01/19/2024
DON'T PULL THE NAIL
This is a case I assisted a colleague, Dr. Katherine Lahey of Cornwallis Veterinarians, with on emergency last week. This horse came in from the pasture non-weight bearing. The owner did everything right, she taped blocks under the hoof on either side of the nail, and called her veterinarian.
The first two radiographs below were taken (excuse the obliquity, in this situation we're never as concerned about getting the perfect image) to show where the nail was in the hoof.
But why not just pull the nail? The third radiography I marked up to show the important structures we're careful not to miss (I'm not an artist!). The yellow line indicates the deep digital flexor tendon (DDFT) traversing down the limb and attaching itself at the bottom of the coffin bone. The blue indicates the synovial structures in the hoof capsule: the coffin joint and the navicular bursa. If the nail penetrated either synovial structure, the treatment and outcome would look very different. In that case, I would suggest referring the horse to a specialty facility for intensive care, as a synovial infection in the horse is life threatening. However, we don't know this until we xray with the nail still in the hoof.
In this case, it was determined that the nail missed all important structures. I expect a hoof abscess to happen secondary to the pe*******on, so the horse began a daily routine of soaking and poultice. A course of antibiotics and ensuring the horse was up to date on tetanus, and she is doing fantastic 1 week later.