Canker is a rate and unusual condition of the horses hoof, that affects the frog, bars and sole, it usually starts with the frog.
Canker is an anaerobic (grows in the absence of oxygen).
The micro-organism associated with canker causes abnormal keratin production or overgrowth of the horn and occurs underneath the horn as the infection spreads throughout the epithelial layer, then infecting the superficil epithelium of the hoof (the outermost tissues that produce the horn).
Canker spreads in live tissue, creating tissue growth, without the help of oxygen. It looks white or grey in colour and is damp and mushy.
The skin and the hoof are both composed of three layers: the epithelium, the dermis and the subcutaneous tissue, progressing from superficial to deep.
The hoof is formed by epithelial keratinisation, over a greatly modified dermis (also called corium), that is continuous with the common dermis of the skin at the coronet/coronary band (the junction between the skin and hoof).
The subcutaneous tissue of the integument (tough outer protective layer) of the foot is also highly specialised. Stabled horses with little exercise seem more predisposed to canker than horses that are active and kept outdoors. It is often more prevalent in draft type breeds.
Canker is an anaerobic (grows in the absence of oxygen).
The micro-organism associated with canker causes abnormal keratin production or overgrowth of the horn and occurs underneath the horn as the infection spreads throughout the epithelial layer, then infecting the superficil epithelium of the hoof (the outermost tissues that produce the horn).
Canker spreads in live tissue, creating tissue growth, without the help of oxygen. It looks white or grey in colour and is damp and mushy.
The skin and the hoof are both composed of three layers: the epithelium, the dermis and the subcutaneous tissue, progressing from superficial to deep.
The hoof is formed by epithelial keratinisation, over a greatly modified dermis (also called corium), that is continuous with the common dermis of the skin at the coronet/coronary band (the junction between the skin and hoof).
The subcutaneous tissue of the integument (tough outer protective layer) of the foot is also highly specialised. Stabled horses with little exercise seem more predisposed to canker than horses that are active and kept outdoors. It is often more prevalent in draft type breeds.