Heart bars for palmar foot pain - good or bad?

Hi, for anyone that's interested here's an update on my situation.

My boy is in his third set of heart bars now, he pretty much came sound straight away with the first set and stayed sound (just walking though). His second set went on and we had a week of lameness a couple of days after they were on, I don't know if this was down to standing on a stone while out hacking or just that the problem decided to show itself again. Came sound and started trot work and stayed sound. Had his third set on and started some canter work. On Friday 11th I rode him out, he stumbled up the verge coming out of our drive and then rode lame. Monday 14th I trotted him up and half way down the yard went lame. By the time I turned him out he was awful in walk, although come Tuesday evening he was trotting and playing with my other horse and looked totally sound. Wednesday he cantered past me and looked sound. Wednesday evening I trotted him up and he was sound. How does a horse go from looking crippled in walk to sound!?

I rode him this Saturday in the fields and had a few cheeky canters and bucks, when I turned him out he pulled a shoe as he thought horses moving fields was an excuse to gallop across the field! He was quite lame without this as I expected and I couldn't get his boot on as his foot is now too wide! I gave him a bit of bute sunday morning to help with the soreness. He had his heartbar put back on on Monday morning and is still lame in walk. Usually in the past if he has pulled a shoe, as soon as it goes back on he's sound. So for him to still be lame in walk is worrying me a lot. I spoke to the vet when he went lame last week and he decided to put on a fourth set of heart bars which are due on the 30th. It is clear to me that heart bars are not going to resolve this although the farrier reckons his feet are looking better.

I've started reading feet first and i'm now worried i'm just destroying his feet. If heartbars make the palmar aspect of the foot worse which is where his pain is, is that why he is now so lame in walk with his shoe on because his heel is now even worse? I'm really being torn apart now i'm reading the book. The more I think about how my farrier is trying to make his foot correct the more I think this is a big part of the problem. Why do they insist on trying to get rid of flare (or what I now know is actually hoof wall deviation on my boy) when poor confirmation is the cause, his hoof is not set central on his pastern, its obvious it will never go! I knew that before I even started reading the book but now its pretty much confirmed that for me.

I've just spoken to the vets, not the one treating Marley as he is away but I asked if they will do referrals to Rockley and they have done in the past. The vet decided to tell me about the one case that didn't work because they sent it home from Rockley thinking it had cushings and still lame. Didn't tell me about the others that did work! Although she didn't say no to sending him and almost suggested I try barefoot. I would love to send him and I know it would probably be best to be rehabbed by professionals but there is a part of me that wants to keep him home. Travelling long distance is an issue for him and I have to consider how my other horse will cope without him. But if I did it myself i'm not sure with the nights getting shorter if I would be able to do the work needed on the roads. I would be limited to weekends only for roads and the school for the rest of the time.

Do I put the last set of heart bars on and wait till the ground is that bit softer, or do I just bite the bullet and make the decision to either do it now or send him to Rockley (providing insurance covers it which I am going to check now). Just feel like i'm being pulled in so many different directions and I really don't know what to do, although deep down I probably know.
 
I'd try for the referral to Rockley. Nothing ventured nothing gained! Your boy is lucky to have such a caring owner. If Rockley is a no go on insurance, you could try a rehab at home as a back up. If you have to do that, wait until the end of a shoeing cycle before pulling the shoes. Good luck & please keep us posted.
 
You could put the shoes on (normal shoes are an option if you are wary of the heartbars) while you decide what to do. I think that it would be worth trying to get the referral to rockley if your insurance will cover it. If you can't get him to rockley, then a BF rehab at home/livery would be plan B.
 
It is perfectly possible for most people to rehab at home, Rockley gives them an excellent start but many have teething problems when they get back home too.

The farrier is possibly perfectly correct that his feet look better, on the outside. Frank's certainly did after 2 lots of egg bars. They weren't any better on the inside where they needed to be though.
 
Well I've just spoken to insurance and now i'm totally confused! I explained I wanted to know if they would cover a barefoot rehab and when asked what it was I said they take the shoes off and rehab the hoof to make it sound. The lady started off saying they would cover it but then went on to say that they would cover any treatment and remedial shoeing but wouldn't cover the costs of the horse staying there, so i'm guessing they don't actually cover it seeing as there is no "treatment" as such or shoeing. I imagine the cost of the horse staying there isn't cheap and certainly can't afford three lots of livery. Looks like it will have to be plan B and do it myself with a trimmer.
 
ester said:
It is perfectly possible for most people to rehab at home, Rockley gives them an excellent start but many have teething problems when they get back home too.

The farrier is possibly perfectly correct that his feet look better, on the outside. Frank's certainly did after 2 lots of egg bars. They weren't any better on the inside where they needed to be though.
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I think this is exactly what I have. Perhaps they look technically better on the outside but worse on the inside. Think I'm going to speak with mark again and possibly another lady I've just come across Linda Kerry.
 
xStephx said:
Well I've just spoken to insurance and now i'm totally confused! I explained I wanted to know if they would cover a barefoot rehab and when asked what it was I said they take the shoes off and rehab the hoof to make it sound. The lady started off saying they would cover it but then went on to say that they would cover any treatment and remedial shoeing but wouldn't cover the costs of the horse staying there, so i'm guessing they don't actually cover it seeing as there is no "treatment" as such or shoeing. I imagine the cost of the horse staying there isn't cheap and certainly can't afford three lots of livery. Looks like it will have to be plan B and do it myself with a trimmer.
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I'm not certain, but would guess this means they cover the treatment costs but not the livery. When my sister's horse went to Rockley, Nic divided the invoice in two, with part covering treatment and part covering livery. I'd imagine it's the first part that your insurance will cover, but worth clarifying.
 
Thanks. I thought that would probably be how it works. Which means I'll have to try myself as i just can't afford three lots of livery for probably 12 weeks. Wish I could but I can't.
 
Also depends on the insurance company and your policy. Some pay under the alternative/complementary therapy part, some have an alternative husbandry cost if you need special livery. Some refuse to pay out full stop.

My horse went to rockley but a friend with a similar problem couldn't afford it and the insurance had run out. Hers was in eggbars I think with initial improvement that wasn't sustained. She rehabbed at home and horse is still doing well 4 years later.
 
Nic will tell you what insurance companies do and don't pay out. Most you will have to pay half of the cost (aka the livery as it will be split into livery and treatment). L

If you can't afford that, your going to have to go it alone. Take the shoes off, be brave and trust your instincts. Even if you can't put in much walk work coming into winter he's still going to be better off without shoes, it just might mean progress is slower. The ground is pretty soft now so I wouldn't worry too much, you might need some new boots? T lived in his 24/7 initially with no ill effects just be careful of rubbing. Get some pads, if your horse is really sore then try the 12mm soft easycare pads. The EP pads from the equine podiatry website are great, you cut to size, and last much longer but a bit firm for a really sore horse.

If you really don't want to barefoot it just yet can I suggest you look into easycare shoes. Your farrier can get them direct from the Stromsholm (or you can- just pretend to be your farriers wife!!! ;) ). If he is open minded and willing to learn I can give you the details of a farrier in the UK who was fabulous and spoke in great detail with my own farrier to give him advice on how to fit them. They aren't easy!

Alternatively if you are in Berkshire or Northamptonshire both the above mentioned farrier and my own farrier can fit them. My farrier has only done them once, on my horse.

FWIW my horse was still put down but these shoes helped him greatly when the ground was just too hard for him to be barefoot and boots started causing problems of there own after months of constant use. He had other issues but had he not I firmly believe we would have won the battle on his feet, the improvement was incredible. And he was an ex racer with the most awful feet.

Masses of luck and do your homework re feeding and minerals. There are so many knowledgable people on here who will guide you and help you.

And well done for being open minded. It's not easy when so many vets and farriers don't agree with barefoot but things are slowly changing. Best of luck x
 
sStephx, feeling your pain! I am facing the similar decisions.
I dont want to hijack this but my 5 yr old was diagnosed on 22nd by MRI with marked side bone formation and moderate thickening of ligaments of the side bone that attach to coffin joint, front feet.
They want to put heart bar shoes on her next week.
She has never had shoes on and the problem presented as mild lameness a few months after we started schooling her. She had done little before we got her 9 months ago.
She has had farrier trims. I know very little about barefoot trimming etc but am concerned that remedial shoes will lead to further problems.
I am facing the opinion of a world renowned vet school but my gut instinct is niggling.
 
I'm also doing bf route I'm 4 months in with tb and have done everything at home . I used insurance for treatment . Just put my boy into easy boots trail s and he trotted sound yesterday without rider . Tbs can cope he's a complete wimp . Pro balancer plat version is what was recommended to me plus linseed .
 
'I'm also doing bf route I'm 4 months in with tb and have done everything at home . I used insurance for treatment'

cellie, what sort of treatment did your insurance pay for? I'm deffo going to go same way.
 
varda said:
sStephx, feeling your pain! I am facing the similar decisions.
I dont want to hijack this but my 5 yr old was diagnosed on 22nd by MRI with marked side bone formation and moderate thickening of ligaments of the side bone that attach to coffin joint, front feet.
They want to put heart bar shoes on her next week.
She has never had shoes on and the problem presented as mild lameness a few months after we started schooling her. She had done little before we got her 9 months ago.
She has had farrier trims. I know very little about barefoot trimming etc but am concerned that remedial shoes will lead to further problems.
I am facing the opinion of a world renowned vet school but my gut instinct is niggling.
Click to expand...

I am not convinced by this special barefoot trim business, a good farrier trims the horse then fits the shoe, there is nothing special except they don't take quite so much off, and round off the walls, the horse does the rest if he is managed successfully.
 
Well I've taken the plunge and the shoes are off! After losing a shoe towards the end of September he was lame for about two weeks after the shoe was put back on (was only off two days) and the lameness presented in both feet. One after the other. Which showed me the problem was still there and the heart bars were doing nothing. I contacted a lady called Linda Kerry as she is local to me and had a long chat with her and made an appointment for the 12th. Last weekend he was sound and I'd managed two rides so I decided to go for a hack and see if I could find a breaking point. He got quite excited and took off and I didn't have much in the way of brakes so I let him. Well it wasn't till I was back on the road and he sounded funny that I realised he'd lost a shoe.

What came next had my jaw on the floor. He walked home fine and I expected a cripple later that evening. But he wasn't and come Monday he looked absolutely fine in the field. I had been umming and arghing what to do as he had been sound and i'd said to him i wish he could tell me what to do. Not being a cripple made my mind up and that Monday his remaining shoe was coming off.

I bought some sole mates from Linda to put in his boots. I didn't put them in straight away as wanted to see how he would cope without. Tuesday night he was a bit sore on his left foot so decided to put them in. They made a difference straight away. I have seen slight progress every day and I am absolutely amazed. The horse that had to be shod one foot at a time because he couldn't stand barefoot is now able to stand barefoot. I can pick his feet up albeit not for a long time but enough to clean them. He is now walking in his boots and pads around the field almost sound.

I know it's only the start and a long way to go yet but I know it's the right choice and just so pleased to see he is somewhat comfy and not crippled like I know he could be. I have been advised to hand walk only to start with (I wouldn't dream of riding yet anyway ) and I will start this this weekend. Hopefully this will stimulate his feet and they can start to function properly and support him how they should do and also grow better with the right diet.

If anyone knows of Linda I'd love to hear your feedback.
 
Sorry I don't know of Linda but I'm pleased to read a happy post. Onwards and upwards with the rest of your journey, fingers tightly crossed that given some time u will be on the road to long term soundness!!
 
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