Deteriorating heel bulbs? As well as a few other weird issues...

Well every time it rains the Peripole on my horses hooves get very white and soft which I've read is normal.

Well, ever since we had a really bad storm with heavy rains a few weeks ago below my mares peripole where her hard hoof actually is looks like its peeling. And I mean it's not just some soft stuff that'll come right off, it's hard like her hoof and I don't bother with it in case I do more bad then good. Also, above her peripole where the actualy skin (cornet area?) is looks almost like its kinda irritated even though it isn't. She came in the other day with a bit of blood smeared above her hoof on the skin above her hoof and I cleaned it off thinking she must've got herself good and there was nothing. Not sure if she squished a big horse fly but doubtful. I put corona in it and left it be. Which now it's fine.

Also, on her bad hoof (slightly clubbed and has a small broken back heel axis and a touch of arthritis but still sound for riding) it looks as if where the peripole and her heel bulb is deteriorating. Like it kinda looks like Swiss cheese. It's not ouchy and the farrier just did her feet yesterday and said her feet look wonderful. I sprayed Vetericyn on everything and will go back later to do it again and get pictures. On her heel bulb where it's 'deteriorating' it's a bit red in the middle of the hole lookin thingys but doesn't appear to be sore or ouchy.

She has relatively rock solid feet.
Any suggestions!?
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Well now looking at these pictures it looks more like irritated skin but there are little holes where the pink irritation is.






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Any takers?
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The holes in the frog are almost definitely 'thrush' and the 'irritated' areas along the coronary border are probably also infected, with a fungal or bacterial infection. Noticing the white hair/pink skin in that area too, it could also be a photosensitive thing. I'd treat it the same as thrush, with iodine or such & then try to keep the area clean & dry for a while.

The holes aren't in the frog though. They're in the heel bulb.
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Looks like it could be coronet band dystrophy if mud fever and other factors are ruled out.

Usually with cornet band dystrophy symptoms are very similar to mud fever but the cornet band becomes red and flakey and the heel bulb becomes inflammed/red. I think the small holes you've noticed on his heel are very tiny infections which are trying to take hold which can cause a lot of discomfort so should be addressed quickly. Often times horses exhibit 'itchy' behavior for that area and stomping about. In severe cases there may be obvious changes in the hoof wall abcesses, cracks, lesions, may occur which will ooze puss,blood, serum, ick... when treating check the horses ergot and chesnut as they may be aflicted too.

There was someone on another forum I frequent who had to battle something that looked very much the same as this. It turned out to be a food allergy combined with a degree of photosensitivity which the allergy made much worse. His owner put him on the EPSM/PSSM diet more to see if it would work than any other reason, and he's been sound ever since.

IF I remember rightly.

She struggled with this issue for quite some time, and in the end her horse was fine. I think he has since retired due to non-related arthritis. Or maybe that was her other horse? I can't remember.

She is sound and it doesn't bother her. This morning her peripoles are very white again maybe from the morning dew?

What should I do about this? Treat it like thrush? Her feed hasn't changed or anything either.
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Change doesn't necessarily precipitate allergic reaction ;) I used to know someone who had been stung by bees loads of times, and then this one time they got stung and had a massive anaphylactic reaction. They were fine but it really scared them.

Also have heard a story of someone who suddenly and inexplicably developed a peanut allergy, they had eaten peanuts plenty of times before with no ill effects, and then one day nearly died of an allergic reaction. They had the scratch test done as they couldn't identify a possible allergen... and reacted to peanuts.

Mum's old horse developed an oat allergy when he was 5, and feeding him oats caused eye issues very much like night blindness aka uveitis. She was told she would have to put him down within 2 years as he had an autoimmune disease that was attacking his eyes. Eventually she put 2 and 2 together, cut out oats and oat products from his feed, and he lived to be nearly 21 with no further eye problems.

If your mare is totally sound, and it's only YOU that this is bothering, then it doesn't hurt to try a change in diet and see what happens. Food allergies can cause all sorts of out there reactions.

Edit to add; and thrush treatment did absolutely nothing for the other similar case I have seen, in fact that horse went unsound when the thrush treatment was applied as it irritated the sores and made him lame. His were worse, though.

I was told to try the Vetericyn which I'm going to because that's what I've been putting on it and US Vet go-dry which is Penicillin and procaine in sesame Oil..it's used for when the cows get mastitis I was told that one will work wonders and because it's oily it won't come off in the dew.
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