Greg Miles
AN ABSCESS IS THE BODY’S WAY OF isolating and eliminating infection and dead or foreign material. Very often when the body has experienced a deep penetrating wound and a small amount of foreign matter has remained at the depth of the wound, the result will be an abscess.
The secret in healing an abscess is to help the body, in every way, to make the abscess come to a head and eventually rupture. This is normally very difficult to do, especially if your beautiful show horse has an unsightly abscess at the base of its neck. It is a normal reaction to want to clean up and heal a wound as fast as possible. Normally we run to an antibiotic. This normally will suppress the abscess. If you are in any doubt, contact your vet. If you have an abscess in the hoof, get your farrier to take off the shoe and open up the area of penetration, with the smallest possible hole. This will allow for proper drainage.
Foment the opening by soaking it in warm strong, salty water or Epsom salts, and apple cider vinegar solution. The other option is to help draw out the foreign matter by using a poultice. Soaked bread or soaked bran, propriety starch, kaolin, dried magnesium sulphate mixed with glycerin, eucalyptus oil and castor oil all make very effective poultices, as do comfrey leaves or slippery elm. It is important not to over-poultice.
Hepar sulph is a good homeopathic remedy to use in the beginning stages of the abscess. Silica can be given three to four times a day in the later stages of the abscess. Silica is also very useful if you feel that the abscess is not forming adequately. Merc sol is very good for healing dental abscesses. You can also apply bergamot oil externally.
Once the abscess has opened up and is draining, you are half way. Keep giving the horse echinacea three to four times a day until the infection has cleared totally. Apply fresh garlic to the perimeters of the wound and encourage the wound to heal slowly from the inside out. If you need to bandage an injured leg, always bandage the opposite leg as well. Never bandage without ample padding! – Kim Dyson Contact Kim Dyson on 082 888 6511. |fw
