily for the first few days of treatment, which will extract the black goo and moisture at rapid pace.)

3. Using the edge of your hoof pick open the sulcus and make sure to push NT-dry powder into the openings. Fill the sulcus crack. If this is a severe case of thrush you will notice NT-dry immediately wicking the moisture.

4. Repeat daily. In most cases, after 4-6 days you will no longer notice any moisture. The frogs will have firmed, and the horse's tenderness will have decreased. After 6-7 days it is normal to experience a healthy, rejuvenating, shedding of the frog and heel bulb area. (NOTE: NT-dry will definitely work in rainy, damp environments. However it is best to keep your horse out of deep puddles during initial treatment. Many clients prefer to dust during feeding time.

5. Whenever you see excessive necrotic tissue flaking away from the frog and sulcus cut it away with your hoof knife (or have your farrier/trimmer do this whenever possible). Thrush bacteria hides in air-free environments, so we want to open the area up to as much air as possible.

6. Every horse and thrush-case is different. You must be the judge of when it is appropriate to slow down the application process. In most typical cases this will occur at 6-7 days. Extreme cases could take up to 14 days, depending on how invasive the thrush has become.

How to apply NT-Dry

7. IMPORTANT NOTE: We can't emphasize this enough..... An open sulcus is always susceptible to a thrush re-invasion. We recommend regular NT-Dry dusting until the sulcus has healed and closed. Depending on the thrush severity, this healing can take 14-40 days.

8. Once the thrush is gone and the sulcus is closed, use NT-dry in a preventative/maintenance program (every 5-10 days recommended) to keep the bacteria at bay: We believe it is better to stay ahead of known problems, rather than chasing them.

WHAT TO EXPECT DURING and AFTER THRUSH and FROG DISEASE TREATMENT

1. Expect a frog/heel shedding to begin after a week or so. This is a good, healthy sign! It means that the healthy tissue is emerging from underneath - and that the exterior tissue is letting go to make room.

2. With sulcus thrush and frog disease you might see the top edge of the frog begin to peel away. Again, this is a great sign. This means that the inside of the frog had been significantly diseased and literally "hanging on by a thread." The healthy tissue is allowed to grow from the inside out, and outer layer is allowed to shead. This sheading may expose even deeper-seated areas of thrush, (places that might otherwise never be found) so continue to dust regularly until the frog has re-grown.