Absolutely devastated - I have let my lad down.

ester said:
had he been shod by the farrier concerned previously while at the loaners or did he leave fresh shod from yours?
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She had him shod 3 weeks after she got him in the usual shoes by this farrier....then on Friday he told her that the heart bar shoes would do wonders for his balance. Like a complete numpty she just let him do it....
There is nothing wrong with his balance if he is ridden properly...

I am now researching hoof boots but need to make sure I buy the right ones.
 
Ah I was only wondering with regards to the loss of topline etc, one wonders how well the shoes were placed (nails) last time.

I think many an owner has been taken in/accepted a farriers advice given that is normally what we pay them for although granted she should have asked you first or told him to wait until next time. I guess the farrier meant foot balance not falling over.

I use easyboot gloves but not sure if they are best sort for keeping on all the time but certainly do give the saddlery shop a shout (although for some boots equine podiatry supplies are cheaper)
 
Always Henesy said:
Thanks Oberon

My farrier suggested that.
Could you recommend some boots that would do the job? Also - any help re sizing etc as I have never had to buy these kind of boots before.
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Boots - I would look at Cavellos for him as he is a big lad. You may find this thread helpful

http://phoenixhorse.myfastforum.org/about1073.html

This lady is decent to ask for advice http://www.facebook.com/lucynicholas75 She is the author of this book http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Barefoo...9874/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345119708&sr=8-1

But there are others options for your farrier to consider if the horse cannot tolerate being barefoot initially and you cannot get boots to fit him.

Casts http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXS8hrrvVpc

Epoxy shoes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_dMY5p0YXI
See this thread http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=554052

Epoxy sole guards http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfm81FBQdY0

There are options that can repair the hoof other than continuously nailing metal on :D

You are welcome to PM me with pics etc, if I can be any help to you :)
 
You haven't let him down.
He's back home with you again now with the best possible care, best place for him to be.
Fingers crossed for a speedy recovery.
 
Thanks for the info Oberon

I will be in touch later today with some pictures for you as I would value your opinion. I have 2 small children that I need to take to the park before we all spontaneously combust.

So - I will be back to this thread later with some pictures of his feet and hope that I can find a comfortable solution for him. I will also speak further with my vet I think...

I am definitely NOT putting shoes back on him for quite some time. His poor feet need to recover.
 
Its probably more the farriers fault that the girls. After all... how many of us would follow a farriers advice? after all they are the professionals
 
I'm afraid I'm another with no practical advice, as you seem to have all bases covered, but couldn't just read this thread and not leave a comment.

First of all, yes you're devestated, as i would be too if he were mine, but stop beating yourself up, you have absolutely not let h im down! You have quickly bought the damage to an end and are doing all that you can to fix him, it isn't your fault!

Secondly, from personal experience with TB feet, I have had great success with Old Mac hoof boots. The different brands are all different shapes and suited to different feet shapes and sizes so you'll have to get some pretty comprehensive measurements of your lads and do your research, but it is definitely worth it. I bought a mare years ago, who the vet said i'd never get right as her hoof balance was so poor, and she had terrible quality horn, and white line disease in all 4 feet. It took about a year of careful trimming and use of hoof boots instead of shoes, but after that she had AMAZING feet, and went on to be shod as normal and was perfectly sound :)

Hugs to you and your boy xx
 
I wish your horse a speedy recovery.

Once you have resolved the legal issues with the farrier concernedI would suggest that you then contact the farriers registration council and ask them to investigate the matter and if necessary refer the farrier concerned to their disciplinary committee.

From what I have see there are far too many farriers that do not bother keeping themselves regularly up-dated with new developments and trends. They all need to regularly carry out CPD (Continued Professional Development) as other professions have to do.
 
wench said:
Its probably more the farriers fault that the girls. After all... how many of us would follow a farriers advice? after all they are the professionals
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The loaner had signed a comprehensive, legally binding loan document which specified exactly what shoeing requirements the horse was to have. She has broken that contract, both with allowing the shoeing to take place, along with the other worries re: weight loss. It simply wasn't her 'place' to allow anyone to change things, however 'professional' the professional.

More hugs AH, I remember all the discussion and deliberation when you were thinking of loaning him out, and the loaner sounded really good :( Am looking forward to updates where he's feeling better, I bet he's relieved to be home too x
 
Really well done for acting so promptly and looking after your boy when you found out it wasn't going right - many owners wouldn't have had the courage/wanted the hassle to do that.

IME things often go wrong with horses, what makes you a good owner is how you deal with it when it happens, so don't beat yourself up and at least give yourself a pat on the back for acting so promptly.

I think I would make a little bit of a stink about the farrier - the girl sounds as if she was doing her best in some ignorance - but the farrier needs 'wakening up' to save other horses from a similar fate.
 
Well first of all a massive thank you to those that took the time to reply and supply hugs and good wishes. Thank you - it has helped calm my frayed nerves :)

I have got some pics from my phone which I will upload later. In the meantime, my vet has advised bute (doing that already), box rest on his nice big deep bed and some chill out time. Once the pain is managed - he should hopefully recover his appetite. No hoof boots for him yet as the white line is compromised the vet is worried about infection/abcess. So a bit of hot tubbing and a few days will show if that will be a problem.
So I have been up 4 times today to check on him (with 2 small children in tow :eek: - I wouldn't recommend it)
He is eating but not a great deal - passing poo's ok and has had some more bute (picture me hanging off a 17.1hh TB with a big syringe :D )

I do strongly feel that the girl is responsible more than the farrier actually - as it was stated in her contract what he was and wasn't allowed with regard to shoeing.
He also hasn't been hacked out in 4 months - so hasn't left the yard at all. Although he loves schooling and dressage - he also loves to mooch out on a hack a couple of times a week. He must have been out of his brain with boredom.
She also didn't have ONE lesson - despite promising me that she would.

Anyway - lesson learned.

We will be reporting the farrier to the Farrier Registration Council as this man needs to be held accountable for what he has done.

Thank you so much everyone.
 
Photos of my lads feet - not great as these are the pictures from my phone.
I have others from my other camera but need to get them off the memory card later.
Oberon - I would appreciate your view.

This first picture it is not easy to see - but you can see the nail hole just by the white line much further forward than it should be too

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The monstrosity that was put on his feet - badly

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These are just the fronts - there are other piccies in my album if you wish to see them.
 
Obviously follow your vets advice but a couple of extra suggestions: if you can yard him as opposed to stable him......put water in one corner and hay in another.....movement will enhance the vital vascular flow in the foot; try not to be too clean and allow some wet to remain in his shavings bed as it is this that will allow the necessary support to the foot to allow the return mechanism to work.

Have you discussed glue-ons with your trusted farrier?

Also, look at diet and engage a sports massage therapist to alleviate any potential muscular problems resulting from his stance.
 
gunnergundog said:
Obviously follow your vets advice but a couple of extra suggestions: if you can yard him as opposed to stable him......put water in one corner and hay in another.....movement will enhance the vital vascular flow in the foot; try not to be too clean and allow some wet to remain in his shavings bed as it is this that will allow the necessary support to the foot to allow the return mechanism to work.

Have you discussed glue-ons with your trusted farrier?

Also, look at diet and engage a sports massage therapist to alleviate any potential muscular problems resulting from his stance.
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Thank you that is great advice.
Sadly I can't yard him - it's stable or grazing as our options. I have turned him out on the 4 acre field tonight as the ground is quite soft and I would rather he was moving around. Rightly or wrongly that is what I have had to do. We have 4 horses and they have all been in all day. My lad will not stay in on his own as he stresses badly and my other horse is 20 and needs to stretch his legs.
Yes - I am worrying but he looked a lot more comfortable on the grass. We have clay based soil so the ground always remains soft under foot.
I hope that he will be ok.
I have a friend who is a qualified equine sports masseur so I will give her a call.
Thank you x
 
To be honest - I have seen much, much worse hooves out there :o These aren't so bad :)

To explain why we are where we are with them......

The shoes lift the hoof off the ground.

That's great - BUT it means the frog doesn't get any ground pressure or stimulation. This (over time) causes the heels to contract and pinch in. It causes the wall to grow forward at the heel and run under the horse.

The back of the hoof and it's internal structures become weak and flabby.

The new farrier (rightly or wrongly) put heart bars on in an attempt to provide some frog pressure and also some support for those weak heels.

You can see what a healthy frog and heel should look like here
healthyfrog-1.jpg


Compare that to your boy and you can see the pinched in frog and heel. You can see how the wall is running forward and overbent at the buttress in a desperate attempt to find some frog pressure.

I am concerned about how flat the soles are - that, the stretched white line and the seedy toe are screaming DIET at me.
 
If your vey is worried about abscess I wouldnt put glue one on as when my lami had them on and had a access it was brutely painfully to take them off.......they did help him out with the support but just be careful if there is a chance of infection.

Sending lots of hugs and love for you and your boy.
Xxxx
 
Definitely do not blame yourself at all. Exactly the same thing happened to me with Dom, he went on loan to a very reputable place and instead of keeping his natural balance shoes on that I'd specifically requested they put him in hinds with quarter clips, left his toes too long and allowed his heels to collapse which led to severe damage to the collateral ligaments and quite possibly, according to my vet, helped the navicular changes along the way. I didn't catch them out as quickly as you have either. Totally understand how you feel, I still beat myself up over it but you do your best and you check these people out as much as possible. You are not to blame because you believe them to be as honest as you are. You've caught it early and you're doing all the right things. He will be absolutely fine, just give him time and the right diet and you'll crack it.

Don't focus on the past, look to the future and think positive. Big hugs. Xxx
 
The first thing I would do is check that the 'farrier' is indeed registered, I have heard of a few people who are shoeing after only doing part of the training :eek: (this is not legal, but is cheaper for people who aren't too picky). Then allow your OH to continue with any legal redress you can manage.
It really is not your fault that this happened, you believed that you were doing the right thing for your horse and put things right as soon as you could.
I hope that all comes well with time and that this becomes just a nasty memory.
 
Dear all - thank you so much for loads of advice and support.

I have to mention Oberon specifically and Bickerchickone who have taken time out to PM, email & FB me some valuable experience with regard to managing a barefoot horse.

He is much more comfortable today - he looks pretty sound out in the field and just very footy on the short walk from the field to the barn.
He is grazing at his feed and the bute is obviously helping.
He is a bit stressed but I expect that as he needs to settle in again.

I am slowly adjusting his feed to aid his recovery and fingers crossed that he gets stronger and more comfortable. These things take time - and thankfully he has all the time he needs.
 
This is great news AH
just shows what love and correct care can do in only a very short time
I hope it's not long before you are complaining about him buggering off with you on a hack
8-)
 
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