Foot progress?!?!

atlantis

atlantis

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Lottie been barefoot since I bought her. She got thrush very quickly when she was on box rest during her first season and her feet quickly deteriorated.

Here was her worst foot then.,,

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A couple of months ago...

CB8D327C-63BE-4466-9EFE-56D99AC96EB4_zpslwpnpqcv.jpg


And this morning...

43F611BB-9EEC-4852-AEEE-B746ADC36635_zpsp4jqqhku.jpg


Thoughts?

She has a bit of thrush in her central sulcus and down the sides of the frog again. Not sure it's visible on the pics. It was great last week but I've been away with work and stupidly didn't ask the girls on the yard to spray her feet. So we're back on hoof paste all round today!!

She also needs a trim and I need to sort a trimmer or farrier. Any recomendations? Also got Physio coming on Thursday as she's tight through her shoulders again which is a work in progress. Almost lame but not really again but I'm pretty certain it's her shoulders it was before (full work up at vets which found nothing and Physio helped immediately) so I'm pretty sure it'll be better after Thursday. I've booked for 1 month after too.

Also I added magnesium to her feed (on top of her pro hoof) and I might be imagining it but I think the fat pads on her shoulders and crest might be smaller. Didn't get pics though which was silly.

Thoughts?
 
The frog is shaping up nicely. The groove shaped pared on the top of the frog is a good staging shape for more improvement. The central sulcis should be a mere thumbprint depression on top of the frog, not as deep as this, but with continued thrush care, it will become more shallow. There is still a bit of a crack below it and is important that you get clean right down to the bottom, or a leading edge of infection will continue to eat deeper while you think everything is fine at the surface. I use Q-Tips to gently clean and explore the length and depth of that crack and it will get shallower and be gone as well and the war against thrush won't be over until it is. I can see that you are doing your homework well and having some serious cleaning sessions and its paying off. Carry on.
One thing that will help with eliminating aggravation at the shoulder is not being in a situation where she is due for a trim, but staying on top of the trim at all times. The material behind the toe wall is showing old "bite-back" from a longer toe in the past and still needs to get ironed out. The quarters are long and this is what causes sidebone and could also be jamming up the leg on her, creating a path of pathology towards the shoulder. The quarters are the arch of her foot. If the wall is above live sole at the quarters, then the arch has filled in with growth and is locked up/mechanism lost. Bringing the quarters down even with the sole and bringing that height straight back to the heels is going to put the heels right where they belong...under the horse's descending weight for a heel first landing. The bars are a bit displaced/flared and long, causing separation at the quarters and heels not back to the widest part of the frog yet. I'm sure these things will be remedied at the next trim, but staying on top of the trim and your wonderful thrush care will ensure that she has good mechanism that rolls forward properly and no barriers of torque in her step that can jam up her leg. When these things I've mentioned about the trim are realized, you'll pick up the foot and there will be nothing much to pick out. Look at the ground around you and you'll see dirt donuts that she's been spitting out with every step...self cleaning her hoof. Then you've arrived. You've done good homework and she has nice feets! I keep telling everybody that getting spanking clean is 3/4's of the battle against thrush and you get it ....nice!
 
Brilliant thank you!!!!! The biomechanics makes perfect sense. I'll get the farrier booked for asap her feet have suddenly grown too long (or I've only just noticed).

We moved yards and so I have needed to get something sorted and the time has flown by. I'm annoyed about the thrush but like you said it's not completely gone so I need to get back on it!!!!!

Gggrrrr!!! But I think we're getting there!!
 
Moved yards as wasn't getting roadwork so she is now 3-4 times a week but that's only been for the last 3 weeks. I built it up gradually. Frig has changed since then really. Changed farrier too and now I know what to look for I think I've picked the right one. I like my friends horses feet (barefoot) I just need to get him booked. Wasn't happy with old farrier he had one chance and he blew it
 
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