Away for lameness examination.. some hoof / diet questions

sheep

sheep

Well-Known Member
Joined
31 August 2011
Messages
5,982
Location
Northern Ireland
Visit site
Dropped my boy off to the vets last night to have nerve blocks and xrays carried out today to attempt to determine the cause of the intermittent lameness he has suffered over the past while. He is a 17yo 15.3 ISH, and given his foot conformation, and the way the lameness has presented itself, I think the issue will probably be something in his hoof.

If this is the case, I'm not sure I want to go down the remedial shoeing route. Evidently if it is a hoof issue then conventional shoeing isn't working for him either. I am wary of remedial shoeing simply acting as a means to mask the problem, rather than cure it.

Given the symptoms he is presenting I feel it could be heel pain or perhaps something under the umbrella navicular syndrome. Should this be the case, I feel now may be the time to adapt his diet to make it further foot-friendly. He is currently on Hifi lite and http://www.redmills.co.uk/uk/horse/products/product/?id=494&parent=357 - link as I'm not sure if it's available outside of NI - with a joint and hoof supplement. Perhaps a change to a completely plain chaff and inclusion of linseed would make this more hoof friendly, ie a switch from the hifi, but continuing with the hard feed? Or does anyone have any other recommendations?

I won't do anything without the OK from the vet, although I suspect, depending on the outcome, that I may have to have a bit of a 'discussion'.. any pointers?

Of course, it may be something completely different.. but at this stage I want to do what's best for my boy and I feel that his feet are telling me that they are 'sick'.

Apologies for vagueness of this post and the questions, just a lot of thoughts floating around my head at the moment!
 
Sorry to hear about your horse but I definately think you getting the diet sorted is one of the best things you can do. If you pm Oberon she has a file that is full of hints tips nd helpful advice concerning barefoot. Hope you manage to get things sorted out.
 
Sorry cant see your link.

Can eco using Oberons fab feed info, really helped me to sort out my mare on the barefoot path.
Not sure what joint sup you are using but on ebay from Progressive Earth, their pro feet is brilliant stuff!
 
Thank you both! Have pm'd a couple of resident experts on the issue. Vet has phoned and he has issues with coffin joint and navicular. I feel unshod may really help so will discuss with vet this evening.
 
Sheep said:
Thank you both! Have pm'd a couple of resident experts on the issue. Vet has phoned and he has issues with coffin joint and navicular. I feel unshod may really help so will discuss with vet this evening.
Click to expand...

Do. Bear in mind most vets for many years described navicular as 'Incurable' whereas the increased use of scans and x rays reveals the blindingly obvious fact that shoeing places the navicular at a completely unnatural angle and also forces it to bear weight to an extent it's completely not designed to do.....result...navicular.

Taking away the shoes isn't the complete solution but it's absolutely key first step and lots of 'Incurable ' cases have turned out to be anything but :-)

The coffin joint is not so directly impacted by shod/not shod but will certainly be helped by the hoof returning to a more natural shape and position.
 
lachlanandmarcus said:
Do. Bear in mind most vets for many years described navicular as 'Incurable' whereas the increased use of scans and x rays reveals the blindingly obvious fact that shoeing places the navicular at a completely unnatural angle and also forces it to bear weight to an extent it's completely not designed to do.....result...navicular.

Taking away the shoes isn't the complete solution but it's absolutely key first step and lots of 'Incurable ' cases have turned out to be anything but :-)

The coffin joint is not so directly impacted by shod/not shod but will certainly be helped by the hoof returning to a more natural shape and position.
Click to expand...

Thank you for that :) The vet has said there are some 'changes' to the coffin joint and the tendon attached to the navicular bone (please excuse my possible misuse of terms, I don't know all the names!) is under some strain, caused by the shape of his feet. Presumably then allowing the feet to grow as they should to cope with his conformation etc would reduce this strain. I suspect the vet will want to go down the shoes with heels route, but my farrier may be open to more suggestion. So with veterinary support (even if he is dubious about it) I would like to try removing the shoes. Perhaps this could help prevent the problem degenerating further into a full blown navicular crisis, for want of a better description. He also has some issues with his hocks and I feel perhaps removing the shoes will help reduce concussion. Ah, lots to think about. Collecting him from vets tonight and farrier is due in about 2 weeks time, though I may see if I can get him out a little sooner to discuss our options.
 
Faracat said:
Don't be surprised if the Vet isn't keen on BF, but having said that you might be lucky and have a Vet who is up to date with the work going on at Rockley. :)
Click to expand...

Haha, true. Vet is.. straight to the point and doesn't beat around the bush, but I think if I can put across my rationale logically I can't see how he can object. I know my farrier would probably support it. I can't see how putting on more metal is going to suddenly thicken his soles and make his hoof work properly.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top