How to Treat a Horse's Proud Flesh

When a wound starts to heal, it fills in with pinkish granulation tissue. With a normal healing process, the skin edges grow together and the soft tissue, which fills in the gaps, stops growing when it reaches skin level. However, sometimes it keeps growing, bursting outward, so that the top layer of derma and hair can't regenerate. This excessive granulation tissue in a wound is called "proud flesh."

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

1. Preventing proud flesh is much easier than treating it. By minimizing your horse's movements and applying bandages firmly, so that the edges of the wound are held together, you can sometimes prevent proud flesh from forming. Most proud flesh forms on lower-leg wounds that have an excellent blood supply but are hard to bandage and immobilize.
2. Keep wounds clean, since infection can cause granulation tissue to become excited and form proud flesh. Rinse the wound thoroughly, and have deep tears or cuts sutured so the edges meet and wounds will close and heal properly.
3. Apply a topical cortisone antibiotic. Many topical cortisone antibiotics are formulated specifically to help reduce proud flesh and slow its growth. If you are not experienced in dealing with proud flesh, ask your vet for advice before applying any topical ointments.
4. Contact your veterinarian when you first notice excessive proud flesh. He may have to trim back the granulation tissue to skin level so your horse can form skin across the wound. After your vet has trimmed back the proud flesh, follow his recommendation on wound care and treatment. Ask about a prescription antibiotic.
5. Stay determined. Proud flesh is stubborn, and it can take repeated trim-backs and treatments to rein it in.