Fungus Among Us!

QUESTION: 

Thank you Dr. Tom for you time!!! My question isn't a serious one, but a good
one none the less! I am battling fungus in the deep sulcus cracks that I
have no idea how I let them get away from me and get so bad! Anyway, I
soaked them one time for 45 min.(in Lysol cleaner, diluted 1-16, the
"Cleantrax" man says wont kill live cells and is good to soak with). How
long do you have to tend to fungus, or is it gone once you kill it the first
time? Since the first soak I've been treating with colloidal silver 2x a day
with a syringe with a small tube at the end to stick deep in there and get
anything that doesn't see the light of day. After 2 weeks the cracks don't
seem to be opening up any, but she is walking heel first again and is back
to her old self so she much be better to some extent. What is your take on
treating fungus?? Thanks, Jill

DR. TOM'S ANSWER:

I'm fortunate enough to not have significant problems with fungus infections
here in southern Arizona, but I have seen a few cases that responded well to
disinfection along with proper trimming. If tissue is obviously rotted and
falling away, I tend to remove as much as I can easily, then soak the foot
in vinegar. I've heard and read good things about the Clean Trax treatments
but haven't tried this chemical yet. The benefit of the Clean Trax is it is
touted as being a sporocide (kills fungus plus all the fungal spores), so it
apparently can kill off the fungus with one treatment. Environment is a big
consideration here. The horse must be able to get out of the wetness or
manure or mud and get dried out in order to get ahead of the fungus.
Generally the worst fungus cases I've seen were in high-heeled horses, and
getting them a more proper hoof form cleared up the fungus without too much
trouble. Too much heel or deep crevices provide a good medium for
infections. Blood supply is diminished, especially to the heels, in hooves
with high heels, so healing and immune function is diminished in these feet,
predisposing them to such infections. Persistence pays with these cases of
infection: extra movement, proper environment and nutrition, disinfection,
lowering pH with the vinegar and proper trimming are all important.
Something is wrong with hoof form or horse management if hoof infections are
showing up.

NOTES FROM GWEN ON TRIMMING:
Hi Jill ... I'm going to jump in here with trim issues and let Dr. Tom grab the medical advice. You need to be sure the frog has passive and active contact with the ground. This means during loading the frog will be pressured into the ground and can work actively as a blood circulatory pump to get those capillaries in the hoof in good working condition. It's good that your horse is walking heel first! That will help tremendously. Just make sure that the heels are low enough for the frog to do its job properly. You also want to check for any unlevelness or imbalances in the hooves. Nice flat sole plane (walls are trimmed level with sole callous)? If you were to fold the hoof, side to side, over on itself would it be superimposing? Fronts nice and round? Backs oval-shaped? Does your horse get plenty of walking? Yeast can be a stubborn bug ... and it is a systemic issue so you might need to review other things such as feed, general health, etc. 

:)  --Gwen