Shoeing Laminitic pony

ktj1891

ktj1891

Well-Known Member
Joined
15 March 2010
Messages
1,584
Visit site
What is the things to watch for? What and how would you expect your farrier to do it? Pony isn't currently laminitic but feet are in bad shape and shes sore on them. Would you even have them shod?

Advice please?
 
I dont think i would her her shod unless it is to have pads fitted..If the pony is sore now she would be very uncomfortable having nails hammered in..I would just go for a good trim and see if the farrier can sort the feet out first..
 
No I wouldn't shoe.
I much prefer laminitics to be unshod as it is so much easier to spot any footiness early. I'd deal with diet and any metabolic issues and use boots and pads if necessary, they're much easier to adjust to keep the pony comfy if he does need hoof protection and the hoof can be trimmed when needed.
If the pony is currently footsore then I'd treat as low grade laminitis anyway.
 
I would not shoe a pony with sore feet, I'd feel it necessary to find out why his sore are feet. Shoeing healthy feet is one thing, but sick feet need to be made healthy first imo.

Diet is the first step. What's the pony eating?
 
rema said:
I dont think i would her her shod unless it is to have pads fitted..If the pony is sore now she would be very uncomfortable having nails hammered in..I would just go for a good trim and see if the farrier can sort the feet out first..
Click to expand...

So it wouldn't help to have her shod, was just thinking in terms of support but she would be more comfortable without?
 
ktj1891 said:
So it wouldn't help to have her shod, was just thinking in terms of support but she would be more comfortable without?
Click to expand...

It would not offer any support, but it would inhibit the natural contraction and expansion of the hoof. Once the shoe is on, it would therefore reduce the blood flow to the hoof. This would reduce feeling, therefore have a type of anaesthetic effect. It would not prevent laminitis, however - more like giving a bute to mask symptoms (only somewhat more permanent).
 
I think having her shod would not be a good idea..If you are worried about her being footsore you could stable her on a nice thick bed..It does sound like she could be having a touch of Lami at the moment..Has the vet seen her?.
 
i would shoe, i had my boy barefoot for over a yr, all pedel bones rotated... being barefoot was not working, had shoes back on a few months now and never looked back.. best thing i did for that pony was having his shoes back on.. but i did wait untill his feet healed after the mess the barefoot trimmer made....make sure you use a farrier not a B F/trimmer...
 
TwoStroke said:
I would not shoe a pony with sore feet, I'd feel it necessary to find out why his sore are feet. Shoeing healthy feet is one thing, but sick feet need to be made healthy first imo.

Diet is the first step. What's the pony eating?
Click to expand...

My friend has just got her back where she wasn't being looked after and left to get fat. Shes 14hh and weighs 467kg and has a very cresty neck. After coming back to her shes was wormed straight away. Shes been left in a stable for 4 months as 'deemed' to fat and therefore needed to stay in and hadn't had her feet done for over a year. She had her feet done last week but farrier only took a little off due to now being done in so long.

Shes now being fed soaked hay and fast fibre and we be on pro balance + once is arrives. We took her in lunge pen day after she came back as shes a very sharp pony when kept in so to do anything safely with her we needed to let the sting out of her first. We then bathed her and put antibacterial stuff on her feet as shes gotten rotten frogs. This then proceeded to make her hobbling lame but she appears to be fine again this morning.
 
If she is uncomfy (and once the stuff advised by vet to address this eg diet are in place), then boots and pads will make her comfy when (initially) in the field and (subsequently) coming back into work.

Shoes will not allow the frog to develop and to come into contact with the ground, which is what helps to pump blood around the hoof, which you need to help avoid lami in future. Nor will it allow the back of the hoof (the two bulb like bits as you look from the back) to develop to help bear more of the weight and stop the toes taking all the weight, which again you need to help them avoid lami.

In addition as the other posters have said, shoes do a great job in the short term of making horses appear comfortable - in reality with a horse that is lami prone this is the last thing you want, you need to know when they are starting to flare up with issues so you can take avoiding action eg take them off the grass and with shoes the first thing you will know will be when they have had low grade chronic lami for a while without you knowing and they come in one day with a really serious attack.
 
Thrush will also make the pony footsore, even lame if bad enough, my bet is that once you get on top of that the pony will improve dramatically.
 
amymay said:
Is it too obvious a question?:p
Click to expand...

Sorry I didn't answer your question immediately. Shes not my pony and shes only been back for 2 days so no a vet hasn't been brought out as shes not laminitic but we are treating her as laminitic in terms of her management.

It is up to her owner whether she believes the vet is needed, but the vet will be coming out at some point to do her jabs etc so I am sure she will speak to them then.
 
Just to clarify she was only sore/lame once she had been let loose in lunge pen and then had her feet scrubbed. This morning she was walking around okay. Just wanted to see peoples views on shoeing an over weight/ previously laminitic pony. Shes prone to a cresty neck and being overweight and shes had laminitis once before I believe through concussion.
 
this is my pony i have got back by the way, shes got very soft feet from being stuck in a stable in wee and crap, her feet and heels are all rotten, will get farrier out to her as soon as i can, shes also walking on her heels a bit as her feet got left too long and her heels are all rotten and infected as well, they are being disinfected at the moment.
 
Ooo, sounds nasty. Would definately NOT go with shoes until the feet are in a better condition.

Does sound as if you need a vet too, and I wouldn't leave it too long before you get them out.
 
ps i have only just got her back, she will be having the vet out to her but the only problem she has is thrush in the feet and soft heels, she has had concussion laminitus once in her life and hasnt had it since, but as i have got her back in this state she has gone onto a diet but she doesnt have laminitus.
 
DawnR said:
this is my pony i have got back by the way, shes got very soft feet from being stuck in a stable in wee and crap, her feet and heels are all rotten, will get farrier out to her as soon as i can, shes also walking on her heels a bit as her feet got left too long and her heels are all rotten and infected as well, they are being disinfected at the moment.
Click to expand...

poor pony it sounds horried... have you tried purple spray? or anti bac from the vets great stuff...
 
ktj1891 said:
Just to clarify she was only sore/lame once she had been let loose in lunge pen and then had her feet scrubbed. This morning she was walking around okay. Just wanted to see peoples views on shoeing an over weight/ previously laminitic pony. Shes prone to a cresty neck and being overweight and shes had laminitis once before I believe through concussion.
Click to expand...

It sounds far more likely that she got laminitis through being overweight. Keeping the weight off her is the best plan of action imo :).

DawnR - horses should land heel first; that's a good thing. If the heel first landing is exaggerated however, that's a warning sign for laminitis. It sounds like thrush may be the cause of the sensitivity, so sort that out and keep her weight down. Shoeing is really missing the point, imo ;).
 
rema said:
Don't waste your money on AntiBac it is only diluted Eucalyptus oil in which you can buy a 100ml bottle for a tenner and it will last you years.
Click to expand...

my vets make there own up, and its not only diluted eucalyptus... other stuff in it, cant look as its up the yard.. i will look though..:)
 
she got concussion laminitus from trotting on the roads and that was years ago. shes just got soft feet at the moment and they stink, i have put lincoln hoof disinfectant on them and the heels and it made them sore and she was just sore footed from it.
 
Shoeing will do her no favors right now.

Never understand the logic behind shoeing a laminitic horse. They're sore because the attachment between hoof wall and rest of the foot is inflamed. So how on earth could loading ALL the weight into the hoof wall (and taking it off frogs and soles) help?!

Was she shod when she got concussive lami? I've never heard of it in a barefoot horse. When shod ALL their weight goes through the hoof wall and all shock is absorbed by it's attachment. Not surprising it rips and bruises if trotting fast in hard surface. When unshod they take over 50% of the weight through the frog and sole.


Sounds nasty but like you're doing the right thing. Treat her feet to kill nasty bugs etc then feed her currently (no sugar!) and supplement (can be complicated).

If you're 100% sure she's not actively laminitic then movement will really help her. Hard smooth tarmac is THE best surface for toughening hooves so lots and lots of road work will really help. If she finds loose stones sore, or her feet growth takes a while to catch up with wear, use boots.

If you want to reshoe her eventually you really should wait until her feet are in a healthy state first. Nailing metal onto very sick feet will never help them get better.
 
Get the farrier out, trimming little & often should deal with both thrush & the long feet. And anything you put on to treat the thrush should not be causing soreness. Until farrier & vet have seen her (which imo should be asap) I would just hose feet off & use purple spray on them.
 
I use gold label iodine for thrush. Clears it up in 24 hours if you get it quick.

My farrier won't put shoes on a horse that has active laminitis - he says the process of hammering the nails in can make it worse. He trimmed my horse and had him turned out unshod for a few months on soft ground once the horse appeared sound (after the box rest, vet, soaked hay for months etc). Once he was happy horse's feet were stable and there was no pain at all he shod with frog support pads, which do the same jobs as imprints but a lot cheaper. At the moment, after a pulling chunks off his hoof in the field, horse is unshod with hoofboots on and sound to ride on roads and rough ground. My farrier is really good with laminitics and has been far more helpful than the vet. At the moment he's waiting for some hoof growth before he will make special shoes for me! So if you have an excellent farrier your horse will be in good hands...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top