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NO THRUSH Pro Tip – “Shedding Frog”

NO THRUSH Pro Tip – “Shedding Frog”

No Thrush – PRO TIP – July 2015… “**Shedding Frog**” We received a private message from a woman whose horse was shedding its frog. The answer is valuable, so we thought we’d share to all….

While frog shedding is normal, if you have never experienced it, it can look scary. In fact, sometimes the entire V of the frog will shed at once, which really looks daunting.

Usually thrush is the procuring cause of the shedding.

Here is why: Thrush wants to invade and live deep inside the heel tissue, and of course you can’t see it or smell it because it is so deep. [This is why we preach so hard about eliminating the heel cracks and deep collateral grooves. These are bacteria access points.]  — Anyway, when the thrush has run it course deep inside, this action can undermine the frog.

However, when active thrush is present, the frog tissue will literally hang on for dear-life. The body does not want to allow it to shed because it is the only protection for the soft, tender, and vulnerable tissue underneath. ….

So here is the No Thrush “tip.” —- If you see the frog begin to shed [ perhaps an edge, or even a big section looks to be dislodging and “flappy” under your hoof pick] get aggressive with your No Thrush dustings. Once per day is best. The powder will draw out the deep bacteria and breeding ground and take care of the “thrush” problem. If the thrush was severe, and the frog has been undermined, the rest of the frog may fully shed away. This is a good sign. This is the body’s way of breathing a sigh of relief. It no longer needs to fight the thrush, so the body allows the necrotic/dead tissue to fall away.

But you are not quite done…. Keep using your NT every few days. This will help firm up that new tender tissue and allow it to regrow properly. No Thrush is not caustic, so it will not inhibit natural grow…. As the new frog continues to grow you can slowly back off. The A-to-Z timing will be based on the speed of your horse’s natural growth rate. [usually 20-50 days]  No Thrush is not “making” the tissue grow, it is “allowing” it to grow. Meanwhile the powder is protecting the new/tender tissue from being invaded by a whole new round of thrush.

Hope you found this helpful. Learn more about those heel cracks at www.nothrushshop.com

Spring idea for No Thrush usage

Spring idea for No Thrush usage

Quick NO THRUSH tip: (one of the many options when using NT.)  If you bring a horse out of the pasture and find he has a thrush-rotted frog, you can clean the foot with pick and brush, dust well with NT, then place a gauze pad over the frog and use duct tape to keep in place. Change every day or two. This will transform a soft, rotted frog into firm tissue (which will support the sole, which is often infected as well – and this will help support the coffin bone). The old frog may slough away and the new tissue will begin to re-grow. After a week or 10 days, you can just do daily dusting and forgo the duct-tape routine. Now the frog will grow out normally. (Be sure to dust “inside” all heel cracks, and use your pick-brush to distribute NT powder over the heel, frog, and sole each day. Hoping the sun and Spring warmth reaches all of you soon! (For more, log onto The No Thrush Page, or see testimonials on Facebook. Just type “No Thrush” in the search line.

Kathleen Busfield - Four Oaks Farm Products