Foot Sore!

milesjess

milesjess

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Horse has just had his front shoes removed to make the transition to barefoot but he's foot sore and very tender on gravel/ hard ground (he only has a few steps on it) but can anyone suggest anything?

Thinking of some boots for him but can they stay on all day or would they rub?

He's quite soft and flat at the moment with a few cracks too. Farrier has seen him and said obviously it's something that'll take time but any help to make it as pain free as possible for him would be appreciated :)
 
My TB was 20yr old when I took him BF, he used cavello simple boots initially, when he was very footy padded out with baby nappies, if I know we are going on very stony ground, I still use just nappies a year on, I wouldn't use boots 24/7, your horse shouldn't need them in the field, the more you get him out and about, even with protection, the quicker his progress, good luck, well worth doing
 
I am hoping to take my horse barefoot, but I am waiting for the ground to be softer before taking the plunge.
It will take time for him to harden up, I think your going to have to wait and see
 
Diet is the most important thing! Get the diet right, get some miles on the clock, with boots if needs be and most horses will come right. MY boys feet were a mess! Shoes came off and we had some problems, caused by his crapy feet and not great shoeing, culminating in him ending up in horsepital :( However hes now had his shoes off for 6 weeks and had a good barefoot diet for nearly 3 months and hes sound, way sounder than he ever was in shoes! Hes still ridden in his boots as the track out of the yard is very gritty for nearly a mile, and then the tracks are very stony. He stomps over them in his boots :) His new hoof that hes growing is soo much better! Better angle, better quality etc, so I;m feeling confident that a few months from now, once his outstanding issues are fixed and hes grown a good hoof that he will be sound over all terrain. Even if hes not, the boots are so easy to put on so I would be happy with booting him forever more for riding :)
 
He is out on grass for 6-8 hours per day.

He gets 2 big nets of hay per night and X1 feed at night which is ... 2 handfuls of Dengie Hi Fi and 1/2 cup of Saracen Shape Up Balancer, 1 small scoop of garlic.

I'm putting an anti fungel ointment on daily.

He's got a large rubber mat outside his stable so he's literally taking 3-4 steps onto hard ground and that's it but I was thinking of using Pro Hoof Hard Rock to help? And buying a pair of boots for when the ground in the field is hard.

Would a feed supplement be of any use also?
 
So I've read up a little and think a re-assessment of his diet is a good idea?

Allen and page fast fibre
Linseed oil
Plus 2 large nets of hay

Would that be suitable for him?
 
Thanks I'll have a look at it :)

I think mine will eat anything really, but with the fast fibre I'm assuming it can be mixed? Or soaked?
 
His diet doesn't sound so bad to me :) but changes can always be good and might be just the ticket.

If your horse has just had his shoes removed it will take awhile for his feet to toughen up and grow a callous. The cracks will also be quite tender until they grow out :) It's worth bearing in mind that some horses never toughen up sufficiently because their hooves are naturally thin soled or they don't move with a straight clean action which wears the hooves quicker. I wish you luck on your barefoot journey!
 
I would take him off the hi fi (due to the molasses) and the garlic.

I use fast fibre (it is soaked) or speedibeet as my base, and micronised linseed and add a hoof based low iron supplement I choose to use equimins advanced complete pellets but pro hoof/forage plus are also good though possibly less palatable. (I can't find a mineral breakdown of what is in the saracen one you are currently feeding).

Frank has flat feet too and I think we were a bit lucky that we had a rather wet summer when we transitioned! People have used boots for turnout though and I think have used cavallos which are relatively cheap and forgiving with fit - sometimes with added mens socks to prevent rubbing ;).
 
Most hoof hardeners contain formaldehyde an just work by drying the hoof out - most barefooters would completely avoid them.
 
I think hardeners work by cross linking the polymers making up the hoof, not by drying the hoof out. If the horse is foot sore, it's in pain. Therefore, any way you can help the horse is good to consider. I would not leave boots on for too long, in case of rubs, and they get fetid and smelly.
 
Thanks - Thankfully it's rained again so the ground is soft today too!

I've picked up some Pro Feet feed supplement, Allen and Page Fast Fibre and Pro Feet Hoof Treatment to apply daily, which says it combats cracks/ helps to harden them up etc...

Looking at hoof boots for the future also for hacking etc so will make sure they are well fitted/ padded. In the meantime he is taken 3-4 steps on gravel so I'll have to pick up some extra rubber matting just to cover that bit too so he's not stepping onto it. Plus more bedding to keep him off the ground :)

Shall see how he goes with more fibre in his diet and the other changes. Fingers crossed it'll help, I know he was going to be sore but just want to help him were I can and try to speed up the healing process.
 
milesjess said:
Thanks -
Looking at hoof boots for the future also for hacking etc so will make sure they are well fitted/ padded. In the meantime he is taken 3-4 steps on gravel so I'll have to pick up some extra rubber matting just to cover that bit too so he's not stepping onto it. Plus more bedding to keep him off the ground :)
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you should be able to pick up carpet offcuts or old carpets for free from carpet warehouse skips or council recycling centre. You can roll out a length of carpet to cover the stones etc and then give him a couple of weeks to sort himself out before doing anything. Carpet works very well and is cheap.
 
teabiscuit said:
I think hardeners work by cross linking the polymers making up the hoof, not by drying the hoof out. If the horse is foot sore, it's in pain. Therefore, any way you can help the horse is good to consider. I would not leave boots on for too long, in case of rubs, and they get fetid and smelly.
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Some do, some don't but quite a lot contain drying agents too (formaldehyde/alcohols) and if a horse is footy I am not sure they will truely make any difference. Pines of Rome on here certainly used boots for turnout on her boy initially successfully so it is perfectly doable.

OP covering the gravel seems like the best solution for the time being. When it comes to selecting boots fit is imperative. There are several UK stockists who are all great with advice if you take hoof measurements - the saddlery shop and equine podiatry supplies are two and I know there is another one that people suggest too.

I hope it goes well :)
 
Of course hardeners don't work overnight but can be a useful addition to reduce discomfort for the foot sore horse if that's what you want to do.

I think formaldahyde is a cross linking agent isn't it?
It's in my revlon nail hardener too.
 
Yes it is, I have only used it for histology though and can't get my head round putting it on my horse's feet. I wasn't suggesting it would work overnight but am just not sure the horse would notice the difference if for example it has flat thin soles I'd be surprised if it made a horse less sensitive before it had thickened it's own soles, though some do seem to find that it makes their horse more comfortable.
 
milesjess said:
I've picked up some Pro Feet feed supplement, Allen and Page Fast Fibre and Pro Feet Hoof Treatment to apply daily, which says it combats cracks/ helps to harden them up etc....
Click to expand...

This isnt the same as Prohoof/balance, forage plus etc. Diet is so, so important for feet. Mine gets pro hoof, linseed, mag chloride, bicarbonate of soda and salt for his feet. I would def look to change the pro feet
 
Mine was turned out in boots for a while intially as well, and is ridden in them. Hes fine on smooth tarmac etc, but gritty stony tracks are too much at the minute. His shoes have only been off since mid July though and he had absolutely terrible feet!
 
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