Another one... Horse lame in all four feet

[Michen]

Ah yup the easy shoes then which are quite a new development. http://www.easycareinc.com/our_shoes/easyshoe.aspx

Thanks ester will pm you soon. Have posted about it in tack room and will see what people think! Xx

 

[Gloi]

I really cannot think of any advantages of those over boots, and can think of many disadvantages.

 

[Leg_end]

May be worth investigating epona shoes too. Someone I know had her horse in these for a while and really liked them.

 

[Michen]

I really cannot think of any advantages of those over boots, and can think of many disadvantages.

Would love to hear why?

 

[BethH]

If you are going to look at the easycare shoes please look at Equi-Eaze Horseshoes Ltd too. I spoke to the British farrier who has designed them - thought he was brilliant, the shoes can be glued, nailed or taped on and the plastic flexes with the foot. He has had impressive results. If my horse ever goes back into shoes I will buy these! He is based I think in Darlington. Good luck.

 

[ester]

BethH it says the shoe is the same as the hoof horn but what about over the frog, is that as solid? It does seem to be one of the things that easycare have tried to include with their by not keeping the back of the frog fixed so that can flex as it needs to.

 

[Beausmate]

Would love to hear why?

One disadvantage of shoes as opposed to boots that I can see, is what happens if a shoe comes off? With a boot, you can put it straight back on, whereas with a shoe you have to wait for a farrier to come and glue it back on.

If you decide to go with glue-ons, then maybe consider having a boot or two on standby, just in case you need to keep your horse comfortable while waiting to have the shoe re-fitted.

 

[ester]

I'd def have a boot on standby in this situ beausmate.

 

[BethH]

Think the idea is that it allows the frog to be stimulated as the foot moves, I think it is the closest way he can find to mirror barefoot which he is a huge fan of, but understands that barefoot doesn't always work for everyone. He feels metal shoes are so concussive and knacker horses legs over time and can't believe a better material to shoe hasn't been found in this day and age, I kind of agree with him! I would have thought the piece over the frog would be as substantial as the shoes around the hoof wall. I haven't held a pair of the shoes, but the farrier has offered to make me some from a template of my horses feet if I want to give them a go when & if I need to. The reason I suggested looking at the site is because when I phoned up the farrier, he was unbelieveably knowledgeable and helpful with a good dose of common sense that and answered about 50 questions from me. He said at the moment they are deemed to be remedial shoes but he is finding they are working brilliantly for horses with problems. I looked at most of the other products out there & so many are a good idea but most actually shove a metal shoe in the base of them which IMHO defeats the object. This seemed the most properly thought out product I could find.

 

[ester]

So the possible difference with the easy shoe is that they have tried to allow the frog to be stimulate but also keep the lateral movement that the frog allows like so:

This pic actually shows expansion within a trimming cycle but also shows the movement allowed when the hoof hits the floor

I've not used them though, just like their boots and think the shoes have been quite well thought through.

 

[BethH]

I agree both look very useful and a far better idea than plonking a lump of metal badly on to a foot that's been cut to fit the shoe rather than the other way around!!! Think we are saying the same thing! I just thought supporting a british supplier would be a good thing and might be easier than ordering from abroad. The farrier told me he charges approx £20 a pair - that was a while back I don't know how that compares to the easy shoe.

 

[rubydog]

Sorry not read through all the posts but I just wanted to tell you not to lose all hope. Two years ago I was in the same position as you - ex racer crap feet - lame on three legs, X-rays and MRI showed reverse pedal bone rotation and impar ligament damage. My vet suggested that I needed to think about PTS. I had the shoes removed as a last resort as I was not prepared to give up on a 4 year old. I changed his diet and gradually got him moving by using hoof boots with thick pads and two years on he is sound as a pound and out hunting barefoot barefoot rehab is not costly it's just time consuming but it is well worth the time. For what it's worth I think my vet thought I had lost the plot and it can be hard to go against professional advice. Good luck to you and your horse x

 

[Michen]

Sorry not read through all the posts but I just wanted to tell you not to lose all hope. Two years ago I was in the same position as you - ex racer crap feet - lame on three legs, X-rays and MRI showed reverse pedal bone rotation and impar ligament damage. My vet suggested that I needed to think about PTS. I had the shoes removed as a last resort as I was not prepared to give up on a 4 year old. I changed his diet and gradually got him moving by using hoof boots with thick pads and two years on he is sound as a pound and out hunting barefoot barefoot rehab is not costly it's just time consuming but it is well worth the time. For what it's worth I think my vet thought I had lost the plot and it can be hard to go against professional advice. Good luck to you and your horse x

Thank you. I am an emotional bloody rollercoster at the moment. One minute I'm determined I will PTS, then I'm determined to do whatever I can for him. It's exhausting. How did you rehab him, I'm confused by some people saying box rest and some saying movement etc, did you ride him or work him on the ground for a year or so?

 

[rubydog]

I was exactly the same so I know how you feel - I used to come home every evening in floods of tears not knowing what to do for the best.,At first I gave him about a weeks box rest until I got the boots and pads.Then I literally started walking him in hand around the arena and the yard only for about 10 minutes, he also got a little bit of turnout in his boots too. Gradually he started going out for longer and I progressed to walking him in hand around the block still with the boots on. After about three months I stated riding him again just around the block or in the arena - still with his boots on but his boots came off for turnout as long as the ground was not hard. Then from about 5 months we ditched the boots for ridden work and by 6 months he was sound and has been for the last two years I would say the first three months were the most stressful wondering if I was doing the right thing. I got obsessed with videoing how the foot was landing, taking pictures, checking for thrush, feeling for heat and pulses, trotting him up once a week and being disappointed that he was still unsound - I think I was expecting miracles overnight and unfortunately hooves take a little longer to recover but the good thing is that they can recover I got so much advice from this forum - there are some truly knowledgeable people on here who are very generous with their time