Unsod Footy horse - spring grass ?

[eggs]

Is anyone else finding their unshod horses are a bit footy at the moment? A couple of mine have been 'footy' over the last few days (one is shod, one is unshod). Not sure if it due to the grass starting to grow in this warm weather or due to the fact that the fields have dried out really quickly and ar now pretty hard.

 

[muff747]

Yes my TB is showing signs that the grass is coming thro. I think it has been for a while during the mild periods and the combination of the frosts is causing more sugars to accumulate in the emerging new shoots.
I was comparing hoof photos from this time last year and some taken a few weeks ago and realised that his toes have stretched forward and his frogs are thinner and thrushy, a sign of too much sugar from the grass. It can't be from his diet as that hasn't changed all winter. The movement in his feet is usually a prelude to him going footy but I'm frantically rasping small amounts off his toes twice weekly to try to get his toes under control before this happens, and without making him sore, a delicate balance!

 

[lachlanandmarcus]

I would agree, its just been this last week that my pony has started to pick her ground out hacking ie go for the verges rather than striding down the stony track, I am taking action accordingly with her diet and management.