Hoof Changes

D

debneale

Member
Joined
9 April 2010
Messages
20
Visit site
When we bought our thoroughbredxsellefrancais about a year ago his feet were quite boxy but he had not had a history of lameness or worries in the hoof department. We took on a new farrier, recommended by a vet, but none of my horsey friends (nor I) had heard of him. He did not like the shape of his hooves and has been making them wider over the year. However, we have had two bouts of lameness and the last one is costing a fortune because we could not find the cause. Eventually, a corn was identified and drained. He was also found to be very unbalanced on his fronts according to x-rays. He is now sound and on remedial shoes (also costing a fortune). He is also on a very expensive hoof supplement. On the last farrier visit the heel on one hoof appears to be growing down slightly. Should I question the farrier about why he felt it necessary to change the shape of the hoof or should I give him time (and more money)?
 
debneale said:
1. ...his feet were quite boxy. He did not like the shape of his hooves and has been making them wider over the year.

2. He was also found to be very unbalanced on his fronts according to x-rays.

3. ...the heel on one hoof appears to be growing down slightly.

4. Should I question the farrier about why he felt it necessary to change the shape of the hoof or should I give him time (and more money)?
Click to expand...



1. Making them wider; he may feel they are contracted and be un-contracting the heel.

If not, is he allowing the quarters to flare?

or, he may feel previous farriers have taken too much sole off and is increasing the capsule's conical footprint by allowing greater sole thickness.

2. He should be balancing his trim with reference to the live sole plane, which will position the pedal bone square to the horizontal ground surface when viewed from the front.

3. One higher heel on the front is often due to grazing stance where that foot is regularly placed under the body. This is still the case with the presence of a shoe, but could of course be easily trimmed.

4. For some reason farriers seem reluctant to share information, but always worth asking.
 
As a farrier I always insist that the vet and I keep each other fully aware of any changes that either of us wishes to make, and the reasons we wish to make them.
Of course we will discus with the owner why and what we would like to do, and if we are all in agreement then ‘The Team’ can get to work
In your case I would love to know a lot more about why the feet were ‘Boxy’ and how the farrier intended to make them change.
Now that I only treat referrals with a barefoot system, answers to the questions above are a lot easier to obtain.
Corns, like pre navicular syndrome are becoming a thing of the past; this is due to farriers becoming aware of the causes, and shoeing accordingly.
You ask if you should question your farrier: I personally would call a meeting of Vet and Farrier, explain your worries and ask them to come up with a plan, if they can’t, then you have a ‘Team Problem’
The owners main job when thinking of the health of their animal is one of delegation, pick the right team and all is well, pick the wrong one and you find yourself making the decisions you hoped others would make for you.
I always advise clients to first pick their vet, and then get the vet to ask the farrier to join the team
1) They will pick someone who they can work with
2) The client won’t pick someone they don’t like working with.
Message to all Clients: Please remember Vets do not like disrespecting farriers, they would rather dis. another vet!
 
Thanks for your answer. Sorry for delay in responding. Not quite sure why they were 'boxy'. The previous owner did say (after we had bought him) that the previous farrier had taken time to get his feet balanced and his heel was high. I will ask for a meeting. I have spoken to my vet about my concerns and he says I should give it a little time - but it has been a year now that his feet have been changing and the previous owner never had lameness and bruising like he is showing now. I can't help concluding that the changing shape of his hooves has resulted in all the problems.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top