Help needed with little feet!

[Muffin]

I own an 18 month old welsh d colt whos in good condition and conformation apart from his hooves which are concerning me as they still seem small and they re giving me the impression hes on his 'tiptoes' slightly,particularly on his hinds.
Was thinking of having him shod to try and encourage his foot to open out a bit more and
be more on the heel and less upright but this is only a last resort as I'm not keen on shoeing youngsters.
Any help/farrier advice would be great. Was thinking of feeding a supplement but dont know which really work. I've bever had one with little feet before, always having things with dinner plates!

Thankyou

 

[TheFarrier]

shoes will not encourage his feet to expand. I am concerned that you are seriously considering shoeing an 18month old whose growth plates are not formed yet! Also i am concerned that you do not seem to have discussed this with your farrier

Why on earth are you asking this on a forum (where neither the horse or its feet can be properly and professionally assessed) and not talking to your farrier (the one i am hoping you have doing your colts feet) about his hooves and whether or not there is any problem with them and how the farrier plans on rectifying it (if possible).

It is entirely possible that his feet are correct as they are, and as long as the colt is getting a balanced diet he doesnt need any suppliaments. I suggest walking him out in hand (short walks) every day on a tarmac surface to encourage the feet to expand as this is good practice whether there is a problem with his feet or not. As it will stimulate the feet to grow correctly. I would not recommend more than 10 min or so a day at his age and developmental phase.

 

[LucyPriory]

shoes will not encourage his feet to expand. I am concerned that you are seriously considering shoeing an 18month old whose growth plates are not formed yet! Also i am concerned that you do not seem to have discussed this with your farrier

Why on earth are you asking this on a forum (where neither the horse or its feet can be properly and professionally assessed) and not talking to your farrier (the one i am hoping you have doing your colts feet) about his hooves and whether or not there is any problem with them and how the farrier plans on rectifying it (if possible).

It is entirely possible that his feet are correct as they are, and as long as the colt is getting a balanced diet he doesnt need any suppliaments. I suggest walking him out in hand (short walks) every day on a tarmac surface to encourage the feet to expand as this is good practice whether there is a problem with his feet or not. As it will stimulate the feet to grow correctly. I would not recommend more than 10 min or so a day at his age and developmental phase.

I agree!

 

[xxMozlarxx]

This is a FORUM, isnt that where questions can be asked????

 

[brucea]

The Farrier....

100% agree - totally sensible advice - but go easy on the OP!!

Agree with the others - just make sure his minerals are adequate and he gets enough stimulation to his feet.

He may well look a bit upright behind at this stage. I have a 3 year old at the moment and he went through a major growth spurt before xmas - he looked a bit upright when we bought him back in April - not any more, he looks fine now! No doubt he'll go through another phase of looking gangly before he finally settles!

 

[Muffin]

Thankyou for your comments,I was simply asking for peoples previous experiences/thoughts. I will be discussing my colts feet with my farrier next week and wouldnt have him shod unless advised to. Having worked in yearling prep and show yards some youngsters are shod from an early age,even though I ve never been keen on the practice.

 

[Oberon]

It woud depend on whether you wanted to keep riding the horse over the age of 12.